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7.5/10
2.9K
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In a small Arctic town struggling with the highest suicide rate in North America, a group of Inuit students' lives are transformed when they are introduced to the sport of lacrosse.In a small Arctic town struggling with the highest suicide rate in North America, a group of Inuit students' lives are transformed when they are introduced to the sport of lacrosse.In a small Arctic town struggling with the highest suicide rate in North America, a group of Inuit students' lives are transformed when they are introduced to the sport of lacrosse.
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- Awards
- 8 wins & 9 nominations total
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In 2005, Russ Sheppard (Ben Schnetzer) is a recent Canadian teaching graduate who flies to a small Inuit town in Nunavut for his first job. Trying to help the teens who have a high rate of suicide and despair, he teaches the kids lacrosse and organizes a local league.
There are moments when "The Grizzlies" feels like a formulaic sports movie though it thankfully has some unpredictable moments which fall outside that usual narrative. Also, Russ starts out as a naïve do-gooder / rescuer who is initially hard to take. But the movie wins for various reasons. The main one: it is based on a true story.
The film exposes the long-term difficulties of the community including not only the suicide rates mentioned but addiction, domestic violence, school truancy, and the legacy of the egregious residential school system. These other stories make the film gripping and moving with many emotions coming to the surface. It also provides hope in a sincere way that does not gloss over the long-term history of great struggle. As "The Grizzlies"joins the list of recent stories of First Nations histories, it is certainly more than a typical sports movie. Let's hope for more of these stories to be told. - dbamateurcritic
There are moments when "The Grizzlies" feels like a formulaic sports movie though it thankfully has some unpredictable moments which fall outside that usual narrative. Also, Russ starts out as a naïve do-gooder / rescuer who is initially hard to take. But the movie wins for various reasons. The main one: it is based on a true story.
The film exposes the long-term difficulties of the community including not only the suicide rates mentioned but addiction, domestic violence, school truancy, and the legacy of the egregious residential school system. These other stories make the film gripping and moving with many emotions coming to the surface. It also provides hope in a sincere way that does not gloss over the long-term history of great struggle. As "The Grizzlies"joins the list of recent stories of First Nations histories, it is certainly more than a typical sports movie. Let's hope for more of these stories to be told. - dbamateurcritic
Based on a true story, the Grizzlies tells the story of a young hotshot from southern Canada who heads up to the Arctic for a year to teach history to high school students in the remote Nunavut community of Kugluktuk. There he finds a group of kids who have little interest in school and are struggling to find ways just to persevere through a harsh environment beset by alcoholism, abuse, suicide, and the legacies of colonialism.
In an attempt to reach out to his students, he strikes upon the idea of starting a school lacrosse team. Once the idea starts to catch on, the young teacher learns that not everybody in the community is happy about the team, and that he might have just as much to learn from the Inuit as he has to teach them.
The Grizzlies is, at its heart, an underdog sports movie, and will thus appeal to anyone out there who likes a good sports movie. Beyond the sport of lacrosse, though, it really has a lot more to say about life itself, and the need to grind your way through its everyday struggles just to find a purpose to help keep you going. As with all good movies, it finds a way to tell a story that is both uniquely about a particular time and place and people, but still resonates with themes universal enough to be understood and deeply felt by anybody.
At various times funny, tragic, and inspiring, not everyone is going to make it through this one without shedding a few tears.
I was impressed by the film's ability to present delicate topics such as the difficulty of bridging the deep cultural divide between Canada's north and south without reducing any of its characters to stereotypes. The performances of the cast--many of whom were apparently acting in a feature film for the first time ever--were also remarkably compelling.
I honestly feel like this is the best Canadian movie I've ever seen, and one of the most touching sports movies ever made. I'd recommend this movie to anyone with a heart.
In an attempt to reach out to his students, he strikes upon the idea of starting a school lacrosse team. Once the idea starts to catch on, the young teacher learns that not everybody in the community is happy about the team, and that he might have just as much to learn from the Inuit as he has to teach them.
The Grizzlies is, at its heart, an underdog sports movie, and will thus appeal to anyone out there who likes a good sports movie. Beyond the sport of lacrosse, though, it really has a lot more to say about life itself, and the need to grind your way through its everyday struggles just to find a purpose to help keep you going. As with all good movies, it finds a way to tell a story that is both uniquely about a particular time and place and people, but still resonates with themes universal enough to be understood and deeply felt by anybody.
At various times funny, tragic, and inspiring, not everyone is going to make it through this one without shedding a few tears.
I was impressed by the film's ability to present delicate topics such as the difficulty of bridging the deep cultural divide between Canada's north and south without reducing any of its characters to stereotypes. The performances of the cast--many of whom were apparently acting in a feature film for the first time ever--were also remarkably compelling.
I honestly feel like this is the best Canadian movie I've ever seen, and one of the most touching sports movies ever made. I'd recommend this movie to anyone with a heart.
A Canadian production I assume make it less popular. Haven't been watched such a inspirational movie based on a true story that telling us life is full of hope. No matter how challenging it's, keep the belief and neglect how the end result will be, the process matters. It totally move my heart.
Truly left speechless after the credits rolled on screen. Had no idea this was based on a true story. Send chills down my spine. I cried, laughed, and was shocked. Astonishing performance by the actors. This film deserves so much more exposure than it has gotten. 9/10
I have never cried & laughed so much in a movie before, it was so overwhelming from the start to the finish.
The casting was perfect, the cinematography was breathtaking & the direction was inspiring.
This movie should be made mandatory in schools across Canada.
I grew up in Southern Saskatchewan, my hometown For Qu'Appelle is surrounded by multiple First Nation reserves, as well as a very large Metis population, which I am very proud to be a part of. So I understand a lot of what First Nations people endure, but I never really knew what these strong people endured in the far north of our beautiful country. This amazing movie was educational and emotional to me. I would like to thank the amazing cast & crew for sharing the story of The Grizzlies with the world.
I grew up in Southern Saskatchewan, my hometown For Qu'Appelle is surrounded by multiple First Nation reserves, as well as a very large Metis population, which I am very proud to be a part of. So I understand a lot of what First Nations people endure, but I never really knew what these strong people endured in the far north of our beautiful country. This amazing movie was educational and emotional to me. I would like to thank the amazing cast & crew for sharing the story of The Grizzlies with the world.
Did you know
- TriviaThe filmmakers included Inuit people in every aspect of the making of The Grizzlies. That way, the film would not only represent the Inuit experience, but it could provide a training ground for Inuit and Indigenous filmmakers who could go on to make their own films. A paid mentorship program invited Inuit actors, crew, musicians and other creative collaborators to participate, and in the end, more than 91 percent of the cast and more than 33 percent of the crew were Inuit or Indigenous.
- GoofsWhen the team arrives to Toronto, A poster for Teenage mutant ninja turtles: Out of the shadows can be seen . The film takes place in 2004, an entire 12 years before the film came out.
- Quotes
Russ Sheppard: What lies behind us is tiny compared to what lies within us.
- ConnectionsFeatured in CTV News at Six Toronto: Episode dated 15 September 2018 (2018)
- How long is The Grizzlies?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official sites
- Languages
- Also known as
- Grizlyovia
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $11,650
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $4,560
- Aug 2, 2020
- Gross worldwide
- $61,575
- Runtime1 hour 42 minutes
- Color
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