Shadows Cannot See Themselves
LOOKING IS THE ORIGINAL SIN – a film by Gail Harvey – (some spoilers) ⁓
Helene
Linda Hamilton appears briefly as herself. Kris Holden-Ried is Helene’s ex-lover, and Dewshane Williams is Anna’s boyfriend Daniel in this tale of a photographer’s daughter (Anna, played by Katie Boland) and her attempts to make sense of her mother’s detachment. It probably wasn’t a good idea for writer/director Gail Harvey to say upfront that the film was inspired by the life of Diane Arbus. Quibbles about things un-Arbus-like would be easy to find, but the story is not about that, and it is a fascinating story.
Anna
We learn about Helene (Maria del Mar) through Anna’s investigation of her, and Anna takes her quest to understand her mother to extraordinary lengths. Helene explained to her that all she seeks is an ‘honest picture’, but Anna does not understand that, and needs more. Since Helene photographs everything, her daughter is able to track down friends, business associates, and even an ex-lover. Maria del Mar‘s intense portrayal makes one have a certain sympathy for the great artist attempting to flee the mundane, not wanting to spend time and mental energy being an emotional support for a daughter who has no apparent understanding of her creative process.
“Photography is about death, because what you’re doing really is you’re trying to capture a second that’s gone by and hang onto it, desperately clinging on to that moment that’s already happened.”
—- Helene
Helene’s exploratory activities, both artistic and sexual, are merely hinted at. The implication is that Helene is living on the edge, dangerously pushing the boundaries of sense and safety, but we see nothing of that beyond a couple of suggestive photos. The sins of this mother are very understated, and that gives Anna’s quest a kind of Dorothy in Oz feel, as she searches for the knowledge that will restore her home to what it was before her mother left.
Brent
Anna fears that since she does not know her mother, she does not know herself; that if she cannot trust her mother, she cannot trust herself.
Katie Boland is at her best in this. In the beginning, her character (Anna) is hard to watch. She is the sort of person one would like to get away from as soon as possible. Then there is a subtle change (the exact moment of which is unclear) and one feels protective toward her. Then she gets to know her mother’s friend Brent, and Anna becomes genuinely interesting. (Brent. a very tolerant man, is portrayed wonderfully by Kent Staines.)
It is a visually quiet film, at least until the very end. There is a lot of watching the scenery go by as Anna walks or runs or rides the streetcar. If you are from Toronto and are living elsewhere, this is the film for you. Lots of landmarks and locations to identify and remember.
Helene and Anna
When LOOKING was released in 2013, Harvey was interviewed by Andrew Parker for Dork Shelf, and he asked her what it was like making a film so personal to her with her daughter in the leading role. “Well, the Helene character isn’t me,” she responded. “It certainly isn’t autobiographical, but she does contain a lot of the ideas and things that I think about photography, and I guess she should since I wrote the darn thing. But I have known Maria for a long time now. She was actually only about three or four years older than Katie is now when I first cast her in a film. She’s fantastic, and she and Katie had actually played mother and daughter before. They were together on a fantastic show that was on HBO Canada called ‘Terminal City’ that was shooting out in Victoria, and they lived together in a house for that. Maria has known Katie since she was born, practically. So they already had a relationship.” (The 2005 miniseries TERMINAL CITY, directed by Rachel Talalay and Lynne Stokpewich, is available on DVD.)
Looking is the Original Sin had its premiere at the 2013 Montreal World Film Festival.
Miscellaneous Info
Katie Boland (Anna) is Jenny in AULD LANG SYNE, a film by Joan Carr-Wiggin about two out-of-work actors in their sixties (played by Linda Kash and Mimi Kuzyk) who hide out on a film set so they can have their dream Christmas. AULD LANG SYNE can be streamed on Amazon Prime Video.
Maria Del Mar (Helene) will be Rosa in Maria Delakos‘ fantasy romance RED DOOR AND LEMON TREE, the story of a Hollywood star who, after her father’s death, travels to Greece in search of her childhood home. Among those she meets on the way are Persephone the witch (Maria Tzobanaki), Aphrodite the fortune teller, Yianni the “sexiest sailor alive” (Constantine Maroulis), and Mary (Maria Tsagaraki), an actor who reminds Rosa of her younger self. No word yet on a release date.
Dewshane Williams (Daniel) is smooth-talking Herb Porter in the sci-fi comedy HELLO, TOMORROW!, a series created by Amit Bhalla and Lucas Jansen about near-future door-to-door salesmen selling non-existent timeshares on the moon. Leila Latif wrote in The Guardian: “Just watching them go about their everyday business proves a feast for the eye; the exquisite aesthetic cannot be overstated. Classic 1950s cars float down streets (the models of the time were inspired by space-age design), homes are bright pastel, featuring Stepford-perfect lawns while kitsch robot helpers serve up crisp martinis. It is a cartoonish realisation of the American dream.” HELLO TOMORROW! can be streamed on AppleTV.
** — Revised. Originally published 20 May 2016