Termini Station(film)
| Termini Station | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Allan King |
| Written by | Colleen Murphy |
| Produced by | Don Haig Allan King |
| Starring | Megan Follows Colleen Dewhurst Gordon Clapp Debra McGrath |
| Cinematography | Brian R.R. Hebb |
| Edited by | Gordon McClellan |
| Music by | Mychael Danna |
Production company | Saturday Plays Ltd. |
| Distributed by | Northern Arts Entertainment Astral Media Fox Lorber Home Video Monarch Home Video |
Release date |
|
Running time | 108 minutes |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
Termini Stationis a 1989 Canadiandrama filmdirected byAllan Kingand written byColleen Murphy.[1]
The film starsColleen DewhurstandMegan Followsas Molly and Micheline Dushane, a mother and daughter living in a smallNorthern Ontariotown.[2]Molly is an alcoholic, which creates tension between her and Micheline, while Micheline is a retail clerk and part-timeprostitutewho dreams of escaping her stifling small-town existence.[3]The film's cast also includesGordon ClappandDebra McGrathas Molly's son and daughter-in-law, as well asGordon Pinsentin flashbacks as Molly's deceased husband and Micheline's father, who unsuccessfully attempted to kill Micheline before committing suicide.
Termini Stationwas filmed on location inKirkland Lake,Ontario.[4]
Distribution
[edit]The film premiered at the1989 Toronto International Film Festivalin September 1989.[5]Its second screening was at the inauguralCinéfest Sudbury International Film Festivaltwo weeks later.[6]
Critical response
[edit]The film received mixed reviews from critics.Rick GroenofThe Globe and Mailpraised how King's background indocumentaryfilmmaking had influenced the film's depiction of the "permanently half-finished look of themid-North",but criticized the screenplay as melodramatic,[3]while Peter Goddard of theToronto Starcalled the cast talented but wasted, and concluded that "Canadiana any more Gothic than this and you could put an Elmira stove in it and sell it inHarrowsmith."[7]
Marke Andrews of theVancouver Sunwrote that the film's only redeeming quality was that it liberated Follows from her wholesomeAnne of Green Gablesimage,[8]while Wendy Dudley of theCalgary Heraldsuggested that King's choice to cast Dewhurst and Follows together as a mother and daughter, so soon after theAnne of Green Gablesfilms, was one of the film's biggest problems, concluding that "it's hard to accept Marilla as a drunk and Anne as a whore."[9]
TheLos Angeles Times,conversely, acknowledged that the film "is stuck in the usual kitchen-sink realism that makes the Anglo-Canadian--as opposed to the often exciting Quebecois--cinema so often dull", but praised the cast, and Dewhurst in particular, for their performances.[10]
Awards
[edit]The film was nominated for six awards at the11th Genie Awards:Best Picture,Best Actress(Dewhurst, Follows),Best Original Screenplay(Murphy),Best Overall Sound(Sal Grimaldi, Joe Grimaldi, Dino Pigat and Peter Shewchuk), andBest Sound Editing(Terry Burke, David Templeton, Ralph Brunjes, and Brian Ravok).[11]
References
[edit]- ^"Film liberation folly for Follows".Vancouver Sun,November 1, 1989.
- ^"Follows plays hustler in new Allan King film: Termini Station is a 'cross between grand opera and the Marx Brothers'".The Globe and Mail,November 4, 1988.
- ^ab"Film Review: Termini Station".The Globe and Mail,September 29, 1989.
- ^"Dewhurst a hot act in deep freeze".Toronto Star,December 17, 1988.
- ^"Megan Follows as hooker; Anne of Green Gables star takes different role in film series".Ottawa Citizen,September 13, 1989.
- ^"Extra seats needed at Cinefest".The Globe and Mail,September 27, 1989.
- ^"Talented cast wasted in boozy, passionless look at our identity".Toronto Star,September 29, 1989.
- ^"Follows film just dumb".Vancouver Sun,November 1, 1989.
- ^"You won't want to wait at the station".Calgary Herald,March 12, 1990.
- ^"MOVIE REVIEW: 'Termini Station,' Dewhurst's Last Film, Her Best".Los Angeles Times,December 13, 1991.
- ^"Rundown on the Genie hopefuls".Edmonton Journal,February 14, 1990.