EIFF 2013: Stories We Tell Review

Director: Sarah Polley.

Starring: Sarah Polley, Michael Polley.

Running Time: 108 minutes.

Synopsis: Sarah Polley plays both director and investigator while trying to piece together past events that involved her family.

Daughter of British-Canadian thesp couple Michael and Diana Polley, actress-director Sarah learnt of family rumours and myths whilst growing up with her older brothers and sisters. Challenging her family to tell their stories in their own words, this is presented as difficult by all parties from the outset, but is dampened by the fact that everybody ultimately appears to tell the same version of events.

Expressing their nerves during the film’s Bon Iver-set opening, Sarah’s siblings are a captivating bunch whose constant teasing of each other is a key source of comedy throughout – just wait for the repetition of a certain someone’s name. Though what unfolds is not the lightest of subjects for the director, it is handled in a very human fashion that really benefits from its intermittent comedy.

Hoping to delve into uncertainties that have raised their head during her life, Polley brings in multiple bodies to tell their tale. Though this brings more validation to claims, it does leave a couple of talking heads (notably Pixie and Mort) feeling unnecessary when stealing no more than a few minutes screen time. That said, her siblings and father Michael are given enough equal weight that you begin to sense you know who they are and that this is no act, even for a family of actors.

The magnetic, silent life force at the centre of events is mother, Diane. Described by one of her sons as being just like I LOVE LUCY whilst growing up, she is a fascinating person who is unfortunately held at arm’s length when you are so desperate to learn more about her. Events may revolve around Diane, but this is her husband’s story. Letting him read from his own writing, Sarah allows her father to frame and affirm events, which seems an odd choice considering the revelations we come to discover.

Mixing her film with talking heads and old footage, questions over reconstructed scenarios arise, resulting in a clever and very effective blurred line of reality. However, authenticity is reinstated in a latter framing device involving the poetic reciting of emails sent between different parties, even if it does lead to a few faux endings.

The people we meet in STORIES WE TELL are genuinely fascinating, but this documentary offers little beyond personal testimony. It is understandably a cathartic way of dealing with family issues, but rarely feels like a story that needs telling when everyone agrees on the story at hand.