Canopy (film)

Last updated

Canopy
Directed by Aaron Wilson
Written byAaron Wilson
Produced byKatrina Fleming, Aaron Wilson
Starring Khan Chittenden
Mo Tzu-yi
CinematographyStefan Duscio
Edited byCindy Clarkson
Music byNic Buchanan
Rodney Lowe
Production
companies
Finer Films
Chuan Pictures
Distributed byOdin's Eye Entertainment (Australia)
monterey media (USA)
Release dates
Running time
84 minutes
CountryAustralia/Singapore
LanguagesMandarin, Hokkien, Japanese. English

Canopy is a 2013 Australian/Singaporean psychological suspense war film, written and directed by Aaron Wilson and starring Khan Chittenden and Mo Tzu-yi. Set against the backdrop of the Battle of Singapore in World War II, the film is nearly wordless.

Contents

Plot

In 1942, during war between the Allies and the Japanese rages in the jungles of Singapore. Jim (Khan Chittenden), a Flight Lieutenant in the Royal Australian Air Force, awakens to find himself hanging from a tree by his parachute, after having been shot down. Disentangling himself he realises that he has lost his pistol, his only form of defence but manages to salvage his survival gear and sets off into the jungle, narrowly avoiding a Japanese patrol.

Making his way through mud, swamp and a field full of Japanese propaganda leaflets, he eventually runs into Chinese Dalforce guerrilla fighter Seng (Mo Tzu-yi), who had been separated from his unit behind enemy lines. They have another close encounter with a Japanese patrol and elect to set off together to aid each other in reaching friendly territory, despite not being able to speak the other's language.

Early on in their travels Seng is aggrieved to find the body of a comrade he was close to. They are briefly separated when Jim is left to contemplate the scene but he is alerted to Seng's location by the sound of gunfire. Jim is forced to rush to Seng's aid as the guerrilla collapses from a gunshot sustained to the abdomen, the Australian being forced to perform emergency surgery to retrieve the bullet with only bare hands and his sparse survival kit while simultaneously having to keep Seng silent to avoid the attention of the Japanese patrol. Jim rips off part of his pants and wraps it around Seng's waist and wound.

Later in the night, flashbacks of his hours in the jungle are interrupted as Seng wakes Jim to alert him to another Japanese patrol walking right by them, before the pair are briefly forced to fight off venomous insects from the tree which they had been sleeping under. As they settle back under the tree for the night, Seng pulls out an item from Jim's pant leg pocket tied around his waist. It's a photo of Jim's family, causing him to drift into a reverie remembering his wife back home. Jim awakens from his memories to find it is the next morning. He and Seng share a moment together in which they finally learn each other's names before Japanese soldiers find and separate them. As Seng is killed in cold blood by the patrol's officer, the Japanese drag Jim away to a truck and he is driven off to the Japanese base. He watches helplessly out of the back of the truck, knowing that his bid for freedom has finally failed. A time skip then shows Jim back home in Australia, standing motionless in a field of wheat, as the sounds of the Singapore creep back in again.

Cast

Production

Director Aaron Wilson developed the script while he was undertaking a filmmaker residency program with Objectifs Centre for Filmmaking and Photography in Singapore. [1]

Filming took place over a period of two weeks in Singapore, in and around locations where actual fighting took place during the Japanese invasion of February 1942. These areas included Sungei Buloh wetlands, Bukit Brown Chinese Cemetery and Macritchie Reservoir. Additional filming was carried out in Australia in New South Wales, close to the township of Tocumwal.[ citation needed ]

Post-production of the film was partly financed using crowdfunding through Pozible. [2]

Release

Canopy had its world premiere at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival, and was selected for screening at other major film festivals, including Busan International Film Festival, Shanghai International Film Festival and International Film Festival Rotterdam. [1]

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, a review aggregator, the film has a score of 75% based on 33 reviews. [3]

Accolades

Soundtrack

A soundtrack album was released comprising atmospheric music from and inspired by the film and its tropical jungle setting, composed by Melbourne musical artist Auromaya.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bagheera</span> Fictional panther from Kiplings Jungle Book

Bagheera is a fictional character in Rudyard Kipling's Mowgli stories in The Jungle Book and The Second Jungle Book. He is a black panther who serves as friend, protector and mentor to the "man-cub" Mowgli. The word bagheera is Hindi for panther or leopard, although the root word bagh means any form of panthera and is nowadays mostly used to refer to the Royal Bengal tiger.

<i>The Jungle Book 2</i> 2003 Disney animated film directed by Steve Trenbirth

The Jungle Book 2 is a 2003 animated adventure film produced by the Australian office at DisneyToon Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures and Buena Vista Distribution. The film was released in France on February 5, 2003, and released in the United States on February 14.

<i>Tigerland</i> 2000 film directed by Joel Schumacher

Tigerland is a 2000 American war drama film directed by Joel Schumacher and starring Colin Farrell. It takes place in a training camp for soldiers to be sent to the Vietnam War.

<i>Candy</i> (2006 film) 2006 Australian film

Candy is a 2006 Australian romantic drama film, adapted from Luke Davies's 1998 novel Candy: A Novel of Love and Addiction. Candy was directed by filmmaker Neil Armfield and stars Heath Ledger, Abbie Cornish and Geoffrey Rush.

<i>Kokoda</i> (film) 2006 Australian film

Kokoda is a 2006 Australian war film directed by Alister Grierson and is based on the experiences of Australian troops fighting Japanese forces during the 1942 Kokoda Track campaign.

<i>Clubland</i> (2007 film) 2007 Australian film

Clubland, internationally known as Introducing the Dwights, is a 2007 Australian comedy-drama film, directed by Cherie Nowlan, written by Keith Thompson, and starring Oscar nominee Brenda Blethyn and Emma Booth. The film was nominated for eleven AFI awards, winning the award for best supporting actress for Emma Booth. It sold to Warner Independent Pictures for $4.1 million, after debuting at Sundance Film Festival, where it gained standing ovations. The film opened in the U.S. on 4 July holiday weekend, the first Australian film ever to do so.

<i>West</i> (2007 film) 2007 Australian film

West is a 2007 Australian film written and directed by Daniel Krige and starring Khan Chittenden, Nathan Phillips, Gillian Alexy and Michael Dorman. The film had its world premiere at the 2007 Berlin International Film Festival and was scheduled for Australian release on 5 July 2007 at the Chauvel Cinema in Sydney and the Nova Cinema in Melbourne with other cities to follow.

<i>Home of the Brave</i> (1949 film) 1949 film by Mark Robson

Home of the Brave is a 1949 American war film based on a 1946 play by Arthur Laurents. It was directed by Mark Robson, and stars Douglas Dick, Jeff Corey, Lloyd Bridges, Frank Lovejoy, James Edwards, and Steve Brodie. The original play featured the protagonist being Jewish, rather than black. The National Board of Review named the film the eighth best of 1949. The film takes its name from the last line of the "Star Spangled Banner" "And the home of the brave?"

<i>Zibahkhana</i> 2007 Pakistani film

Zibah khana (Urdu:ذبح خانہ; lit. 'Slaughterhouse', also known as Hell's Ground, is a 2007 Pakistani Urdu- and English-language slasher film directed and co-produced by Omar Khan, who also co-wrote the film alongside co-producer Pete Tombs.

<i>The Good, the Bad, the Weird</i> 2008 South Korean film

The Good, the Bad, the Weird is a 2008 South Korean Western action film directed by Kim Jee-woon and starring Song Kang-ho, Lee Byung-hun, and Jung Woo-sung. The film is inspired by the 1966 Italian Spaghetti Western The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.

<i>Samson and Delilah</i> (2009 film) 2009 Australian film

Samson and Delilah is a 2009 Australian drama film directed by Warwick Thornton and starring Rowan McNamara and Marissa Gibson, both young first-time actors. The film depicts two Indigenous Australian 14-year-olds living in a remote Aboriginal community who steal a car and escape their difficult lives by going to Alice Springs. It won many awards, including the Caméra d'Or at Cannes for best first Feature. It was Australia's submission to the 82nd Academy Awards for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, making the January shortlist.

<i>Chatroom</i> (film) 2010 film by Hideo Nakata

Chatroom is a 2010 British psychological thriller drama film directed by Hideo Nakata from a screenplay by Enda Walsh, based on Walsh's 2005 play of the same name. The film follows five teenagers who meet on an online chatroom and encourage each other's bad behaviour.

<i>Bait 3D</i> 2012 3D horror disaster film

Bait 3D is a 2012 3D disaster horror film directed by Kimble Rendall based on the screenplay by John Kim and Russell Mulcahy. It featured Sharni Vinson, Phoebe Tonkin, Xavier Samuel, Julian McMahon, Cariba Heine, Alex Russell, Lincoln Lewis, Alice Parkinson, and Dan Wyllie. The film centers around a group of people who try to escape a grocery store, submerged as a result of a freak tsunami, while being hunted by bloodthirsty great white sharks. The film was released on 20 September 2012 in Australia.

<i>Mystery Road</i> (film) 2013 film

Mystery Road is a 2013 Australian crime film with neo-Western elements and setting, written and directed by Ivan Sen. It was screened in the Special Presentation section at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival. A film sequel entitled Goldstone was released in 2016, and TV series in 2018, all featuring Aaron Pedersen as the brooding Indigenous Australian detective Jay Swan.

<i>Dawn Patrol</i> (film) 2014 American film

Dawn Patrol is a 2014 American thriller film directed by Daniel Petrie Jr. and written by Rachel Long and Brian Pittman. The film stars Scott Eastwood, Rita Wilson, Kim Matula, Chris Brochu, Julie Carmen and Jeff Fahey. The film was released on June 5, 2015, by Alchemy.

<i>After the Storm</i> (2016 film) 2016 Japanese film

After the Storm is a 2016 Japanese family drama film written, directed and edited by Hirokazu Kore-eda. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival and was released in Japan on May 21, 2016. The film received acclaim from critics.

<i>Jasper Jones</i> (film) 2017 Australian film

Jasper Jones is an Australian mystery drama film directed by Rachel Perkins. The film was released in 2017 and is based on the 2009 novel of the same name by Craig Silvey.

<i>Flavors of Youth</i> 2018 animated film

Flavors of Youth is a 2018 anime/donghua anthology drama film directed by Li Haoling, Jiaoshou Yi Xiaoxing and Yoshitaka Takeuchi and produced by Noritaka Kawaguchi. A Japanese-Chinese co-production between CoMix Wave Films and Haoliners Animation League, it was released in Japan and in China on August 4, 2018, and globally on the same day by StudioCanal and Netflix.

Aaron Wilson is an Australian film director and screenwriter, known for the 2013 suspense war drama Canopy and the 2021 period drama Little Tornadoes.

Little Tornadoes is a 2021 Australian period drama directed by Aaron Wilson and co-written by Christos Tsiolkas. It stars Mark Leonard Winter and Silvia Colloca, and was filmed along the Murray River in and around the towns of Tocumwal, Cobram, and Mulwala.

References

  1. 1 2 "Aaron Wilson". RGM. 11 April 2019. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
  2. ↑ Peter Galvin, "Aaron Wilson - Canopy", SBS Films 24 Apr 2014 accessed 5 June 2014
  3. ↑ "Canopy". Rotten Tomatoes . Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
  4. ↑ "All the Awards from Festival des Antipodes". Rencontres Internationales du Cinéma des Antipodes. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.