The Last Winter (1989 film)

Last updated
The Last Winter
Directed byAaron Kim Johnston
Written byAaron Kim Johnston
Produced byJack Clements
Ken Rodeck
StarringJoshua Murray
Gerard Parkes
David Ferry
Wanda Cannon
CinematographyIan Elkin
Edited byLara Mazur
Music byVictor Davies
Production
company
Rode Pictures
Distributed by National Film Board of Canada
CBC Television
Release date
  • October 12, 1989 (1989-10-12)(VIFF)
Running time
115 minutes
CountryCanada
LanguageEnglish
Box office Can$250,000 (Canada) [1]

The Last Winter is a Canadian drama film, directed by Aaron Kim Johnston and released in 1989. [2] The film stars Joshua Murray as William Jamison, a young boy in smalltown Manitoba whose close relationship with his grandfather Jack (Gerard Parkes) is threatened when his parents Ross (David Ferry) and Audrey (Wanda Cannon) announce that they will be leaving Jack's farm to live in the city. [3]

The cast also includes Kate Murray as William's younger sister Winnie.

The film was shot primarily around Oak Lake, Manitoba, Johnston's hometown, [4] and was semi-autobiographical based on his own childhood. [5]

The film premiered at the Vancouver International Film Festival in 1989. [6] It screened at numerous film festivals, but had trouble receiving widespread theatrical distribution; at least one commercial distributor told Johnston that while the film was excellent it simply wasn't sellable to English Canadian or American audiences, and would have been a much bigger hit if he had filmed it in French for the Quebec market. [7]

Marc Horton of the Edmonton Journal rated the film four stars, calling it "the best family film on the market right now", and especially praised the performances and the cinematography. He ultimately concluded that "it is a movie-going experience that's unique for English Canada. In fact, with its faintly European texture and pacing combined with our sensibilities, it is a film that should -- hopefully -- be around for a long, long time." [8] It was broadcast by CBC Television in December 1990. [9]

Designer Martha Wynne Snetsinger received a Genie Award nomination for Best Costume Design at the 11th Genie Awards in 1990. [10]

Related Research Articles

The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television presents an annual award for Best Motion Picture to the best Canadian film of the year.

The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television presents an annual award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role to the best performance by a lead actor in a Canadian film. The award was first presented in 1968 by the Canadian Film Awards, and was presented annually until 1978 with the exception of 1969, when no eligible feature films were submitted for award consideration, and 1974 due to the cancellation of the awards that year.

The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television presents an annual award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role to the best performance by a lead actress in a Canadian film. The award was first presented in 1968 by the Canadian Film Awards, and was presented annually until 1978 with the exception of 1969, when no eligible feature films were submitted for award consideration, and 1974 due to the cancellation of the awards that year.

Rupert's Land is a Canadian comedy film, directed by Jonathan Tammuz and released in 1998. The film stars Samuel West and Ian Tracey as Rupert and Dale McKay, estranged half-brothers on a road trip from Vancouver to Prince Rupert for their father's funeral. Rupert, who was raised primarily in England after his mother left their father to return home, has become a wealthy lawyer, while Dale, who remained in Canada, is a hard-nosed fisherman and small-time drug dealer, forcing the duo to overcome significant differences as they reconcile.

The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television presents an annual award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role to the best performance by a supporting actor in a Canadian film. The award was first presented in 1970 by the Canadian Film Awards, and was presented annually until 1978 with the exception of 1974 due to the cancellation of the awards that year.

The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television presents an annual award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role to the best performance by a supporting actress in a Canadian film. The award was first presented in 1970 by the Canadian Film Awards, and was presented annually until 1978 with the exception of 1974 due to the cancellation of the awards that year.

The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television presents an annual award for Best Achievement in Direction to the best work by a director of a Canadian film.

The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television presents one or more annual awards for the Best Screenplay for a Canadian film. Originally presented in 1968 as part of the Canadian Film Awards, from 1980 until 2012 the award continued as part of the Genie Awards ceremony. As of 2013, it is presented as part of the Canadian Screen Awards.

The Canadian Screen Award for Best Costume Design is awarded by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best Canadian costume designer. It was formerly called the Genie Award for Best Achievement in Costume Design before the Genies were merged into the Canadian Screen Awards.

The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television presents an annual award for Best Achievement in Music: Original Song to the best original song in a Canadian motion picture.

The Canadian Screen Award for Best Animated Short is awarded by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best Canadian animated short film. Formerly part of the Genie Awards, since 2012 it has been presented as part of the Canadian Screen Awards.

The Canadian Screen Award for Best Live Action Short Drama is awarded by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best Canadian live action short film. Formerly part of the Genie Awards, since 2012 it has been presented as part of the Canadian Screen Awards.

Robyn Stevan is a Canadian actress. She is best known for her role in the film Bye Bye Blues, for which she won the Genie Award for Best Supporting Actress at the 11th Genie Awards in 1990.

Cold Comfort is a Canadian psychological thriller film, released in 1989. The film was written by Richard Beattie and Elliot L. Sims based on the play by Jim Garrard, and directed by Vic Sarin.

The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television presents an annual award for Best Feature Length Documentary. First presented in 1968 as part of the Canadian Film Awards, it became part of the Genie Awards in 1980 and the contemporary Canadian Screen Awards in 2013.

The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television's Award for Best Short Documentary is an annual Canadian film award, presented to a film judged to be the year's best short documentary film. Prior to 2012 the award was presented as part of the Genie Awards program; since 2012 it has been presented as part of the expanded Canadian Screen Awards.

Colin Browne is a Canadian writer, documentary filmmaker and academic. He is most noted for his documentary film White Lake, which was a Genie Award nominee for Best Feature Length Documentary at the 11th Genie Awards in 1990, and his poetry collection Ground Water, which was shortlisted for the Governor General's Award for English-language poetry at the 2002 Governor General's Awards.

Richard Beattie is a Canadian screenwriter. He is most noted for the 1989 film Cold Comfort, for which he and Elliot L. Sims won the Genie Award for Best Adapted Screenplay at the 11th Genie Awards in 1990.

Hate Mail is a Canadian short comedy-drama film, directed by Mark Sawers and released in 1993. The film stars Peter Outerbridge as Randall, a writer who works from home. Distracted by the constant noise from their neighbours while his wife Maggie is at work, Randall decides to forge eviction notices directed at all of them.

Elimination Dance is a 1998 Canadian short drama film. Directed by Bruce McDonald, Don McKellar and Michael Ondaatje based on Ondaatje's poem of the same name, the film stars McKellar and Tracy Wright as a couple in a jazz dance competition, in which various couples are eliminated as the announcer calls out various elimination criteria drawn from Ondaatje's poem.

References

  1. "Canadian films at home". Variety . 19 November 1990. p. 56.
  2. Liam Lacey, "Filmmaker overcomes Prairie pitfalls". The Globe and Mail , October 16, 1989.
  3. "My heart belongs to the prairies: Film tells moving story of Manitoba boy's coming-of-age". Waterloo Region Record , October 5, 1990.
  4. "Manitoba town crows about film-making role". Edmonton Journal , April 10, 1989.
  5. Gaylene K. Dempsey, "The Last Winter". Cinema Canada , April 1989.
  6. Elizabeth Aird, "Director has top tips for home stretch". Vancouver Sun , October 10, 1989.
  7. "Last Winter gets chilly reception". Edmonton Journal , April 8, 1990.
  8. Marc Horton, "Winter tale Western Canada's own". Edmonton Journal , April 28, 1990.
  9. "The Last Winter a warm, charming family drama". Waterloo Region Record , December 8, 1990.
  10. "Bye Bye Blues in running for Genie Awards". Vancouver Sun , February 14, 1990.