VIFF 2024: ‘Ari’s Theme’ | ‘The Chef & The Daruma’ | ‘Inay (Mama)’
Ari's Theme (dirs. Nathan Drillot, Jeff Lee Petry)
The opening night film for the 43rd Vancouver International Film Festival is an unsurprisingly empathetic glimpse into the life of Ari Kinarthy. Directed by Nathan Drillot and Jeff Lee Petry, Ari’s Theme follows a familiar structure to the directing duo’s previous film, Wizard Mode, which followed a pinball player with autism whose passion for the game drove him to become a world champion pinball player. It was a film that acknowledged the stigma around autism and showcased an individual whose disorder did not prevent them from pursuing their interests and even excelling within the field. Ari’s Theme is not dissimilar from this, ultimately leaving a touching celebration of someone’s life in its wake.
Ari Kinarthy suffers from Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) Type 2, which is a degenerative disorder that has restricted Ari to a wheelchair and compromised his immune system. Despite this, Ari has used music therapy to become a composer and has set a goal to compose a theme for his life. This piece - the titular ‘Ari’s Theme’ - represents not just his life but a love letter to his family and a part of his legacy. Through highly intimate interviews with Ari and a detailed overview of his process, Ari’s Theme spotlights how creativity can flourish from unforeseen circumstances. Its inclusion of Ari’s family and discussions between Ari and his mother are revealing and honest conversations that further illuminate Ari’s creative inclinations.
While Ari’s Theme is the kind of empathetic filmmaking that Drillot and Petry have done well with in the past, some inclusions have varying effectiveness. The film has animated and dramatic recreations of Ari’s past and his dreams, accompanied by excerpts from Ari’s compositions. While occasionally these can heighten the gravitas of Ari’s words, they generally offer little benefit to their inclusion. The effective element is the integration of what Ari has created, as opposed to a depiction of what Ari has lived or dreamed, as well as the home videos from Ari’s childhood spliced throughout the film. They simply mesh better with the intimacy of the film. It’s still an insightful documentary with an inspiring subject but never hits the emotional crescendo it seems poised to accomplish.
The Chef & The Daruma (dir. Mads K. Baekkevold)
There is no denying the California Roll's impact on the globalization of sushi, specifically in North America. Invented by chef Hidekazu Tojo after immigrating from Japan to Canada, Tojo’s mark on the appeal of sushi to Western audiences is impossible to ignore. In Mads K. Baekkevold’s feature directorial debut, The Chef & The Daruma, he traces Tojo’s history back to Japan while questioning the chef on his ideology towards food, culture, and identity. Now operating a restaurant out of Vancouver that tends to attract a predominantly Western audience looking for quality sushi with a luxurious atmosphere, Baekkevold’s documentary prods at the appeal of Japanese culture in the West while exploring the Japanese-Canadian immigrant experience, specifically in British Columbia, and the harrowing treatment of anyone of Japanese descent.
While it does delve into those heavy concepts, The Chef & The Daruma remains distant from the internment camps and mass expulsion of Japanese Canadians simply because its subject was not directly affected by them. Instead, it serves as a lesson in the history of the Japanese cultural scene within British Columbia. The film sometimes brings Tojo along to explore some of that history, and he shares some anecdotes. Still, it becomes much more about the tragic past inflicted on the Japanese population on the West Coast, which can seem odd when the film then shifts back to discussing sushi and its cultural impact. It’s not the only time the documentary feels disjointed, as its inclusion of the titular daruma and the process involved can seem slightly insignificant beyond educational purposes.
Baekkevold’s film does an excellent job of bringing in varying perspectives and exploring the Japanese-Canadian experience. Ultimately, it feels like it is trying to tell a personal story of success but perhaps chooses a flashier subject than is befitting the historical context it’s also trying to provide. The result is an informative documentary that skirts around its heavier subject matter. There’s a missed opportunity, but The Chef & The Daruma is also an enjoyable enough experience as it explores Vancouver’s Japanese history through its culinary background. Leaving the film wanting to have an omakase experience at Tojo’s is almost non-negotiable by the time the credits roll.
Inay (Mama) (dir. Thea Loo)
Inay is one of the documentaries playing at the Vancouver International Film Festival this year and is Thea Loo’s insightful and personal view of the Filipino-Canadian experience. Turning the camera on herself and her husband, Jeremiah Reyes (who serves as co-cinematographer alongside Christian Yves Jones), Inay (the Tagalog translation for “Mama”) has many heart-to-heart moments that fuel its examination of the experience that Jeremiah and other Filipinos experienced when their mothers suddenly moved to Canada for work. Specifically, Inay looks deeper at the Live-In Caregiver Program from the 1990s, which separated mothers from their children in the Philippines to provide a steady income and gain permanent residency within Canada.
Loo’s approach to telling the experience of Filipino Canadians who were separated from their mothers due to the program ties itself neatly into conversations about mental health and the immigrant experience. Children are often separated from their mothers for at least five years, while the father stays with them in the Philippines until the mother has gained permanent residency. It can take time, though, and it takes a toll on both the children and the mother. Unfortunately, Inay relies so heavily on confessional anecdotes and confrontations that Loo’s direction can often feel manipulative and a case of leading the witness. As such, it suffers from some aggressive questions that none of the subjects seem willing to answer - a questionable tactic when mental health is brought into the equation.
Though some films have discussed the Live-In Caregiver Program and its relationship to the Philippines, Inay offers an insightful look at families who have suffered in silence. Its title may translate to “Mama” in English, but it’s clear that the film's real focus is on the effects it had on the children of those left behind until they were ready to immigrate. The sacrifices made by the mothers are not ignored, but the impact they had on the children serves as the thesis for Inay. That’s an interesting angle to come at in the film, and including friends and family affected by the experience gives the film an immersive, personal touch. However, it suffers from being a bit rough around the edges presentation-wise and seemingly dependent on confrontation to provide itself with more emotional heft.
The 2024 edition of the Vancouver International Film Festival will take place between September 26th and October 6th. More information on the lineup can be found on the festival's official website.
