Recovering from a suicide attempt in a Cape Breton hospital, Star (Sarah Walker), a neurodiverse teen, is drawn into the orbit of An (Ziyin Zheng), a genderqueer volunteer. Despite their disparate backgrounds (An has recently arrived from Shanghai), the pair operate on identical idiosyncratic frequencies, fortifying their bond through a flurry of text messages and unguarded declarations. After disclosing her aspiration of becoming a trophy wife to An, Star incants, “You’re sinning… making me evil.”
In reality, there’s nothing sinister afoot in Ashley McKenzie’s (Werewolf, 2016) extraordinary sophomore feature. Rather, it’s a disarmingly open-hearted, formally exhilarating ode to a fairy tale friendship. A heady mix of unvarnished-yet-eloquent dialogue, transportive electronic compositions by Yu Su and Cecile Believe, and visual flourishes that meld social media, animation, and VR, the film sees McKenzie adhering to her social realist principles while exploring a more expansive, sensorially rich brand of cinema. Unfolding in society’s margins, Queens of the Qing Dynasty burns as incandescently as its two stars.
Q&A Oct 5 & Oct 7
Sarah Walker, Ziyin Zheng, Wendy Wishart, Jana Reddick, Yao Xue, Cherlena Brake
Canada
2022
In English, Mandarin, and Russian with English subtitles
Self Harm
Book Tickets
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
The Last Picture Shows
Rustin Thompson journeys into the American West on a search for traces of what was once a center of small-town life: the movie theater. Despite the struggles of recent times, he also discovers inspiring stories of hope and community.
All the Lovers in the Night
A lonely proofreader's isolated world begins to open through an unlikely friendship with a gentle physics teacher. Based on Mieko Kawakami's acclaimed novel, this luminous drama is a delicate meditation on loneliness, intimacy, and self-discovery.
Clarissa
Arie and Chuko Esiri’s Clarissa brings Mrs. Dalloway to present-day Lagos, with Sophie Okonedo playing the titular society hostess opposite David Oyelowo, Ayo Edebiri, and India Amarteifio in a Nigerian vision of class, privilege, and past lives.
Image: © Courtesy of Elevation Pictures
Opening Gala: The Debut
VIFF is honoured to open the festival with this special by-invitation screening of Jesse Eisenberg's The Debut. When meek Mona (Julianne Moore) lands a part in a musical, she fully inhabits her character, but grows increasingly untethered from reality.
Árru
Set against the mountains and fjords of northern Norway, Árru follows reindeer herder Maia as a proposed copper mine threatens her Sámi community, forcing her to fight to protect both her community and the land that sustains it.
The Beloved
When Esteban Martínez, an acclaimed director with violent tendences, invites his estranged daughter to star in his latest project, the stage is set for a familial reconnection. But as tensions flare, questions about his intentions rise to the surface.
Credits
Producer
Ashley McKenzie, Britt Kerr, Nelson MacDonald
Screenwriter
Ashley McKenzie
Cinematography
Scott Moore
Editor
Ashley McKenzie, Scott Moore
Production Design
Michael Pierson
Original Music
Yu Su, Cecile Believe
Director
Ashley McKenzie
Ashley McKenzie (she/they) is a filmmaker based in Unama’ki (Cape Breton Island). Her debut feature Werewolf (2016) won the Rogers Best Canadian Film Award from the Toronto Film Critics Association in 2017. Film Comment called Werewolf “an austere, marvelously focused debut feature,” while The New Yorker named it to their Best Movies of 2018 list. Ashley’s films have screened at the Berlinale, Toronto International Film Festival, Maryland Film Festival, and Sydney Film Festival, and have been curated by the Criterion Channel, MUBI, and Anthology Film Archives.
Filmography: Werewolf (2016)