'Oh, Canada' Review: Richard Gere Returns to Tip-Top Form in Paul Schrader's Latest [TIFF 2024]
It has become almost comforting to sit down and watch a new film from Paul Schrader in this era of his career. Comforting in the sense that you almost know what you are getting when you go into it. The themes of mortality, reflection, and doubt mixed with a protagonist whose internal monologue helps guide you through the experience of the film. Schrader’s last few works have all felt like a semblance of the film and script that put him on the map, Taxi Driver. His latest work is no different, and its title, ‘Oh, Canada’, is rather fitting for a film helping to kick off this year's Toronto International Film Festival.
Oh, Canada stars Richard Gere as Leonard Fife, a documentary filmmaker who seemingly does not have too much longer to live. He agrees to do a tell-all final testament interview for former students of his, and current documentarians Malcolm (Michael Imperioli), and Diana (Victoria Hill). The film cuts back in time to Leonard’s coming of age and early 20s, where he is played by rising star Jacob Elordi. As we cut back to the interview segments, the older Leonard Fife (Richard Gere), is never not accompanied by his wife, Emma (Uma Thurman), whom he suggests this testament is a love letter and revealing of his true self to her.
Fife is known in circles today as a leftist documentarian, who fled to Canada as a draft dodger during the Vietnam war only to stumble upon and document on film the secret Agent Orange project which had been conducted in New Brunswick during the Vietnam war. As he nears his death, he is renowned for being bold enough to make films that shed light on various social issues such as the Vietnam war, among others. The film makes it very clear however, that Fife has grown to struggle, internally, with his status. This testament, which sought initially to be a reflection on defecting, and the activist it made Leonard, soon devolved into a tale of self-discovery and coming to terms with one's guilt.
The film does a brilliant job at flashing backwards in time, and trying to piece together the true story of Leonard Fife despite his state of mind and health struggles. He could be considered an unreliable narrator, as oftentimes there are jumps in time during his explanations, or confusions and breaks that need to be had to change the catheter and whatnot. Fife is trying to lay it all out there, and whether believed or not by the people in that room, Fife is telling his story that he feels to be true, for the first time in his life.
Jacob Elordi shines as the young Leonard Fife. His role is not nearly as showy as that of Richard Gere’s, but he is able to serviceably guide us through the flashbacks and memories of a life that was. Elordi has undeniably been seeking ways to grow as an actor. Taking on roles in films like Saltburn and Priscilla have allowed him to develop and display his chops, and taking a step into the world of Paul Schrader by starring in this film undoubtedly aids him in his endeavors. Elordi is never extremely vulnerable, but you can feel his uncertainty, a boyish man who wants to pretend he is something more than he is. A writer who seeks to be known as such rather than a writer who is passionate about stories on a page. The young Leonard Fife is almost fraudulent when comparing him to the legend that he is regarded to in his old age. Schrader’s script explores the differences between this apparent artistic fraud and what it means to still be discovering yourself as a human being.
Gere’s version of Fife, obviously older and a lot louder, is a version that explores that vulnerability from a perspective at the end of the line. Gere’s voiceover monologue never shies away from an attempt at seeking some form of truth. He tells it as it is, so he says, and he is not afraid to reveal his faults as not only an artist, but as a human. Maybe it is because the film's central characters are not former Neo-Nazis or past torturers at Guantanamo Bay, but something about Oh, Canada feels softer than other recent Paul Schrader films. The film is tender at the core, and Schrader’s direction feels a lot more engaging than on other recent works. There is a vision here that is clear and complete, and Schrader never strays away from what matters.
Being one of Schrader’s stronger films in recent years, Oh, Canada is sure to satisfy fans of the filmmaker. Its themes of reflection and mortality, mixed with a strong performance from Gere and an intriguing way of telling a story all combine to make this a work that should be of interest to anyone seeking out a film that aims to add a little subversion to the movie watching experience.