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 Shadows off the beaten pathIndies, foreigns, docs and shorts...
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BOUCHRA |
CHICKENHARE AND THE SECRET OF THE GROUNDHOG |
MIDDLE LIFE
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| See also: SHADOWS FILM FESTIVAL | Last update 2.Aug.26 | |||||||||||||
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Bouchra Review by Rich Cline | 
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 dir Orian Barki, Meriem Bennani prd Filippo Fante scr Orian Barki, Meriem Bennani, Ayla Mrabet voices Meriem Bennani, Orian Barki, Yto Barrada, Salima Dhaibi, Hassan Hamdani, Ariana Faye Allensworth, Faycal Azizi, Bouchra Benzekri, Dounia Berrada, Lil Patty release US 26.Jun.26, UK 7.Aug.26 25/US 1h23 TORONTO FILM FEST Is it streaming? |
 Using an audaciously original animation style that combines a variety of techniques, visual artists Orian Barki and Meriem Bennani recount a deeply personal story centred around the relationship between a queer artist and her North African heritage. It's packed with hilarious moments that feature real-life interaction and awkwardness, and it looks like nothing we've ever seen before. It may be a bit murky, but it's also dazzlingly original. In New York, Bouchra (voiced by Bennani) likes to listen to radio from back home in Casablanca. And she keeps in regular touch by phone with her mother Aicha (Barrada). But their conversations are smalltalk and silly anecdotes, as they have avoided speaking about Bouchra's sexuality for nearly a decade. Meanwhile, Bouchra's lively best friend Yani (Barki) chides her for hooking up with her ex Nikki (Allensworth). Bouchra also travels home to Morocco to see her family. And she puts all of this into a movie she is making to explore her identity and connections. Distinctive visuals incorporates photography of the settings, while characters are rendered as local animals with human proportions. So Bouchra is a coyote, Yani a lizard and Nikki a cow. There's also Lamia (Dhaibi), a bear Bouchra has a fling with in Casablanca. This adds an intriguingly fantastical vibe to a film that's unusually grounded and realistic. Much of it seems to have been shot on Bouchra's handheld camera. This becomes even more intentional in the final act, which looks like a backstage doc about making her movie. Intriguingly, the filmmakers use real recorded conversations in the audio track, which means that interaction has distinct rhythms of real life, including hesitations, distractions and spontaneous humour. So the dialog continually spirals off in amusing directions, dodging the important topic at hand while also offering telling observations about the thoughts and feelings of the characters, most notably the mother and daughter. This relationship is the film's core, as Bouchra tries to get Aicha to discuss a letter she sent nine years earlier, announcing her sexuality. Eventually, Bouchra says she can't go on skirting around this issue, lying to her parents about her life. And Aicha replies that she also hates lying to the wider family about Bouchra. This is a smart, open-handed exploration about the dangers of choosing repression over honesty. It's also truthful about the huge impact of culture on the way we act and react to each other. And it ends on a beautifully hopeful note.
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Chickenhare and the Secret of the Groundhog Review by Rich Cline | 
Hopper et le Secret de la Marmotte
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 dir Benjamin Mousquet scr David Collard, Chris Grine prd Matthieu Gondinet, Matthieu Zeller voices Jordan Tartakow, Joey Lotsko, Laila Berzins, Odessa Lurlean, Xanthe Huynh, Chris Bass, Wally Wingert, Brent Mukai, Dino Andrade, Todd Haberkorn, Byron Patrick, Michael Sorich release Bel 22.Oct.25, UK 24.Jul.26 25/Belgium Sony 1h28 Is it streaming? |
 This lively and very colourful animated adventure comedy follows on from 2022's Chickenhare and the Hamster of Darkness, which skipped UK cinemas. But not having seen it didn't matter too much, as most of the dialog carefully explains every detail of the plot, including back-stories and the movie's most salient themes. Thankfully, high-quality animation from nWave Studios holds our attention, even if everything feels rather absurdly random. On Indiana Jones-style quests, Chickenhare (Tartakow) is accompanied by skunk Meg (Berzins) and tortoise Abe (Lotsko). After recovering the Holy Spork, they are joined by Chickenhare's long-lost sister Gina (Huynh) for their next quest to find a mythical groundhog (Bass) that has time-travel powers. Gina thinks he will be able to save their native island's population of harechickens from certain doom. But Meg's ex Crolloq (Lurlean) is trying to steal her thunder, tracking their every move with her chameleon henchmen (Andrade and Haberkorn), determined to rekindle her partnership with Meg. Chases and face-offs ensue. At every stage along the way, there's a massive action sequence involving various critters in a range of eye-catching settings on land, in the sea, air and underground, plus a swirly realm in between time. There's a brief interlude with dancing snakes and crocodiles, plus a marauding hive-mind of cubic pigs that seem to have escaped from Minecraft. The plotting is wildly overcomplicated, as is much of the design work, but throwaway gags fill both the visuals and the dialog. These animated details are finely rendered, so even if everything is a bit too wacky, it still looks great. And the hand-drawn flashbacks are gorgeous. It also helps that all of the characters have spiky personalities, getting into trouble for doing and saying things impulsively. But their hearts are in the right place, so we can't help but root for them to save the day, as if that is ever in question. There are also various lessons woven throughout the bonkers silliness, such as the reminder that you will always get further by treating people with respect than just shouting at them. And in the end, the film also encourages us to celebrate what makes us who we are, rejecting bigotry, rumours and fear as we seek out our chosen family. So even if the plot never quite makes any sense, there are worthwhile messages in here for everyone.
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Middle Life Review by Rich Cline |
Is it streaming?
|  There's a gently jazzy tone to this warm romantic comedy about people whose lives have gone to plan, although they're not quite where they want to be. Alongside the natural, conversational humour, there's a likeable earthiness in the performances that pulls us into the story. Writer-director Pavan Moondi has a superbly loose style that's thoroughly winning even if we can see where this is going very early on. Wedding planner Andie (Goldstein) has a busy life with a new baby and an increasingly disconnected husband Chris (Lalonde). Then one day she runs into plumber Ryan (Dreimanis), whose life she once saved after a car crash. Their conversation quickly gets very deep, as they begin discussing their personal bucket lists. And Andie is happy when she has a toilet emergency at her office, so she can see him again. Hanging out is fun, relieving everyday pressures. So both are careful to avoid any kind of romantic connection. Until Chris asks for a divorce. Offbeat running jokes include Ryan's perpetual need to drain his bladder, which might be psychosomatic. Together, Andie and Ryan have fun discovering random new activities, from bidding at an art auction to attending a TV show taping. Much of this is very goofy, but it's also thoroughly charming. And the struggles between Andie and Chris feel both realistic and never overstated. So it makes sense when Andie and Ryan have a spontaneous adventure in Los Angeles, even as it badly rattles Andie's compunction to plan every detail. Because it centres tightly around the two central characters, the side roles remain as texture around the edges. Meanwhile, these two messy souls slowly move toward each other. Goldstein finds a nice balance between Andie's obsessive scheduling and her desire for a more open-handed life. And Dreimanis makes Ryan an enjoyable doofus. These people certainly aren't ready to start a love story together, and they know it. The salient message here is that most of us are so locked in our old ways that we never consider breaking out of the norm to challenge ourself. The film never glosses over the risks involved, and indeed there are some serious repercussions, but the way it encourages us to grab hold of life as it comes, and to refuse to get stuck in our ways, is provocative in the best sort of way. It's a reminder to find joy every day, and live the best version of our life.
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See also: SHADOWS FILM FESTIVAL © 2026 by Rich Cline, Shadows
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