Shadows on the Wall

Holy Days

dir-scr Nat Boltt
prd Emma Slade, Victoria Dabbs, Roxi Bull, Michelle Morris, Sushant Desai
with Judy Davis, Miriam Margolyes, Jacki Weaver, Elijah Tamati, Craig Hall, Nat Boltt, Tanea Heke, John Bach, Jonny Brugh, Colin Moy, Tuakoi Ohia, Renaye Tamati
release NZ 26.Feb.26,
US 27.Mar.26
26/New Zealand 1h41

TORONTO FILM FEST

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Livened up by boisterous nuns, this warm road comedy from New Zealand follows a mischievous boy who simply refuses to accept that life continues to move forward after his mother dies. Actor-filmmaker Nat Boltt keeps things sunny and colourful, finding humour in the characters' sparky personalities and earthy emotion in the situations. And the movie provides three veteran actresses with colourful, meaty roles to sink their teeth into.

In 1974, young Brian (Tamati) misses his late mother, so he hangs out with the lively nuns she worked for: sisters Agnes (Davis), Luke (Margolyes) and Mary Clare (Weaver). Brian is also angry that his father (Hall) is marrying Liz (Boltt), neglecting his promise to take Brian to a mythical mountain. When the new bishop (Bach) closes the convent, the sisters refuse to accept that five decades of work are ending. They borrow Father Findlay's (Brugh) car and head off to collect the deed from their lawyer, Brian's Aunt Patricia (Heke). And Brian tags along.

Colourful stop-motion cutaways take us into Brian's imagination as he accompanies these three ageing but hilariously energetic women to the South Island in a rattly red station wagon, funded by a bag of dodgy cash. As they have various mini-adventures along the road, Brian hears these women's backstories, offering a crash course in the harsh realities of the world around him. And of course the journey takes him to his long yearned-for snowy mountain peak. Amusing gags abound throughout the script, including verbal wit and slapstick goofiness.

Davis, Margolyes and Weaver are so radiant on-screen that we would happily watch them for hours in roles as snappy as these. Not only is their comical timing utter perfection, but they continually locate deeper thoughtfulness in unexpected places. Their interaction with young Tamati is charming, especially as darker ideas emerge to bring out grounded emotions. Surrounding characters are refreshingly complex, and the adept actors find ways to surprise us along the way.

Adding meaning to everything is the repeated instance of property developers wanting to turn the church's properties into tourist resorts, while locals struggle with the loss of badly needed assistance. And while Brian learns his own lessons, these feisty nuns go through a crisis of confidence that pushes them forward with a few miraculous boosts. The plot is corny, bittersweet and very tidy, but it's wonderful to see such an entertaining movie that's also genuinely uplifting.

themes, language 26.Mar.26

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