Stories We Tell

No, Harry, actually we can get at the truth. And the truth is that conflicting loyalties aren't loyalties at all, by definition. One or more of them are disloyalties, which are made apparent by the late subject's steadfast refusal to embrace honesty, all the way into her grave. What was described as effervescent guilelessness turns out to be the ultimate in guile, itself used as a disguise to deceive all those closest to her. What we come away with is the chiling sense that for all the childish drama, both on-stage as well as off, there is actually no Minotaur crouching at the center of her labyrinth. There is nothing, and no one there other than memories and footage of someone who lived fictionally. An actor in every sense of the word, who lived as though the affection she could elicit from others far outweighed their own more conservative personalities or moral codes. It was always about her, even though there was nothing definitive or deep about her beyond the airhead joie de vivre. There was no "her," which is why it's so difficult to define or reassemble "her" post mortem. And yet, somehow, even in dying it remains still all about her. Why does mankind persist in believing in devils, when such Narcissists surface in nearly every lifetime?

One reviewer here mentioned William Faulkner's novel The Sound and the Fury. Not so much the book's title, drawn from Macbeth - a "tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." But that Faulkner's story is told by four people with different angles of vision. It's a plot device that's been useful for many years - Kurosawa's classic film Rashomon is a good example. Watching this movie I thought of Pirandello's play Six Characters in Search of an Author. Here in Sarah Polley's film we have six authors in search of a character - searching for Polley's mother. And we might add that Polley is searching for herself.The authors whose reminiscences form the basis for this film's script are Polley's family and friends. They are seen telling their stories. Grainy and shaky home movie style footage depicts stories of the past. Polley's mother appears in these scenes and in re-creations performed by an actress that fill in narrative gaps.The film wanders through a few levels of reality. There's the actual past, the recreated past, various slants on the past as stated by those who lived it, the present technicalities of filming on the movie set, Polley sitting at a soundboard coaching her father through his lines.The classic theme of searching for the absent, missing or unknown father reverberates throughout, getting a final jolt right at the movie's last shot. That's the plot structure that holds the tale together on a narrative level.Stories We Tell is not a tale told by an idiot, but by a genius. I found it consistently interesting. The acting, as is usual these days, is excellent. Polley's cinema style is straightforward - which is appropriate, considering the narrative complexities. And it's just such a joy to watch a movie so thoroughly intelligent.

This is a documentary about the late Canadian actress Diane Polley, directed by her daughter Sarah Polley, in which several family members and friends tell 'their story' about Diane. It starts out slow, and I was close to give up, fearing it would just turn into a hommage to 'wonderful and life-loving Diane' to be enjoyed by a smaller circle of family/friends/fans. However, viewers will soon be rewarded by something that unfolds into an intimate, moving and interesting drama, that kept me thinking a lot about our lives and relationsships and how they change (slowly or abruptly) over time, and how little we might know about a person 'behind a happy mask', even a family member or close friend.So, what keeps me from giving it a 5? Well, I felt that the film, at least towards the end got a bit too repetitive on the theme of 'interpretation', claiming that the different narrators had so very different views on what happened, and how impossible it is to even get close to the truth of what happened. I mean this theme even gives the film its name: Stories (plural form) we tell!Come on! To me, the narrators pretty much told the same story, not least the two main narrators (step-dad and the biological dad).I mean, even the step-dad, who you might expect to dislike the biological dad and tell a totally different more self-centered story, was rather 'objective' and 'factual', e.g. showing no scorn toward the biological dad, rather the contrary, i.e. displaying quite a lot of understanding and compassion toward him.Who knows, perhaps his 'true' feelings went through some social filter, knowing that this would be broadcasted?On the other hand, I felt that the biological dad was rather selfish in stating that only he (and the deceased main character) really could tell the true story. As I see it, this wasn't ONLY a film about THEIR love affair, but about the lives of several people who knew Diane and lived with her.

i don't think humans can grapple with the fact that in relationships there can be a multitude of truths. humans feel very comfortable with the binary and as i age, i become more aware that truth is neither black or white, yet gray. this documentary illuminates t h a t truth.

This was an interesting and different documentary/movie though a little long winded.A true story seen through the eyes of different members of the family.My daughters enjoyed it, my partner (male) fell asleep.

sarah polleys amazing film - a stylistic masterpiece - arrived in good time to present a much loved xmas present for a dear friend. thanks to those concerned and for your great service.

The case was broken. Very good documentary.

Very good film highly recommended to anyone interested in family research.

Very different but lovely piece of work.