Paul Schrader’s “Oh, Canada” is a morose, strange and only partially engaging drama that represents a rare misstep in the prolific filmmaker’s career.
While Schrader’s films can be hit or miss, he’s been on a roll, with the success of his wild, provocative “First Reformed” and the surprisingly potent “The Card Dealer.”
With Schrader, you always wait to be hit with an ice-cold plot twist that sends his characters tumbling down the rabbit hole. As a prolific film artist, Schrader’s best films are classics and his worst films are, nevertheless, fascinating and full of intriguing elements.
Now in his late 70s and still making movies that generate shock and fascinating discussions, it’s impossible for me to count Schrader out, even when he makes something like “Oh, Canada.”
Richard Gere stars as Leo Fife, an elderly, celebrated filmmaker who agrees to an extensive interview for a documentary on his life. Michael Imperioli plays the documentary’s director, while Uma Thurman co-stars as Fife’s wife, who sits at his side.
As extensive flashbacks take up the majority of the running time, Gere’s character is also played by Jacob Elordi (a good choice to portray a youthful Leo). We see that in his younger days, Fife was a draft dodger who created a whole new life for himself in another country.
That’s about it for the plot.
There’s a brief montage of the movies Fife made but otherwise, we’re drifting through the mental mists of Fife’s ailing psyche. Schrader has made many films that are disturbing and confrontational but never this dull.
A bizarre touch is how, in addition to Elordi and Gere playing the same character at varying times of his life, sometimes the flashback will begin with Elordi, then switch to Gere playing the part and taking over the scene and vice versa.
Likewise, Thurman sometimes plays her younger self against Elordi as Fife’s younger self. There are two practical reasons why Schrader decided to do this: it conveys how we view the past, despite what age we are presently and immerse ourselves in our fading memories.
“If you’re gonna make a film about dying, you better hurry up.” Paul Schrader on how a bout with long COVID, inspired him to make a film based on Russell Banks’ novel FOREGONE and how it ended up being called OH, CANADA. #TIFF24 pic.twitter.com/8pWqvJsrEg
— TIFF (@TIFF_NET) December 18, 2024
Also, it’s a way to keep Gere in the movie, as he would otherwise be confined to a wheelchair and only doing scenes where he appears haggard and struggling to recall his life. Either way, seeing Gere in bed with a much younger actress playing the younger version of his wife, or Thurman sharing an erotic moment with Elordi, is just bizarre.
It reminds me of Todd Solondz’ bizarre experimental film “Palindromes” (2004), where the main character was played by a shifting collection of actors. Here, it’s meant to be provocative and connect with the ageless quality of our memories, but the efforts result in a creative misstep. Nevertheless, it’s also the only truly daring thing about the film.
Gere is very good at playing an accomplished artist who, at the end of his life, reflects on his regrets and mistakes. Yet, since the focus fades from him to Elordi and back again without much sustained interest, the whole thing feels random and detached.
Elordi continues to be a captivating actor and “Oh, Canada” is beautifully shot. I liked how the film stock establishes the shifting eras and realities, and the sets and period details are vivid. Yet, I kept waiting for Schrader to really unleash something shocking and it never happens.
Actually, not much happens in “Oh, Canada.”
Schrader’s best films, which are unmissable, include “Blue Collar” (1978), “Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters” (1985), “The Comfort of Strangers” (1990) and “Adam Resurrected” (2008). In addition to his acclaimed screenplays for Martin Scorsese, Schrader consistently crafts original works that explore matters of faith, identity and the human psyche.
His films are meditations on loss, destiny and fractured identity. I was excited to see Gere and Thurman (reunited for the first time since the 1992 thriller “Final Analysis”) and what they’d bring to a Schrader film but their efforts are wasted in one of the few Schrader films I’d hesitate to call compelling.
Two Stars
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