A woman is on the run, trying to make her way North. As she is meeting allies, a mysterious woman is on her tail, trying to stop her.
Written and directed by John Rosman, New Life is a timely film, or rather was a timely film about 2-3 years ago. It deals with things we have seen in real life and have seen in film multiple times since then. So, this means that the story is not exactly unexpected or entirely original. It does start off pretty well with an introduction to the lead character that does not make it clear why she is running. This mystery is kept for a bit, then the viewer is let in, allowing them to know more about the mystery in the story. The first third does work and, well, the rest works as well, but it feels like something we’ve seen before, something cobbled together from multiple things we’ve seen before. Which means it loses the advantage it had early on, and it becomes a bit of an “as expected film” which is too bad. The way the story develops loses steam and thus the attention of the viewer.
The cast here is decent, giving performances that are mostly on point, but as the film loses steam, so do the performances in a way. There is something in lead Hayley Erin’s performance which makes you wish they had done more with her character. Yes, she’s central. Yes, she’s got plenty to do. But she’s also limited in a few ways that makes it feel like something is missing here. The rest of the cast is also decent, but honestly, the performances don’t shine over the others, no one really steals scenes. It’s an ensemble cast, yes, but it feels like they are not aiming high enough, like they are aiming at middle ground and that is frustrating to watch. Ayanna Berkshire does need to be pointed out here, she does come off warmer than they others, like she brought just a little something extra to the part.
The film’s look is fitting with the story, so on that front the cinematography by Mark Evans is on point for the film itself. It’s nice enough, it shows the action, it shows the décor, the settings, the nature in the outdoor scenes, but it all feels a bit grey. Of course, this is most likely as planned, so the work, as mentioned above, is on point for the film.
This is a film that has so much potential, it’s something that everyone into this subgenre will want to love, but for this viewer, it missed the mark. The film is decently made and all that, it just doesn’t hit right, and the second half becomes less and less interesting as it goes along. It’s one of those films that makes you wish it had kept up with its beginning, that it had just one little thing more to it to make it more interesting. It’s a film that makes you wish it were better and perhaps had come a couple of years ago when the subject was fresher and more “of the moment”.
This year the Fantasia International Film Festival runs in Montreal from July 20th to August 9th.