wknd

 

Midway through Stella Meghie’s third film in three years, Sasheer Zamata walks by herself through an orchard. The cool sky lights her in a way befitting her lingering melancholy. Her eyes are bright with confusion, and the orange men’s shirt she wears matches the fruit growing on the trees surrounding her perfectly. It is, as the saying goes, “one perfect shot”. It’s the sort of thing we should see often with actresses of colour like Zamata, and yet we haven’t – until now.

THE WEEKEND is a hangin’ out movie from the woman who brought us JEAN OF THE JONSES. The movie is Zadie’s story (Zamata) of going to her mother’s B&B with her ex boyfriend, Bradford (Tone Bell). Bradford has invited his current girlfriend Margo (DeWanda Wise) along for the weekend, because that’s not awkward. Rounding out the guest list is a stranger who has paid for a weekend stay named Aubrey (Y’lan Noel) – who quickly catches Zadie’s eye.

The whole film is pastoral and evocative of Meghie’s own upbringing on her parents’ B&B in rural Ontario. It creates stunning backdrops for some very real conversations about the nature of relationships. Sitting around inviting tables and walking through dappled sunlight, everything from where love should take us to how love ends is discussed with great candor. Menghie’s script articulates observations about love with an honesty most of us can’t articulate. It’s hard nowadays to be as honest or as vulnerable as THE WEEKEND is…even as it comes with a great deal of snide commentary from Zadie.

These sorts of conversations from actors of colour are slowly becoming more and more prevalent in films and television thanks to artists like the talented ones assembled here. The setting of THE WEEKEND though, is something special.  If you’ve ever been to a corner of the world like it, you know that it’s the sort of place and time that encourages honesty and introspection. Usually though, such stories are told with white people, and they’re speaking words written by Noah Baumbach or Woody Allen.

It’s not entirely new to see a country table be the setting for a sharp metaphor about asking for what you want in a relationship. It is entirely new to see Sasheer Zamata express it about Tone Bell.

The setting would be enough, but what truly makes THE WEEKEND special is the way its characters look each-other in the eye and dispense with the bullshit. Hearing them talk about everything from how love should feel to when love should end is nothing short of indelible. Just when you think the medicine can’t possibly be swallowed, the script provides one joyous teaspoon of sugar after another.

Even the prettiest places can unmask the uglier sides of love. It’s a walk in the woods many of us would be too nervous to take. Happily, Meghie is there to walk with us…and hold the flashlight.