The Rest of Us is a 2019 Canadian drama film, directed by Aisling Chin-Yee. It stars Heather Graham as a single mother (to Sophie Nélisse's character), who reluctantly takes in her ex-husband's second wife and their daughter (played by Jodi Balfour and Abigail Pniowsky) as houseguests after his untimely death leaves his new family homeless.

The Rest of Us
Film poster
Directed byAisling Chin-Yee
Written byAlanna Francis
Produced byEmma Fleury
Katie Bird Nolan
Lindsay Tapscott
William Woods
StarringHeather Graham
Jodi Balfour
Sophie Nélisse
Abigail Pniowsky
CinematographyDaniel Grant
Edited byVéronique Barbe
Aisling Chin-Yee
Production
companies
Babe Nation Films
Woods Entertainment
Distributed bylevelFILM
Release date
  • September 6, 2019 (2019-09-06) (TIFF)
Running time
80 minutes
CountryCanada
LanguageEnglish

It premiered at the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival,[1] and was acquired by levelFILM for Canadian distribution.[2]

Cast

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Production

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The film was shot in North Bay, Ontario in 2018.[3]

Critical reception

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On the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 92%, based on 12 reviews, with an average rating of 7.3/10.[4]

The Hollywood Reporter's Sheri Linden praised the film as "sharply written and sensitively played."[5] NOW Magazine's Norman Wilner called it "a small, delicate drama—maybe too small, since the 80-minute running time has the effect of compressing certain emotional beats," but concluded, "It’s not a bad thing when a film leaves you wishing it were longer."[6] Exclaim!'s Alex Hudson agreed that the short runtime didn't benefit the story, but wrote, "As a small-scale examination of a unique form of grief, it packs a lot of emotional complexity into a small package."[7]

References

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  1. ^ Smith, Justine (September 6, 2019). "The strength of this year's Canadian lineup comes from TIFF's focus on fresh and innovative young voices". National Post. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  2. ^ Townsend, Kelly (August 21, 2019). "levelFILM picks up rights to White Lie, The Rest of Us". Playback. Archived from the original on March 3, 2020. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  3. ^ Ulrichsen, Heidi (September 18, 2019). "Cinéfest Friday gala film: 'The Rest of Us' explores female relationships (plus a cameo from North Bay's shadflies)". Sudbury.com. Archived from the original on September 26, 2019. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  4. ^ "The Rest of Us (2019)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Archived from the original on 2020-07-26. Retrieved October 10, 2021.
  5. ^ Linden, Sheri (January 23, 2020). "'The Rest of Us': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on March 3, 2020. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  6. ^ Wilner, Norman (August 28, 2019). "TIFF review: The Rest Of Us". NOW Magazine. Archived from the original on June 16, 2020. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  7. ^ Hudson, Alex (September 9, 2019). "'The Rest of Us' Is a Compelling Examination of Unlikely Friendships". Exclaim!. Archived from the original on August 3, 2020. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
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