The Twentieth Century

The Twentieth Century (2020). 90 Minutes, Dir. Matthew Rankin. Tickets are $12. for 7 days of streaming: https://watch.eventive.org/thetwentiethcentury/play/5fdb9aadcb8616003ea6642a

Toronto, 1899. Aspiring young politician Mackenzie King (Dan Beirne) dreams of becoming the Prime Minister of Canada. But his romantic vacillation between a British soldier and a French nurse, exacerbated by a fetishistic obsession, may well bring about his downfall. In his quest for power, King must gratify the expectations of his imperious Mother, the hawkish fantasies of a war-mongering General, and the utopian idealism of a Québécois mystic before facing one, final test of leadership. Culminating in an epic battle between good and evil, King learns that disappointment may be the defining characteristic of the twentieth century! Winner of the FIPRESCI Prize at the Berlin Film Festival, and Best Canadian First Feature Film at Toronto International Film Festival. Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=204j1n193hk

"Every frame of this picture is an absurdist marvel, with its expressionist sets, ill-fated puppets and ejaculating cactuses. At a time when normalcy has routinely backflipped into a pool of insanity, The Twentieth Century makes perfectly perverse sense."

-Matt Fagerholm, rogerebert.com

"An exuberant feat of visual design, it’s meticulously weird and full of rambunctious humor" - Nicolas Rapold, New York Times

"Amidst all the artisan silliness, much of which pokes fun at Canada’s tolerance for disappointment, Rankin does have something to say about the unhealthy roil of demonizing nationalism, even if one of the messengers is a mustachioed, compassionate Quebecois mystic hatched from an egg." -Robert Abele, LA Times