Let’s assume that bad things are always happening.  While someone finds enjoyment in life, someone else may be barely hanging on to their reality.  That’s basically the gist of Wayne Wapeemukwa’s debut feature Luk’Luk’I, an obvious stream of consciousness that doesn’t expand beyond that idea.

In Vancouver, while the 2010 Winter Olympics were underway, locals were suffering and struggling with personal tragedies.  Even though a few of these Vancouverites play themselves and these personal stories have been orchestrated with feeling, Luk’Luk’I lacks an overall purpose other than to upset the audience.  Wapeemukwa using a widely-appreciated event to hammer down an emotional contrast is effective, I guess.  But, no substance exists behind his cinematic portrayals.

Stilted performances, muddy cinematography, and a narrative too mechanical to jive with the filmmaker’s choice of natural progression makes Luk’Luk’I even more disappointing.

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Luk’Luk’I screens at TIFF on:

Thursday, September 14 at 12:15 p.m. @ Jackman Hall
Thursday, September 14 at 4:15 p.m. @ Jackman Hall (press and industry)
Friday, September 15 at 9:00 p.m. @ Jackman Hall

Rating: 18A
Language: English
Runtime: 90 minutes

For more information on the festival, visit the official TIFF webpage here.

Buy tickets here.

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