Beans
Film poster
Directed byTracey Deer
Written by
Produced byAnne-Marie Gélinas
Starring
CinematographyMarie Davignon
Edited bySophie Farkas Bolla
Music byMario Sévigny
Production
company
EMA Films
Distributed byMongrel Media
Release date
  • September 13, 2020 (2020-09-13) (TIFF)
Running time
92 minutes
CountryCanada
LanguageEnglish

Beans is a 2020 Canadian drama film directed by Mohawk-Canadian filmmaker Tracey Deer. It explores the 1990 Oka Crisis at Kanesatake, which Deer lived through as a child, through the eyes of Tekehentahkhwa (nicknamed "Beans"), a young Mohawk girl whose perspective on life is radically changed by these events.[1]

The film premiered at the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival,[2] where it was second runner up for the People's Choice Award. It was also featured at the 2021 New York International Children's Film Festival, among others.

The film won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Picture at the 9th Canadian Screen Awards in 2021,[3] along with the John Dunning Best First Feature Film Award.[4] It was nominated for the Prix Iris for Best Screenplay at the 24th Quebec Cinema Awards in 2022.[5]

Plot

Tekehentahkhwa, who goes by the nickname "Beans", is a bright preteen who lives in Kahnawake, a Mohawk reserve. She is encouraged by her mother, Lily, to try to apply for a prestigious, predominantly white school in Montreal, something her father opposes.

After seeing their cousin Karahwen'hawi on TV protesting the expansion of a golf course into Kahnesatake territory upriver, the entire family drives to the area to support the protestors. The Mohawk land is surrounded by the town of Oka, Quebec, which was seeking to expand its golf course into a historic Mohawk cemetery. Beans and her little sister are quickly caught up in a police raid, which strengthens her parents' resolve to stay and help during the protest. Tensions grow fast. Barricades are built and the Kahnesatake territory is isolated. Food runs short and women and children are given the possibility to evacuate. Outside, protesters throw rocks at the evacuating cars.

In the meantime, Beans befriends April, an older girl she seeks to emulate in smoking, cursing, and friendships with boys. April teaches Beans to toughen up, often violently.

The army is brought in to replace local police as tensions rise among protesters and the military. Beans, her younger sister Ruby, and her mother Lily are relocated to a nearby hotel with other Mohawk women and children from the community. Beans attends a party in the hotel with April and some older teens, where she drinks alcohol and has her first kiss with April's older brother. In the hotel lobby, Beans starts a fight with a white girl around her same age, causing Beans and her family to be removed from the hotel.

Beans, Ruby, Lily, April, and April's brother return home by sneaking through the barricade, just as Lily is about to give birth. As Lily is in labor, Beans attends a campfire with April and her friends. April's brother takes Beans aside and asks for a blowjob, then becomes aggressive when Beans refuses. When Beans goes to April for help, April implies that her father (and possibly her brother) has been sexually abusing her. Beans returns home, where her mother has given birth safely.

Some time later, Beans helps April sneak out of her father's place so April can move in with her grandmother. Beans and her family meet with Hawi, who declares that an agreement has been reached, protecting the native burial ground and preventing the golf course expansion. Beans starts at the prestigious private school, proudly introducing herself as Tekehentahkhwa.

Cast

Production

The semi-autobiographical story is based on historic events that Deer lived through as a child. While she includes harsh events, she has said she wanted to avoid having the film be traumatic for viewers. It is recommended for viewers of 14+ in age.[6] Filming took place in Kahnawake and Montreal in 2019.[7]

Deer began writing the script in 2012, in collaboration with Meredith Vuchnich. It was a long, seven-year process, partly because revisiting the Oka Crisis brought up difficult memories. She sought therapy to help her deal with them.[8]

Release

Beans had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2020.[2]

Reception

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 91% of 54 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.6/10. The website's consensus reads: "Beans opens a compelling window into the indigenous coming-of-age experience -- and serves as an affecting debut for Kiawentiio."[9] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 74 out of 100, based on 13 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[10]

The film was named to TIFF's year-end Canada's Top Ten list for feature films.[11]

Accolades

Award Date of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref(s)
Canadian Screen Awards May 20, 2021 Best Motion Picture Anne-Marie Gélinas Won [12]
Best Cinematography Marie Davignon Nominated
Best Sound Mixing Stéphane Bergeron, Yann Cleary Nominated
Best Casting in a Film Maxime Giroux Nominated
John Dunning Best First Feature Award Tracey Deer Won
Directors Guild of Canada October 2020 DGC Discovery Award Tracey Deer Won [13]
Kingston Canadian Film Festival February 26–March 7, 2021 Limestone Financial People's Choice Award Tracey Deer Won [14]
Vancouver Film Critics Circle March 8, 2021 Best Supporting Actress in a Canadian Film Rainbow Dickerson Won [15]
One to Watch Kiawentiio Won
Vancouver International Film Festival September 24–October 7, 2020 Best Canadian Film Tracey Deer Won [16]
Writers Guild of Canada April 26, 2021 Best Feature Film Tracey Deer, Meredith Vuchnich Won [17]
Toronto Film Critics Association March 2022 Best Canadian Film Beans Won [18]
Prix collégial du cinéma québécois 2022 Best Film Nominated [19]

References

  1. ↑ Norman Wilner, "VIFF review: Tracey Deer’s 'Beans' finds its hero coming of age during the Oka crisis". The Georgia Straight, September 16, 2020.
  2. 1 2 Victoria Ahearn, "TIFF announces all 50 titles for pandemic-tailored 2020 event". Toronto Star, July 30, 2020.
  3. ↑ Naman Ramachandran, "‘Schitt’s Creek,’ ‘Blood Quantum’ Triumph at Canadian Screen Awards". Variety, May 21, 2021.
  4. ↑ mbiance. "Finalistes et gagnants | Prix Écrans canadiens 2021". academie.ca (in French). Retrieved 2021-07-02.
  5. ↑ Charles-Henri Ramond, "Finalistes aux Prix Iris 2022". Films du Québec, April 14, 2022.
  6. ↑ Steuter-Martin, Marilla (22 September 2019). "Tracey Deer captures 'shattered innocence' with film set during Oka Crisis". CBC News. Retrieved 30 July 2020.
  7. ↑ "Production Underway on BEANS, Directed by Tracey Deer". Canadian Film Centre. 12 September 2019. Retrieved 30 July 2020.
  8. ↑ Horn, Greg (19 September 2019). "Deer's "Beans" shows Oka Crisis through the eyes of a 12-year-old". Kahnawake News. Retrieved 30 July 2020.
  9. ↑ "Beans". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
  10. ↑ "Beans". Metacritic. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
  11. ↑ Ahearn, Victoria (December 9, 2020). "Toronto International Film Festival releases Top Ten lists for 2020". Squamish Chief. Archived from the original on January 4, 2021. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  12. ↑ Furdyk, Brent (March 30, 2021). "Canadian Screen Awards Announces 2021 Film Nominations". ET Canada. Archived from the original on March 30, 2021.
  13. ↑ Malyk, Lauren (28 October 2020). "Michelle Latimer, Vincenzo Natali among DGC film winners". Playback. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
  14. ↑ "2021 Award Winners". Kingston Canadian Film Festival. 7 March 2021. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
  15. ↑ Castillo, Jorge Ignacio (March 12, 2021). "Vancouver Film Critics Name Violation Best Canadian Feature". Vancouver Film Critics Circle.
  16. ↑ Craig Takeuchi, "VIFF 2020: Beans, Violation, and The Hidden Life of Trees among award winners". The Georgia Straight, October 2, 2020.
  17. ↑ "2021 WGC Screenwriting Awards Winners Announced". Writers Guild of Canada. April 26, 2021. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  18. ↑ Sadaf Ahsan, "Indigenous coming-of-age drama Beans wins $100,000 Toronto film critics prize", The Globe and Mail, March 8, 2022.
  19. ↑ Maxime Demers, "Prix collégial du cinéma québécois : les finalistes dévoilés". Le Journal de Montréal, January 18, 2022.
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