All My Puny Sorrows

Official Selection, 2021 Toronto International Film Festival

Michael McGowan’s touching adaptation of Miriam Toews’ beloved novel about two sisters boasts a fine cast led by Alison Pill and Sarah Gadon.

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Michael McGowan’s moving adaptation of Miriam Toews’ beloved novel is propelled by nuanced direction, an affecting script, and a stellar, fearless cast. The story revolves around the women of the Von Riesen clan: writer Yoli (Alison Pill), who’s tormented by self-doubt and is going through a protracted divorce; her sister Elf (Sarah Gadon), a well-known concert pianist whose bouts with depression threaten to consume her; their steadfast mother, Lottie (Mare Winningham); their no-nonsense aunt Tina (Mimi Kuzyk); and Yoli’s precocious daughter Nora (Amybeth McNulty).

The family are no strangers to sorrow. They left the Mennonite community after their patriarch (Donal Logue) unexpectedly killed himself. How the Von Riesens confront — and fail to confront — tragedy and trauma is the central focus of the film. The sisters’ wisecracking banter and acute awareness of each other’s foibles indicates a profound love and mutual dependence, but as Yoli struggles to understand Elf and protect her from her demons, the women’s fundamental differences come to the fore.

Oscillating powerfully between extremes of joy and sadness, All My Puny Sorrows is one of the most erudite, literary films you will see this year.

STEVE GRAVESTOCK

Content advisory: suicide