Arctic Defenders.
Early on in Mr. Walker's documentary about the long struggle to create the Inuit territory of Nunavut, the veteran documentary filmmaker slyly makes fun of the way the blandly earnest National Film Board documentaries of his youth talked about "Eskimos." Defenders marks a more pointedly political take on northern struggles for sovereignty, and is thought-provoking. Yet, overall, it's blandly earnest in its own way. Still, it tells an important story tracing the struggle of the Inuit through prime ministers ranging from Trudeau to Harper to establish Nunavut followed by efforts to the proper federal resources to alleviate social and infrastructure problems in the territory. Mr. Walker brackets the story with his youthful fascination with the north, leading to a visit to the region, and then following up more recently for this project.
At VIFF: Oct. 2, 6:45 p.m., International Village; Oct. 4, 3:30 p.m., SFU
Ian Bailey