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640:; there are no dark conspiracies, only dark natures. The tension instead focuses on whether Stormare will be able to rein himself in when the investigation inexorably pulls him toward his old life. Everyone is so restrained, their turmoil buried so deep, that the depth of what they're feeling has to be excavated from what's left unsaid."
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is compellingly acted from top to bottom. As the raw passions of its hard-bitten characters seep into you, the songs hammer them even more deeply into your consciousness. The film's only flaw — a big one — is its brevity. When it ends after 76 minutes, you are left wishing it had included Walter's
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reporting the discovery is quickly traced to Rita, who lies to the police when questioned and insists that her new lover, Steve (Stephen Eric McIntyre), was with her on the evening of the crime. The investigation quickly reveals that Steve and the victim were both seen that night at a nearby
330:. The protagonist, Walter (Peter Stormare), is a stocky, middle-aged policeman whose violent past has made him a local pariah... Walter's newfound equilibrium is put to the test when the body of a young woman is found near a lake. It is the town's first murder in decades. The
579:... The already dense ambience gets progressively heavier as the investigation continues, with Gass-Donnelly keeping a tight grip on the artful compositions. But as strong as those visuals are, what really ends up lingering long after the lights come up, is that
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had pleasant things to say about the film, stating that there were "some impressive cinematography and an understanding of tone through stillness and minor stylization make for a pleasant experience aesthetically". Howard
Feinstein from
324:, punctures the veneer of bucolic quiet in a mostly Mennonite farming community in Ontario. Beneath a deceptive calm, it uncovers a core of fear and loathing as ominous as the backwoods world of
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and found "much to admire about this carefully drawn but concise character sketch, especially the strong performances and a unique, affectingly ominous score by folk-rock-gospel outfit
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Shannon from Movie Moxie had wonderful things to say about the film: "The powerful score sets an impressive and all-encompassing atmosphere to the film". Robert Bell from
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praised writer/director Gass-Donnelly: "Ed Gass-Donnelly makes appropriate, unpretentiously artful, stylistic choices in this tale of redemption".
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wrote that the film "is not really a whodunit but a character study of a man squeezed in a psychological, spiritual and professional vise...
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is definitely a winner in the stable of films showing at the Santa
Barbara International Film Festival this year". Holden of the
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acquired the United States distribution rights in 2011. The limited United States theatrical release began at the O-Cinema in
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It won Best
Feature at the 2011 Santa Catalina Film Festival and won Fipresci Critic’s Prize Best Film at the 2010
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on
September 14, 2010. The film is written by Gass-Donnelly, produced by Gass-Donnelly and Lee Kim, and stars
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wrote a positive review, saying, "STMS succeeds as an
Ontario Gothic mood piece". Michael Rechtshafen of
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The film has been given a limited theatrical release in the United States beginning on May 26, 2011.
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won Best
Actress at the 2010 Whistler International Film Festival for her performance in this film.
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is "An effective ensemble backed by a bracingly haunting soundtrack" after its screening at the
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town who hides a violent past until a local murder upsets the calm of his newly reformed life."
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458:- WINNER Fipresci Critic’s Prize Best Film
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1022:Rechtshaffen, Michael (7 February 2011).
853:"New Release Small Town Murder Songs DVD"
704:Learn how and when to remove this message
596:Santa Barbara International Film Festival
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530:Indianapolis International Film Festival
482:Palm Springs International Film Festival
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320:Ed Gass-Donnelly's rural crime drama,
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587:packing an unsettling, pious punch."
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477:Cucalorus Film Festival
446:- World Cinema Director
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1029:The Hollywood Reporter
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560:The Hollywood Reporter
450:Whistler Film Festival
438:Catalina Film Festival
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181:May 26, 2011
1261:Mennonitism in Canada
900:Phoenix Film Festival
732:Phoenix Film Festival
452:- WINNER Best Actress
444:Phoenix Film Festival
440:- Winner Best Feature
394:Amy Rutherford as Ava
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1276:2010s Canadian films
678:improve this section
456:Torino Film Festival
397:Kat Germain as Jenny
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1136:Feinstein, Howard.
754:. IMDb. 24 May 2011
630:Alison Willmore of
239:is a 2010 Canadian
1061:Ain't It Cool News
1001:The Globe and Mail
909:on 5 October 2011.
783:The New York Times
592:Ain't It Cool News
590:Dustin Hucks with
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551:Stephen Cole from
507:Vail Film Festival
313:The New York Times
134:3 Legged Dog Films
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198:Running time
1088:Movie Moxie
1007:18 February
694:August 2020
598:and said, "
563:wrote that
362:Aaron Poole
84:Aaron Poole
57:Produced by
39:Directed by
1226:2010 films
1220:Categories
1175:January 2,
1121:October 5,
1067:2 February
1039:7 February
980:2020-05-04
974:Metacritic
954:2020-05-04
855:. DiscDish
833:. O-Cinema
789:January 2,
738:References
585:spirituals
546:Metacritic
337:strip club
292:, Canada.
286:Palmerston
244:crime film
225:Box office
220:Low German
202:76 minutes
185:2011-05-26
170:2010-09-14
127:Production
49:Written by
1082:Shannon.
810:IndieWire
665:does not
536:Reception
425:Festivals
380:Ari Cohen
352:as Walter
305:Mennonite
215:Languages
147:(Canada)
145:Kinosmith
129:companies
108:Edited by
1200:AllMovie
618:Exclaim!
376:as Olive
278:Listowel
241:neo-noir
228:$ 30,858
218:English
116:Music by
67:Starring
1115:Exclaim
686:removed
671:sources
411:Wynwood
402:Release
370:as Rita
290:Ontario
207:Country
183: (
168: (
60:Lee Kim
1093:27 May
859:27 May
837:27 May
815:27 May
758:24 May
644:Awards
436:Santa
364:as Jim
358:as Sam
262:, and
210:Canada
174: (
907:(PDF)
896:(PDF)
415:Miami
1211:IMDb
1177:2013
1151:2011
1123:2011
1095:2011
1069:2011
1041:2011
1009:2011
861:2011
839:2011
817:2011
791:2013
760:2011
669:any
667:cite
344:Cast
299:Plot
284:and
176:TIFF
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680:by
540:On
419:DVD
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