Review: STAND! Movie Musical

Hugh MacLennan once said, "Boy meets girl in Winnipeg and who cares?" That's the problem with CanCon - nobody cares. That's why Schitt's Creek takes place in Schitt's Creek and not Schitt's Creek, ON. That's why somewhere in Toronto there's a truck full of empty blue mailboxes.

So imagine my joy watching STAND!, a new movie musical from director Robert Adetuyi about the Winnipeg General Strike of 1919. Imagine my joy when boy meets girl in Winnipeg, girl convinces boy to get involved in labour politics, and boy and girl make history by joining North America's first ever city-wide general strike. And they do it singing.

STAND! is a charming film, full of love scenes and love songs, spiffy caps and long dresses, and ever so many brick walls. It is also impressively woke: our heroes are new immigrants and people of colour, non-native English speakers, the working class. They are overworked and underpaid, humiliated by their low salaries but forced, out of necessity, to keep grinding away.

At the centre of it all are Stefan Sokolowski (Marshall Williams) and his father, Mike (Gregg Henry), recent immigrants from Ukraine saving up to bring the rest of their family over. It is a quintessentially Canadian story, a story of sacrifice and ambition. Things take an unexpected turn, however, when Stefan meets Rebecca Almazoff (Laura Slade Wiggins), a Jewish immigrant and labour organiser. Stefan follows Rebecca to a meeting one day, and falls in love - with her, certainly, and probably with the cause as well. In the meantime, Emma Jones (Lisa Bell) endures the indignity of working as a domestic servant for the selfish tycoon AJ Anderson (Paul Essiembre) and his wife, Susan (Robin Ruel) - until the strike breaks out. The strike brings with it a moment of hope, but also uncertainty, and, eventually, violence.

Although STAND! is full of romance, it is boldly honest in its historical depictions. Xenophobia and racism take centre stage in the story. Canada gets at best an ambivalent treatment, as a place where the lucky are lucky but the unlucky struggle just to avoid harm. One of the central questions of the film is the conflict between individual and institution - a defining issue in North America going into 2020 as well.

STAND! is endearing and exciting, and by plot and dialogue alone would make a fine film. That's why I couldn't quite figure out the motivation behind making it a musical - especially because, I feel, the music adds so little to the film. Even one day after watching it I could vividly picture the actors' expressive faces, quote a few of my favourite lines, but try and try as I might I couldn't remember enough of any melody to hum a few bars. Some of the musical numbers actually take away from the story - as when the strike escalates, and what should be STAND!'s answer to "Do You Hear the People Sing?" sounds like a hockey anthem, complete with organ music.

Still, STAND! has enough going for it to forgive a hockey anthem or two. Williams and Slade Wiggins make for lovely lovers and exciting strikers. Jones has a terrific voice, easily outshining the source material. Cinematographer Roy Wagner fills the movie with impressive shots of rugged, industrial spaces, recreating a Canada of a different era.

Boy meets girl in Winnipeg, and they go on strike. Now that's good CanCon.

STAND! runs at select cinemas through 12 December.

For more information or to buy tickets, visit stand-movie.com

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