The Arts Beat
Sally Goldberg
Every Canadian is aware of the endless northward flow of images crossing our border. We are constantly bombarded with another nation’s culture.
The American film industry considers Canada to be part of its domestic market, and television programming from the United States is broadcast into our homes.
Canada does have its own, although much smaller, film industry. On Sunday, Nov. 22, TV Ontario will air Hitman Hart: Wrestling with Shadows, directed by Paul Jay, as a special preview of its series The View From Here. The series, which officially begins its fifth season this February, features documentaries made by Canadian filmmakers. Although this documentary is made by a Canadian, the preview of The View From Here is a view of America’s entertainment industry, more specifically, the World Wrestling Federation.
Even though it’s a Canadian product, there is no escaping a strong American presence. But this does not mean we have lost our culture, or that we cannot preserve a distinctive cultural identity.
Canada, perhaps with the exception of Quebec, is in a unique position. It is the United States’ only English-speaking neighbour. We monitor Hollywood’s every move. We absorb the theories of their social leaders. We analyse their entertainment industry quietly, usually without being noticed. We probably know them better than they know themselves.
As a result, the United States is full of Canadian journalists and comedians whose jobs are to monitor, absorb and analyse. They make their living off holding a mirror up to Americans. Many Canadian documentary filmmakers hold the same mirror up to Canadians as the country tries to make sense of its complicated relationship with America.
There is a long and prestigious documentary tradition in Canada. It began in 1939, when John Grierson, a Scot, founded the National Film Board. His goal was to promote the making of films reflecting Canadian culture. Grierson, known as the father of documentary, thought this film genre was the perfect vehicle to achieve his goal. Now, independent companies and other government-assisted programs are producing documentaries, along with the NFB.
In the search for the elusive Canadian culture, many Canadian documentary filmmakers focus their cameras on America.
Donald Brittain is probably one of the best known in this category. His 1985 film, Canada’s Sweetheart, is a look at Hal C. Banks, an American thug who came to Canada in 1949 and took over the seafarers’ union. The film views an American stereotype, the gangster, in a cynical light.
Earlier this year, a film aired on CBC called Hollywoodism: Jews, Movies, and the American Dream, directed by Simcha Jacobovici. Canadians proved the advantage of consuming Hollywood’s product while living in another country — the distanced perspective made it possible to analyse the system.
Hitman Hart is a documentary about Bret Hart, a Canadian wrestler who made his fortune in the United States. The film is a critical look at the WWF, and its business practices. Again, Canadians have proven their ability to analyse American culture.
It seems no amount of legislation or good intentions will keep the Yankee entertainment industry out of Canada. It is too big, too powerful and too much fun. But instead of undermining our culture, the objective Canadian audience is in the perfect position to comment on the world’s largest producer of entertainment.