Canada Now: Weirdos

Weirdos
Directed by Bruce McDonald
Starring Dylan Authors, Julia Sarah Stone, Molly Parker, Allan Hawco, Cathy Jones and Rhys Bevan-John
Screening as part of Canada Now Film Festival

by Joanna Orland

This low-key, light on substance coming-of-age drama is not at all as weird as the title may suggest. Weirdos is the tale of two teens, hitchhiking across Nova Scotia in the summer of ’76. At the center of the story is Kit, a classic runaway teen wanting to go live with the mother who abandoned him. He sees and speaks to his spirit animal in the guise of Andy Warhol, who helps to guide him along the way – ok, that bit is quite weird. He’s also accompanied by his girlfriend Alice who’s desperate to consummate their relationship, in spite of obvious signs that Kit is gay.

As Kit and Alice hitchhike their way across the scenic Nova Scotia, they encounter a group of familiar teens. Kit seems to hit it off quite well with one of the guys in the car, and through Alice’s overreaction, it’s obvious that she’s realized Kit is gay. She is in denial about this, even more than he is. She’s desperate to be loved by him, and willing to trek across the province for a physical connection.

Kit has lots of emotional issues he’s dealing with; besides being on the cusp of realizing his homosexuality, he is in serious denial about his mother. She’s not this exciting artistic matriarch he imagines her to be. In fact, she is an emotional wreck herself, and it’s really with his father that Kit needs to resolve his issues.

There are a few elements to Weirdos that set it apart from other coming-of-age dramas; the 1976 Nova Scotia setting, the choice to film in black and white, and of course using Andy Warhol as a spirit animal. While these quirks give Weirdos its own voice, it still neatly fits within a genre; typified and defined by it.