RKS 2025 CANADIAN Film: “Sweet Summer Pow Pow”: Two Generations Barely Able to Politic to Peace in “Love Story” Indigenous Style

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Jinny (Tatyana Rose Baptiste) is a 17-year-old from the County Lake nation in British Columbia. Jinny suffers under the despotic but well intended iron fist of her mother Cara (Tanis Paranteau). Cara, now the chief of the County Lake nation, was not always a paradigm of respectability as Jinny notes she spent time in her youth in the flophouses of East Vancouver.

Jinny dreams of becoming a modern dancer but to please her nagging Cruella De Vil mother participates in the summer Pow Wow circuit in the province before she departs to a university pre-law programme in Toronto completely preprogrammed by Cara.

True to the teen romance genre of film she falls in love with Riley (Joshua Odjick) from the nearby White Bluff Reserve. While Jinny has a modern dance dream Riley’s is designing a line of aboriginal clothing.

The romance intensifies but so does Cara’s interference in the relationship making it abundantly clear will result in a failed relationship, children and a job at a clothing store in the mall.

At times the film descends into a maudlin teen romance with pockets of stiff acting, weak writing and cheaply filmed in the car shots with the exterior view from the car window like one might expect in a 1940’s movie. But the conflict scenes between Jinny and Cara and Riley and Miles (Trevor Carroll) a decrepit and violent alcoholic father are spot on.

Will true love interject itself into parent child conflicts?  Will Jinny obediently trundle off to Toronto university pre-law saying adieu to Riley heading to designing fame in Vancouver?

The final Pow Wow dance scene is a watermark in the portrayal of aboriginal themed film focusing on extra-reserve life and culture so admirably accomplished in the Canadian television series “Tales from the Rez”, “Jason” and the film “The Great Salish Heist”. Aboriginal themed productions have lunged beyond stereotypical and morose to a new more inspiring and optimistic bent.

Lisa C. Ravensbergen as Nora and Graham Greene as the one liner Pow Wow MC absolutely shine. Young Tyler Peters as Sawyer is a talent to watch. What a natural!

Directed by Darrell Dennis.

RKS 2025 CANADIAN Film Rating 76/100.

Published by Robert K Stephen (CSW)

Robert K Stephen writes about food ,drink, travel, film, and lifestyle issues. He also has published serialized novels "Life at Megacorp", "Virus # 26, "Reggie the Egyptian Rescue Dog" and "The Penniless Pensioner" Robert was the first associate member of the Wine Writers’ Circle of Canada. He also holds a Mindfulness Certification from the University of Leiden and the University of Toronto. Be it Spanish cured meat, dried fruit, BBQ, or recycled bamboo place mats, Robert endeavours to escape the mundane, which is why he has established this publication. His motto is, "Have Story, Will Write."

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