Spinning Reels

Wednesday, September 25th, 2024 | Sponsored by Judy Watson

The Boy in the Woods is a Canadian drama film, directed by Rebecca Snow. It follows the true story of Max (Jett Klyne), a Jewish boy escaping Nazi persecution in Eastern Europe. After he is separated from his family, Max finds refuge with a Christian peasant Jasko (Richard Armitage) who hides him in plain site until a tense stand — off with Nazi police. Afraid for his own family’s life, Jasko sends Max to live in the woods where he learns to survive alone.

Wednesday, September 25th, 2024 | Sponsored by Lynda’s Yoga Break

A mother (Julia Louis-Dreyfus, in a profoundly moving performance) and her teenage daughter (Lola Petticrew) must confront Death when it arrives in the form of an astonishing talking bird. From debut filmmaker Daina O. Pusic, Tuesday is a heart-rending fairy tale about the echoes of loss and finding resilience in the unexpected.

Wednesday, September 11th, 2024 | Sponsored by Shamrock Lodge

EZRA follows Max Bernal (Bobby Cannavale), a stand-up comedian living with his father (Robert De Niro), while struggling to co-parent his autistic son Ezra (introducing William Fitzgerald) with his ex-wife (Rose Byrne). When forced to confront difficult decisions about their son’s future, Max and Ezra embark on a cross-country road trip that has a transcendent impact on both their lives. Directed by Tony Goldwyn, who also appears in the film alongside additional cast members Vera Farmiga, Rainn Wilson and Whoopi Goldberg, EZRA is an endearing and often funny exploration of a family determined to find their way through life’s complexities with humor, compassion, and heart.

Official Selection, 2023 Toronto International Film Festival

Wednesday, May 15th, 2024 | Sponsored by The Norwood Theatre

A 1920s English seaside town bears witness to a dark, absurd scandal in this riotous mystery comedy. Based on a stranger-than-fiction true story, “Wicked Little Letters” follows two neighbours: deeply-conservative local Edith Swan (Olivia Colman) and rowdy Irish migrant Rose Gooding (Jessie Buckley). When Edith and fellow residents start to receive wicked letters full of unintentionally hilarious profanities, foul-mouthed Rose is charged with the crime. The anonymous letters prompt a national uproar, and a trial ensues. However, as the town’s women, led by Police Officer Gladys Moss (Anjana Vasan), begin to investigate the crime themselves, they suspect that something is amiss and Rose might not be the culprit after all.

Wednesday, May 8th, 2024 | Sponsored by Muskoka Music Mix

Hirayama works as a toilet cleaner in Tokyo and he seems content with his simple life. Outside of his structured routine, he has a great passion for music, books, and the trees he loves to photograph. He drives to work in his minivan, fully equipped with his cleaning gear, while The Rolling Stones, Patti Smith, or Lou Reed ring in ageless, husky hums from a tape player. Through unexpected encounters, more of Hirayama’s past is revealed as he reflects on finding beauty in the world.

Oscar-nominated for Best International Feature

Wednesday, April 24th, 2024 | Sponsored by Muskoka Music Mix

The Old Oak is the last pub standing in a once thriving mining village in northern England, a gathering space for a community that has fallen on hard times. There is growing anger, resentment, and a lack of hope among the residents, but the pub and its proprietor TJ are a fond presence to their customers. When a group of Syrian refugees move into the floundering village, a decisive rift fuelled by prejudices develops between the community and its newest inhabitants. The formation of an unexpected friendship between TJ and a young Syrian woman named Yara opens up new possibilities for the divided village in this deeply moving drama about loss, fear, and the difficulty of finding hope.

Wednesday, April 10th, 2024 | Sponsored by Brackenrig Nursery

Set in 2006, the remote Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan is looking to become a democracy, so government officials organize a mock election as a training exercise. In the town of Ura, an old lama orders a monk to get a pair of weapons to face the imminent change in the kingdom. Meanwhile, an American antique weapons collector lands in Bhutan in search of a valuable rifle that falls into the monk’s hands.

Wednesday, March 27th, 2024 | Sponsored by Roberson Financial Services

From the legendary Studio Ghibli and Academy Award®-winning director Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away) comes a new critically-acclaimed fantasy adventure. After losing his mother during the war, young Mahito moves to his family’s estate in the countryside. There, a series of mysterious events lead him to a secluded and ancient tower, home to a mischievous grey heron. When Mahito’s new stepmother disappears, he follows the grey heron into the tower, and enters a fantastic world shared by the living and the dead. As he embarks on an epic journey with the heron as his guide, Mahito must uncover the secrets of this world, and the truth about himself.

*Academy Award winner for Best Animated Feature Film *

Wednesday, March 13th, 2024 | Sponsored by Roy DeHann Carpentry

This visually stunning film from Atlantic Canadian talent Christian Sparkes is adapted from the novel of the same name by acclaimed writer Michael Crummey. It tells a story of a retired fisherman, Moses (Mark Lewis Jones), who refuses to leave the isolated Newfoundland outport town of Sweetland when the provincial government launches a resettlement initiative.

Wednesday, February 28th, 2024 | Sponsored by Hospice Muskoka

At age 60, three decades after giving up marathon swimming in exchange for a prominent career as a sports journalist, Diana Nyad (Annette Bening) becomes obsessed with completing an epic swim that always eluded her: the 110 mile trek from Cuba to Florida. Determined to become the first person to finish the swim without a shark cage, she goes on a thrilling, four-year journey with her best friend and coach Bonnie Stoll (Jodie Foster).

Both Annette Bening and Jodie Foster are Oscar Nominees: Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role