‘New Life’: Fantasia Review

Dir/scr: John Rosman. US. 2023. 85mins

Two women head north across the wilds of the Pacific Northwest, one in pursuit of the other, in a desperate attempt to reach the Canadian border. The reasons for this chase are initially unclear (as much to the characters as the audience) and writer/director John Rosman is in no hurry to reveal all the angles of his story. This slow-burn tension and dramatic intrigue sustains this cat-and-mouse narrative and is handled with confidence by this debut filmmaker — as is the fact that one of his protagonists has been diagnosed with the motor neurone disease ALS.

Effectively blends a fugitive tale with elements of post-pandemic germophobia, isolation fears and body horror

Rosman, a former journalist, was inspired to write this story after his reporting career brought him into contact with the late Summer Whisman, who wrote a book about her experiences living with ALS. That helped Rosman connect with his own family history —some of his relatives have the disease — and create a character who has, but is not defined by, ALS. This adds a layer of interest to an accomplished thriller which should find further festival traction following its Fantasia premiere and subsequent FrightFest berth, and possibly streamer attention.

When we first meet Jess (TV star Hayley Erin) she is literally running scared; bloodied and gasping for breath, she finally reaches the safety of home. It’s not long, however, before two armed men arrive, and she is forced out of the window and into a race for her life. Compelled to go north, towards the border with Canada, she plunges into the wilderness, relying on the easy kindness of strangers like farmer Frank (Blaine Palmer) and small-town barman Molly (Ayanna Berkshire). 

Hot on her heels is Elsa (Sonya Walker), an accomplished fixer who has been tasked with stopping Jess by any means necessary. Elsa is the best in the business, but has been hiding a recent ALS diagnosis — something she is trying her best to ignore, determined it will not come to define her. “I am in the process of becoming the best version of myself” reads an aspirational note on her bathroom mirror; but her increasing instability and reliance on her walking stick suggests the challenges she is facing. 

The disease certainly becomes more of a hindrance as she trails Jess through the glorious countryside; her uncooperative hand refusing to grip her gun, her walking stick slowing her down as the chase widens to the expanse of the ironically-named Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, which straddles the northern Rocky Mountains along the border between the US and Canada. Walker embodies Elsa’s quiet frustration, punctuated by moments of anger, in the face of this unwanted physical change; the idea that this disease is resetting her limits, shrinking her world, is a striking contrast to the stunning vastness of rural America captured by cinematographer Mark Evana (the film shot throughout Oregon during March 2022).

As the two women grow increasingly desperate, and their circumstances more tightly entwined, the screenplay teases out their motivations, largely via flashbacks smoothly edited into the narrative. A recently bereaved Jess believes she is being pursued for committing a crime, while Elsa slowly comes to realise how much is at stake if Jess makes it over the border — and how, to find any sense of hope, she first needs to accept her own fate. To reveal more would be a spoiler, but suffice it to say that Rosman effectively blends this fugitive tale with elements of post-pandemic germophobia, isolation fears and body horror. Practical make-up effects are particularly impressive, and leave a lasting impression.