Can I Get a Witness? (2024)
The 2024 Canadian film Can I Get a Witness? is a thought-provoking, part live-action, part animated science fiction drama directed and written by Ann Marie Fleming, featuring Sandra Oh, Keira Jang, and Joel Oulette. The story is set in a near-future, low-tech society that has successfully mitigated catastrophic climate change and eradicated poverty by agreeing to an extreme solution: no one is allowed to live past the age of 50 to maintain ecological equilibrium and control population. The world has renounced most technology, including electricity and printing/photography, promoting a simple, agrarian lifestyle. The narrative centers on Ellie (Sandra Oh), a mother approaching the mandatory end-of-life age of 50, and her teenage daughter, Kiah (Keira Jang). Kiah, a gifted artist, has just started a new, essential role as a "Documenter," working alongside her pragmatic colleague Daniel (Joel Oulette). Since photography is banned, Documenters are tasked with drawing and witnessing the end-of-life ceremonies—known as End-of-Life (EOL) protocols—for surviving family members. Kiah's job, which includes beautifully rendered animated sequences reflecting her art, quickly takes an emotional toll, especially as she faces the reality of her own mother's impending sacrifice for the "greater good," forcing both of them to confront the moral and personal costs of their utopian society. The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in September 2024.
- 2025
- 1 h : 51 min
- 145 views
-
5.247
- 12
- English (Canada)
Recommended
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Isabella Rossellini
2025-10-10 06:57:23
It's a post-apocalyptic drama set in British Columbia over several days in about 2040 after a 2025 worldwide disaster. The apocalypse left the world in a non-digital, marginal electricity-powered society with exceptionally restricted travel. However, there is food for all, minimal conflict, and strict limitations on natural resource usage. There is also a limit to the length of life. Ellie (Sandra Oh) is the mother of Kiah (Keira Jang). Ellie remembers "before" the apocalypse; Kiah is starting her role as an "end of life" witness. Her more experienced co-worker is Daniel (Joel Oulette). The film follows their activities over several days as they visit clients. "Can I Get a Witness?" describes itself as a fable and uses some reasonably pointless animation to underscore that concept. The story is creative and takes some decent swings at several examples of responses to the reformed society's requirements. The cinematography that emphasizes nature makes the film almost a satire, but it's not that either. I'm not sure it finally found a solid message to deliver.