Expired January 3, 2023 8:00 AM
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A crazy action movie set in the far north in the year 2101: think Mad Max on skidoos. Viva Lee plays Sumi, a ten-year-old female warrior raised by a polar bear who spends a lot of time evading capture in the frozen dystopian world that is our future. The action is visceral and extremely well depicted, as there is little dialogue in the film. Most of the movie is sheer kinetic energy and stunt work, with some sequences (such as an eyeball removing scene) being quite graphic.
It is mostly women who have survived the cataclysmic events that occurred prior to the movie. A group of warriors called the Morads roam and ransack the countryside and seem particularly intent on offing Sumi, a young girl who follows Polaris, the pinkish North Star and has some magical powers. All of this is at the service of deeply-rooted environmental rage that permeates the screenplay for this Yukon shot action film. This is Carthew’s second film to play at the Whistler Film Festival following 2016’s THE SUN AT MIDNIGHT and it is by far her most accomplished yet.

“An indie sci-fi eco-adventure not to be missed…one of the most unique Canadian films ever.” Sara Clements, PAJBA

“Korean-Canadian child actor Viva Lee (…) is the major driving force behind POLARIS.” Sean Kelly, Sean Kelly on Movies


Opening Film
Fantasia Film Festival
  • Year
    2022
  • Runtime
    90 minutes
  • Language
    Invented language
  • Country
    Canada
  • Premiere
    Western Canadian Premiere
  • Rating
    14A - violence
  • Director
    KC Carthew
  • Screenwriter
    KC Carthew
  • Producer
    Alyson Richards, Paul Cadieux, KC Carthew
  • Cast
    Viva Lee, Muriel Dutil, Khamisa Wilsher
  • Cinematographer
    David Schuurman
  • Editor
    Geoff Klein