Plot
Chronicles the motorcycle trip of Ben Tyler as he rides from Toronto to Tofino, British Columbia. Ben stops at landmarks that are both iconic and idiosyncratic on his quest to find meaning in his life.
Release Year: 2008
Rating: 7.1/10 (3,842 voted)
Director:
Michael McGowan
Stars: Joshua Jackson, Peter Spence, Marc Strange
Storyline Out of the blue, Ben learns he has stage IV cancer; survival, with treatment, is 10 percent. So this risk-averse, slow-to-act, quiet man buys a used motorcycle, says goodbye to Samantha, his baffled fiancée, and heads west from Toronto. He imagines it's a quest for Grumps, a mythical figure from his childhood; he takes digital photos of various "world's largest" roadside attractions; he chats with strangers, including two women; his bike slips on a dead skunk on the highway. Calls to Samantha meet with pleading that he return for treatment and anger that he won't. He doesn't want to be a patient yet. But, will he make discoveries, and what about Grumps? What's important?
Cast: Joshua Jackson
-
Ben Tyler
Peter Spence
-
Doctor
Marc Strange
-
Art Carey
Gage Munroe
-
Young Ben
Richard Waugh
-
Baseball Coach
Deirdre Kirby
-
Mrs. Bell
Liane Balaban
-
Samantha Pierce
Fiona Reid
-
Mary Tyler
Chuck Shamata
-
Gerald Tyler
Caroline Cave
-
Nancy Tyler
Jodi Brooks
-
Nurse Forrester
Chris Benson
-
Mayor
David Reale
-
Pete
Kyle Fairlie
-
Oscar
Colin Fox
-
Father O'Neill
Filming Locations: Banff, Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada
Box Office Details
Budget: $CAD2,000,000
(estimated)
Opening Weekend: $CAD204,375
(Canada)
(8 March 2009)
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Canada:
(Toronto International Film Festival)
Did You Know?
Trivia:
The motorcycle Ben travels with is a 1973 Norton 850 Commando.
Goofs:
Errors in geography:
When Ben arrives at the Ranchman Motel, he still hasn't left Ontario, however the Ranchman Motel is located in Medicine Hat, Alberta.
Quotes:
[first lines]
Narrator:
What would you do if you knew you only had one day, or one week, or one month to live? Doctor:
I'm afraid it's not great news. We've picked up cancerous cells in your blood, your liver, and your lymph nodes. We need to get you into treatment right away. Ben Tyler:
How bad is it? Doctor:
It's stage four. Ben Tyler:
How many stages are there? Doctor:
Four.
User Review
timeless theme
Rating: 10/10
This is a very Canadian movie, not only in the use of the gorgeous
cross-country scenery that provides both a backdrop and a reflective
commentary on the main character's personal search but also because of
it is patently outside the realm of the "regular" Hollywood (i.e.
American) fare. This is not to suggest that only Canucks can enjoy or
appreciate this wonderful, warm-hearted, evocative, simple story
because the plot line and embedded themes are universal and timeless.
There is a leisurely quality to this narrative and a kind of
inevitability to the whole story that makes it poignant yet full of
strength at the same time. The voice-over done by a sonorously voiced
Campbell Scott works so well that far from being intrusive as most
add-ons are, it (he) becomes a character in his (its) own right.
This is one of those "festival sleepers" that will never have wide
distribution but which will delight and uplift any who see it.
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