''Cloudburst'' is a 2011 Canadian-American comedy-drama film written and directed by

Thom Fitzgerald Thomas "Thom" Fitzgerald (born July 8, 1968) is an American-Canadian film and theatre director, screenwriter, playwright and producer. Life Fitzgerald was born and raised in New Rochelle, New York. His parents divorced when he was five years ol ...

and starring

Olympia Dukakis Olympia Dukakis (June 20, 1931 – May 1, 2021) was an American actress. She performed in more than 130 stage productions, more than 60 films and in 50 television series. Best known as a screen actress, she started her career in theater. Not lon ...

and

Brenda Fricker Brenda Fricker (born 17 February 1945) is an Irish actress, whose career has spanned six decades on stage and screen. She has appeared in more than 30 films and television roles. In 1990, she became the first Irish actress to win an Academy Awar ...

. The film is an adaptation of Fitzgerald's 2010 play of the same name. ''Cloudburst'' premiered at the

Atlantic Film Festival FIN: Atlantic International Film Festival (known as The Atlantic International Film Festival until 2017) is a major international film festival held annually in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada since 1980. FIN is the largest Canadian film festival ...

in Halifax, Nova Scotia on September 16, 2011."A queer Thelma and Louise story"
. ''

Xtra! ''Xtra Magazine'' (formerly ''DailyXtra'' and ''Xtra!'') is an LGBTQ-focused digital publication and former print newspaper published by Pink Triangle Press in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The publication is a continuation of the company's former ...

'', September 13, 2011. It opened in a limited release in Canada on December 7, 2012.

Plot

Stella and Dotty are an older lesbian couple from Maine who embark on a

Thelma and Louise Thelma is a female given name. It was popularized by Victorian writer Marie Corelli who gave the name to the title character of her 1887 novel ''Thelma''. It may be related to a Greek word meaning "will, volition" see ''thelema''). Note that altho ...

-style road trip to Nova Scotia to get married after Dotty is moved into a nursing home by her granddaughter. Along the way they pick up Prentice, a hitchhiker travelling home to Nova Scotia to visit his dying mother, and the three bond as they travel together.

Cast

as Stella *

as Dot *

Ryan Doucette Ryan Doucette (born Ryan Vernon Doucette; 23 July 1983) is a Canadian actor, comedian, scriptwriter and director of Acadian descent. He is best known for his roles in the films ''Cloudburst'' and '' The Disappeared'', and the television series ...

as Prentice *

Kristin Booth Kristin Booth (born August 28, 1974) is a Canadian actress, born in Kitchener, Ontario. She graduated with Honours BFA from Ryerson Theatre School at Ryerson Polytechnic University in 1997. Career Kristin Booth grew up in Kinkora, near the S ...

as Molly * Michael McPhee as Tommy *

Mary-Colin Chisholm Mary-Colin Chisholm is a Canadian actress, playwright, and co-assistant director of the theatre companies LunaSea Theatre and Frankie Productions. Career In 2000, Chisholm directed the theatrical piece called ''Frankie'', starring Mary Ellen Maclea ...

as Ynez * Marlane O'Brien as Cat

Production

Fitzgerald adapted his own stage play for the screen. The film version was produced by Doug Pettigrew and Fitzgerald, and executive produced by Sidney Kimmel, Vicki McCarty, William Jarblum, Trudy Pettigrew, Dana Warren and Shandi Mitchell. Fitzgerald had originally planned for the role of Dotty to be played by Joan Orenstein, but as she died while he was writing it, he cast Fricker instead. In press for the film, Fricker praised the screenplay, "I was so moved by it. The love story was so beautiful I couldn't say no to it." Three members of the original stage cast reprised their roles: Ryan Doucette, Marlane O'Brien, and Michael McPhee.

Critical reception

The film received an approval rating of 100% on review aggregator

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, with an average rating of 6.7/10, based on 9 reviews. The film debuted to an enthusiastic standing ovation on September 16, 2011 at the

, where it won an Atlantic Canada Award for Best Screenplay and the People's Choice Audience Award for Best Film of the Festival. Its second festival appearance was October 20, 2011 at

Cinéfest Sudbury International Film Festival Cinéfest Sudbury International Film Festival, also known as Cinéfest and Cinéfest Sudbury is an annual film festival in Greater Sudbury, Ontario, Canada,"Cinefest provides cultural landmark". ''Sudbury Star'', September 16, 1999. held over nine ...

, where it also won the Audience Choice Award for Best Film, and on October 23, 2011 the film was the opening night selection of the

Edmonton International Film Festival The Edmonton International Film Festival (EIFF) is a nine-day film festival in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, hosted at Landmark Cinemas at Edmonton City Centre. It is supported by and partnered with Telefilm Canada, Government of Alberta, Alberta ...

where it won the Audience Award for Best Canadian Film. ''Cloudburst'' was very well received at film festivals from coast to coast in Canada, winning awards at festivals in Halifax, Montreal, Kingston, Edmonton, Victoria, and others. ''Cloudburst'' made its U.S. debut at the

Palm Springs International Film Festival Palm Springs International Film Festival (sometimes stylized shortly as PSIFF) is a film festival held in Palm Springs, California. Originally promoted by Mayor Sonny Bono and then sponsored by Nortel,here for Table of Contents it started in 1989 ...

where it was named a Best of the Fest. The film made its Australian debut at the Breath of Fresh Air Tasmania Film Festival. It made its European debut as Opening Night Gala of the

Dublin International Film Festival The Dublin International Film Festival (DIFF; ) is an annual film festival held in Dublin, Ireland, since 2003. History Dublin International Film Festival was established in 2003. It was revived by Michael Dwyer, international film critic and ' ...

. It was also selected as Opening Night Gala of the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery (United Kingdom), National Lot ...

London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival BFI Flare: London LGBTIQ+ Film Festival, formerly known as the London Lesbian and Gay Film Festival (LLGFF), is the biggest LGBTIQ+ film festival in Europe. It takes place every spring in London, England. It began in 1986, as a season of gay and ...

and as the closing-night film of Frameline 36.

commented in 2012, "Of all the films I've made, only three do I remember where I felt I'd moved forward as an actress: ''Cloudburst'', ''

My Left Foot ''My Left Foot: The Story of Christy Brown'', also known simply as ''My Left Foot'', is a 1989 biographical comedy-drama film directed by Jim Sheridan adapted by Sheridan and Shane Connaughton from the 1954 memoir of the same name by Christy ...

'' and '' The Field''."

Accolades

* Asheville QFest Best Actress Award,

* Asheville QFest Best Supporting Actress Award,

* Athens, Greece Outview Film Festival Best Film Award *

Atlanta Film Festival The Atlanta Film Festival (ATLFF) is a long-running, international film festival held in Atlanta, Georgia operated by the Atlanta Film Society, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Started in 1976 and occurring every spring, the festival shows a ...

Pink Peach Feature Grand Jury Prize * Atlanta Out on Film Festival Audience Award for Best Overall Feature * Atlanta Out on Film Jury Award for Best Film * Atlanta Out on Film Jury Award for Best Actress,

People's Choice Audience Award for Best Film of the Festival *

Michael Weir Atlantic Canada Award for Best Screenplay,

* Barcelona International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival Audience Award for Best Film * Birmingham UK Shout Festival Audience Award for Best Picture *

Opening Night Gala *Canadian Film Festival Opening Night Gala * Cinefest Sudbury International Film Festival Audience Choice Award for Best Film of the Festival * CNKY Cincinnati Kentucky GLBT Festival Award for Best Feature Film * Copenhagen MIX Copenhagen Film Festival Audience Award for Best Film *

Opening Night Gala *

Audience Award for Best Canadian Indie Film * Hannover Queer Film Festival Audience Award for Best Film * Image+Nation Montreal GLBT Film Festival Best Feature Film Award * Indianapolis LGBT Film Festival Audience Award for Best Lesbian Film * Kingston Reelout Film Festival Opening Night Gala * Kingston Reelout Film Festival Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature *

Melbourne Queer Film Festival The Melbourne Queer Film Festival is an annual LGBT film festival held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Held in November, the festival is regarded as the largest queer film event in the Southern Hemisphere. The festival attracts around 23,00 ...

Opening Night Gala *Mix Milan Film Festival, Grand Jury Award for Best Feature * New Zealand Out Takes: A Reel Queer Film Festival, Audience Award for Best Feature * North Carolina Gay and Lesbian Film Festival Audience Award for Best Feature *

Best of the Fest Selection * Qfest Philadelphia Audience Award for Best Feature * QFest St. Louis Audience Award for Best Feature * Rainbow Reels Waterloo Film Festival People's Choice Award for Best Feature Film * Sacramento Gay & Lesbian Film Festival Audience Award for Best Film * San Diego FilmOut, Audience Award for Best Feature Film * San Diego FilmOut, Jury Award for Best Feature Film * San Diego FilmOut, Jury Award for Best Leading Actress * San Diego FilmOut, Jury Award for Best Direction * San Francisco Frameline Festival Audience Award for Best Film *

Southwest Gay and Lesbian Film Festival The Way OUT West Film Fest (WOWFF), formerly the Southwest Gay and Lesbian Film Festival (SWGLFF), is a LGBT, gay and lesbian film festival founded in 2003. It started in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and has since expanded into Santa Fe, New Mexico, ...

Audience Award for Best Feature *

Vancouver International Film Festival The Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) is an annual film festival held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, for two weeks in late September and early October. The festival is operated by the Greater Vancouver International Film Fest ...

Top Ten Most Popular Canadian Film Award *

Victoria Film Festival The Victoria Film Festival is a publicly attended film festival in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada running for ten days in February. The festival shows both Canadian and international films and unreels 150 films with 55 Features on 6 screens ...

Best Canadian Film Award

Adaptation

''Cloudburst'' is based on the stage play by Thom Fitzgerald, which debuted on April 8, 2010 at the Plutonium Playhouse in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The play starred Carroll Godsman, Deborah Allen, Ryan Doucette, Marlane O'Brien, Michael McPhee and Amy Reitsma. The successful engagement ran for five weeks and closed on May 8, 2010. The production was nominated for several Merritt Awards, Nova Scotia's professional theatre awards, including nominations for Outstanding Production, Outstanding New Play (Fitzgerald) Outstanding Lead Actress (Allen), Outstanding Supporting Actor (Doucette), and Outstanding Set Design (Fitzgerald). Fitzgerald won the Merritt Award for Outstanding New Play.

References

External links

* (Archive) * *
''Cloudburst''
at Northernstars (Canadian Movie Database) {{DEFAULTSORT:Cloudburst 2011 films 2011 independent films 2011 LGBT-related films 2010s adventure comedy-drama films 2010s road comedy-drama films American adventure comedy-drama films American independent films American LGBT-related films American road comedy-drama films Canadian independent films English-language Canadian films Canadian LGBT-related films Canadian road comedy-drama films Lesbian-related films LGBT and ageing LGBT-related comedy-drama films Same-sex marriage in film Films about old age Films set in Maine Films set in Nova Scotia Films shot in Nova Scotia Films directed by Thom Fitzgerald Sidney Kimmel Entertainment films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films 2010s Canadian films