''Dancing in the Dark'' is a 1986 Canadian drama film directed and written by

Leon Marr Leon Marr (May 26, 1948 – July 22, 2019) was a Canadian film and television director and screenwriter, who won a Genie Award for Best Adapted Screenplay at the 8th Genie Awards in 1987 for '' Dancing in the Dark''. He was also a nominee, but di ...

, based on the 1982 novel ''Dancing in the Dark'' by

Joan Barfoot Joan Louise Barfoot (born May 17, 1946) is a Canadian novelist. She has published 11 novels, including ''Luck'' (2005), which was a nominee for the 2005 Scotiabank Giller Prize, and ''Critical Injuries'' (2001), which was longlisted for the 2002 Ma ...

. It was produced by

Anthony Kramreither Anthony Kramreither (August 7, 1926 – February 8, 1993) was an Austrian-Canadian film and television actor and producer."OBITUARY: Anthony Kramreither Toronto film producer". ''The Globe and Mail'', February 12, 1993. Primarily known as a pro ...

Don Haig Don Haig (22 July 1933 — 2 March 2002) was a Canadian filmmaker, editor, and producer. His work in film and television spanned nearly five decades. Over the course of his career, he won Academy, Genie, and Gemini awards, and the Governor Gener ...

and co-produced by John Ryan. The film is about a housewife, Edna (

Martha Henry Martha Kathleen Henry (née Buhs; February 17, 1938October 21, 2021) was an American-born Canadian stage, film, and television actress. She was noted for her work at the Stratford Festival in Stratford, Ontario. Early life and training Martha ...

), whose life revolves around her husband Henry (Neil Munro). Edna spends her days cleaning the house making sure that it looks spotless and fulfilling her husband's every need in the process. After Henry betrays Edna's trust she murders him and then finds herself in a

psychiatric hospital Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental health hospitals, behavioral health hospitals, are hospitals or wards specializing in the treatment of severe mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, dissociative ...

where she relives her old life by writing in her journal. ''Dancing in the Dark'' is considered a

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

film. The story shows the legal system wavering in favour of Edna as she is placed in a psychiatric hospital instead of a prison after her crime. ''Dancing in the Dark'' premiered at the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...

in May 1986. It was then shown in September 1986 as part of the Perspectives Canada programme of the Toronto Festival of Festivals, now known as the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a permane ...

. It was shown later that month at the

New York Film Festival The New York Film Festival (NYFF) is a film festival held every fall in New York City, presented by Film at Lincoln Center (FLC). Founded in 1963 by Richard Roud and Amos Vogel with the support of Lincoln Center president William Schuman, it is ...

Plot

The story begins as the present unfolds along with scenes from the past about Edna, a woman in a hospital who each day writes down her memories. She is a devoted housewife, an excellent cook, and in love with her husband Harry who often compliments her on her cooking, fills their conversations with his life at work, and they seem quite normal if perhaps a little boring. Edna's attitude towards herself suddenly changes resulting in her ending her 20-year marriage by stabbing Harry with a kitchen knife. Edna cannot (or will not) talk to her doctor, and nurses have to take care of her basic needs. Edna's hospital surroundings give way to the bright colours of her home life as her memories of her past life surface as she writes.

Cast

Release

''Dancing in the Dark'' was first shown at the

in May 1986 in Cannes, France. It was premiered in the most prestigious category within the festival. The film was shown at the 1986 Festival of Festivals in Toronto on September 5, 1986. Martha Henry received a Special Jury Citation from the Best Canadian Film jury. ''Dancing in the Dark'' was shown at Alice Tully Hall in New York City at the

on September 25 and September 27, 1986.

Reaction

Before ''Dancing in the Dark'',

was not considered to be a prestigious producer and many critics would avoid going to see his work. After the release of ''Dancing in the Dark'' at the Cannes Film Festival in August 1986 critics sought out his work and were writing generous reviews about his films. The film got mixed reviews. In Canada reviews were generally positive, and the film helped jumpstart Leon Marr's directorial career. The French newspaper

L'Humanité ''L'Humanité'' (; ), is a French daily newspaper. It was previously an organ of the French Communist Party, and maintains links to the party. Its slogan is "In an ideal world, ''L'Humanité'' would not exist." History and profile Pre-World Wa ...

, which at the time was a

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

newspaper, wrote that the film was "fabulous" and "highly original". The American and the English generally did not appreciate the film. English film critic

Derek Malcolm Derek Elliston Michael Malcolm (born 12 May 1932) is an English film critic. Son of J. Douglas Malcolm (died 1967) and Dorothy Vera (died 1964; née Elliston-Taylor), Malcolm was educated at Eton College and Merton College, Oxford. As a child he ...

said that the film was "Terrible, embarrassingly sincere, and also embarrassingly inept". American film critic

Dave Kehr David Kehr (born 1953) is an American museum curator and film critic. For many years a critic at the ''Chicago Reader'' and the ''Chicago Tribune,'' he later wrote a weekly column for ''The New York Times'' on DVD releases. He later became a c ...

said the film was "like a second-rate film of the seventies".

Recognition

* 1987 **

Genie Award for Best Achievement in Art Direction/Production Design The Canadian Screen Award for Best Achievement in Art Direction/Production Design is awarded by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best Canadian film art direction/production design. 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s ...

Lillian Sarafinchan Lillian Sarafinchan (born 1935) is a painter and teacher, production design, continuity & art director and locations director. Early life and education Sarafinchan was born in Vegreville, Alberta, in 1935, the eldest of three brothers and event ...

- Won **

Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television presents an annual award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role to the best performance by a lead actress in a Canadian film. The award was first presented in 1968 by the Canadian Film Awards ...

- Martha Henry - Won **

Genie Award for Best Adapted Screenplay The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television presents one or more annual awards for the Best Screenplay for a Canadian film. Originally presented in 1968 as part of the Canadian Film Awards, from 1980 until 2012 the award continued as part of the Gen ...

- Leon Marr - Won **

Genie Award for Best Achievement in Direction The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television presents an annual award for Best Achievement in Direction to the best work by a director of a Canadian film.Maria Topalovich, ''And the Genie Goes To...: Celebrating 50 Years of the Canadian Film Awards ...

- Leon Marr - Nominated **

Genie Award for Best Motion Picture The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television presents an annual award for Best Motion Picture to the best Canadian film of the year.Maria Topalovich, ''And the Genie Goes To...: Celebrating 50 Years of the Canadian Film Awards''. Stoddart Publishin ...

- Anthony Kramreither - Nominated * 1986 **

Mannheim-Heidelberg International Filmfestival The Mannheim-Heidelberg International Film Festival (german: Internationales Filmfestival Mannheim-Heidelberg), often referred to by the German-language initialism IFFMH, is an annual film festival established in 1952 hosted jointly by the citi ...

Interfilm Award - Honorable Mention - Leon Marr - Won **

Best Canadian Feature Film - Special Jury Citation - Martha Henry - Won

References

External links

* * {{AllMovie title 1986 films 1986 drama films Films based on Canadian novels English-language Canadian films Canadian drama films 1980s feminist films 1980s English-language films 1980s Canadian films