''The Falls'' is a Canadian documentary film, directed by Kevin McMahon and released in 1991. The film is an exploration of the cultural significance held by

Niagara Falls Niagara Falls () is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States. The largest of the three is Horseshoe Falls, ...

in the collective imagination.Elizabeth Aird, "Extraordinary, absurd The Falls dubbed a must-see". ''

Vancouver Sun The ''Vancouver Sun'', also known as the ''Sun'', is a daily broadsheet newspaper based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The newspaper is currently published by the Pacific Newspaper Group, a division of Postmedia Network. Published s ...

'', October 15, 1991. According to McMahon, "It would have been very easy to do something trite and cheap and ironic — you know, making fun of Niagara Falls as a

tourist trap A tourist trap is an establishment (or group of establishments) that has been created or re-purposed with the aim of attracting tourists and their money. Tourist traps will typically provide overpriced services, entertainment, food, souvenir ...

. But I was interested in exploring the mythic side of it."Mark Bastien, "The Falls: Film shows beauty and beast". ''

Ottawa Citizen The ''Ottawa Citizen'' is an English-language daily newspaper owned by Postmedia Network in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. History Established as ''The Bytown Packet'' in 1845 by William Harris (journalist), William Harris, it was renamed the '' ...

'', October 26, 1991. Instead, he tried to make a film which encompassed all aspects of the Niagara Falls area, including poetic meditation on the power and force of the falls themselves, an acknowledgement of the

tacky Kitsch ( ; loanword from German) is a term applied to art and design that is perceived as naïve imitation, overly-eccentric, gratuitous, or of banal taste. The avant-garde opposed kitsch as melodramatic and superficial affiliation with ...

aspects of the Clifton Hill tourist district, and an exploration of the environmental consequences of pollution and hydroelectric development in the area, including the controversy around

Love Canal Love Canal is a neighborhood in Niagara Falls, New York, United States, infamous as the location of a landfill that became the site of an enormous environmental disaster in the 1970s. Decades of dumping toxic chemicals harmed the health of hund ...

. The film was screened for distributors at the

Cannes Film Market Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. The ci ...

in May 1991, and had its public premiere at the 1991 Festival of Festivals, before having a limited commercial release in October.

Response

Jay Scott Jeffrey Scott Beaven (October 4, 1949 – July 30, 1993), known professionally by his pen name Jay Scott, was a Canadian film critic."Critic Jay Scott, 43 among world's best". ''Toronto Star'', July 31, 1993. Early life Scott was born in Lincol ...

of ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

'' praised the film, writing that "eventually, the film intermarries the naturally sacred and the unnaturally profane with breathtaking dexterity. An innocuous water slide, for instance, suggests technologically induced pollution; happy tourists in yellow slickers walk through a tunnel to an observation deck, appearing unearthly and ominous, like aliens from a science-fiction film or mad medical technicians on their way to perform sadistic experiments; and the sterile hydroelectric installations recall both the dystopian nightmare city of

Metropolis A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural center for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications. A big c ...

and the high-tech space station utopia of 2001: A Space Odyssey. "It's all in the framing" - The Falls has brilliantly framed Niagara Falls as the picture of a civilization." Elizabeth Aird of the ''

'' rated the film five stars, writing that "It's as absurdly funny as

Errol Morris Errol Mark Morris (born February 5, 1948) is an American film director known for documentaries that interrogate the epistemology of its subjects. In 2003, his documentary film '' The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara ...

Gates of Heaven ''Gates of Heaven'' is a 1978 American documentary film produced, directed, and edited by Errol Morris about the pet cemetery business. It was made when Morris was unknown and did much to launch his career. Production After a trip to Florida ...

(about pet cemeteries), as ironically funny as

Laurie Anderson Laurel Philips Anderson (born June 5, 1947), known as Laurie Anderson, is an American avant-garde artist, composer, musician, and film director whose work spans performance art, pop music, and multimedia projects. Initially trained in violin and ...

's musings about the modern world, and as sad, just plain old sad, as any document about humankind's need to subjugate nature could be." The film received a

Genie Award The Genie Awards were given out annually by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to recognize the best of Canadian cinema from 1980–2012. They succeeded the Canadian Film Awards (1949–1978; also known as the "Etrog Awards," for scu ...

nomination for Best Feature Length Documentary at the 12th Genie Awards in 1991.Craig MacInnis, "Jesuits adventure in front with 10 Genie nominations". ''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...

'', October 10, 1991.

References

External links

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Primitive Entertainment
{{DEFAULTSORT:Falls, The 1991 films 1991 documentary films Canadian documentary films Films shot in Ontario Niagara Falls 1990s English-language films 1990s Canadian films