''The Law of Enclosures'' is a 2000 Canadian drama film. It was written and directed by

John Greyson John Greyson (born March 13, 1960) is a Canadian director, writer, video artist, producer, and political activist, whose work frequently deals with queer characters and themes. He was part of a loosely-affiliated group of filmmakers to emerge in ...

, and based on the novel ''

The Law of Enclosures ''The Law of Enclosures'' is a 1996 novel by Dale Peck, which was adapted into the 2000 film '' The Law of Enclosures'' by Canadian director John Greyson. A cross between a conventional novel and a memoir A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction ...

'' by

Dale Peck Dale Peck (born 1967) is an American novelist, literary critic, and columnist. His 2009 novel, '' Sprout'', won the Lambda Literary Award for LGBT Children's/Young Adult literature, and was a finalist for the Stonewall Book Award in the Children's ...

. The story traces the marital relationship of Henry and Beatrice, characters based on Peck's real-life parents, over the course of their lives from their courtship as young adults to their 40th

wedding anniversary A wedding anniversary is the anniversary of the date a wedding took place. Couples may take the occasion to celebrate their relationship, either privately or with a larger party. Special celebrations and gifts are often given for particular an ...

. For the film adaptation, Greyson set the events in 1991 against the backdrop of the first

Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...

, with Henry and Beatrice's younger and older selves all coexisting in a single time frame.

Sarah Polley Sarah Ellen Polley (born January 8, 1979) is a Canadian actress,Howell, Peter (September 24, 1999)"Nobody's Starlet: Toronto's Sarah Polley is Only 20 but already a veteran actor so secure in her craft she can thumb her nose at Hollywood" ''Tor ...

and

Brendan Fletcher Brendan Fletcher (born December 15, 1981) is a Canadian actor. He first gained recognition as a child actor, winning a Leo Award and being nominated for a Gemini Award his acting debut in the made-for-television film ''Little Criminals''. He ...

play Beatrice and Henry as a young couple, with

Diane Ladd Diane Ladd is an American actress. She has appeared in over 120 film and television roles. For the 1974 film '' Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore'', she won the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role and was nominated for the Academy A ...

and Sean McCann playing the older characters. While author Peck was born in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

and raised in

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

, Greyson set the film in

Sarnia Sarnia is a city in Lambton County, Ontario, Canada. It had a 2021 population of 72,047, and is the largest city on Lake Huron. Sarnia is located on the eastern bank of the junction between the Upper and Lower Great Lakes where Lake Huron fl ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

. The score was written by

Don Pyle Don Pyle is a Canadians, Canadian record producer and musician, who has been a member of a number of bands. Pyle is openly gay. Life and career His first group, from 1979 to 1981, was a Punk rock, punk band called Crash Kills Five. They release ...

and

Andrew Zealley Greek Buck were a Canadian musical duo, consisting of Don Pyle (formerly of Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet and Phono-Comb) and Andrew Zealley. They are best known for "Spunk", the theme song to the American television series '' Queer as Folk''.

Cast

as Beatrice *

as Henry *

as Bea * Sean McCann as Hank *

Kristen Thomson Kristen Thomson (born 1966) is a Canadian actress and playwright. Thomson was born in Toronto, Ontario. She is known for her one-woman play ''I, Claudia'', which was adapted to film in 2004. In that play and film, Thomson plays all of the roles ...

as Myrah *

Rob Stefaniuk Robert Stefaniuk is a Canadian comedian, actor and writer who has worked in numerous television shows and films as both guest actor and series regular. His feature-film acting credits include the ''Saturday Night Live''-inspired ''Superstar'' (19 ...

as Stanley *

Shirley Douglas Shirley Jean Douglas (April 2, 1934 – April 5, 2020) was a Canadian actress and activist. Her acting career combined with her family name made her recognizable in Canadian film, television and national politics. Early life Douglas was born A ...

as Myra *Victor Cowie as Stan *Sharon Bajer as Doctor *

Darcy Fehr Darcy Fehr is a Canadian actor. Career Fehr's films include ''Desire'' (2000), ''The Saddest Music in the World'' (2003), '' There's Something Out There'' (2004) and ''The Law of Enclosures'' (2000). Fehr's most notable roles have been his portr ...

as Young Miller

Award

*Brendan Fletcher won Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role at the 22nd Genie Awards.

External links

* * * * 2000 films English-language Canadian films Canadian drama films Films based on American novels Films directed by John Greyson 2000s English-language films 2000s Canadian films {{bio-film-stub