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Reviewed by Elliot V. Kotek
(from the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival)

Directed/Written by: Ed Gass-Donnelly
Starring: Martha Plimpton, Peter Stormare, Aaron Poole, Jill Hennessy, Ari Cohen, Jackie Burroughs and Steven Eric McIntyre

Shot with stunning simplicity by Brendan Steacy, “Small Town Murder Songs,” the sophomore feature effort of 33-year-old Toronto native Ed Gass-Donnelly, finds its footing in a Mennonite Christian community. When a girl turns up dead on the banks of the local “beach,” the town’s police chief Walter Ruden has issues from his past dredged to light. Like fellow Canadian David Cronenberg’s “History of Violence,” “Small Town Murder Songs” explores the issues of how deep one can bury what is innate within each of us and whether faith alone is truly enough to maintain strength.

With a detective at the helm, Chief Walter does the rounds, from the religious community leaders to old-school farmers and the nearby strip club, and it’s clear that small towns have their own way of doing things and of protecting their kin.

That the main suspect is dating the Chief’s former flame further complicates matters. But, while everyone has something, sometime, that they’d prefer stay secret, some secrets are mere lies.

Gass-Donnelly displays such consummate confidence with the pacing of the film and the first-class performances of his cast that we must keep watch for whatever the helmer delivers next. But unfortunately, despite the sweeping rural vistas, from the opening credit track screaming, “You can’t hide what you really are” to the final frame, the plot points don’t stray from a straight line and, consequently, the audience isn’t required to ask any questions of the happenings onscreen.

Additionally, the filmmaker uses title cards to introduce/interrupt the chapters of the film. Although a well-designed device with seemingly interesting intent, they serve as a simple reminder that a fiction is being told.

The shame in this simplicity is that the filmmaker takes care to introduce us to interesting characters , family, farmers, an old-school Mennonite, et cetera , any of whom would have provided points of interest if allowed to distract us from the story’s through-line. Without these alternative threads of narrative, we are left to view the film solely as a character study into the police chief. Thankfully, he is portrayed with mesmerizing beauty.

Photo: Peter Stormare in “Small Town Murder Songs”