“A lot of outports in Newfoundland do feel timeless,” observes The King Tide director Christian Sparkes. “These remote regions are 20 years-plus behind fashion and technology. It’s not a huge stretch to make them feel timeless.”
Sparkes, speaking with That Shelf during the Toronto International Film Festival last fall where The King Tide premiered, delivers a landmark for Newfoundland cinema with his third feature. While the enigmatic drama never names its idyllic island community, it’s unmistakable part of Canada’s East Coast. The island finds a picturesque sense of place with its jutting rocks, swift ocean currents, and rolling hillsides. The film harnesses the timelessness of the outport community to create an air of unease in the small community that sees its tide of fortune turn when fisherman Bobby (Clayne Crawford) discovers an infant in a capsized boat.
That baby grows into a young woman, Isla (Alix West Lefler), who commands the island like a patient spectre. Villagers pay clockwork visitations under the watchful eye of Bobby, now the town’s mayor. Also at Isla’s constant side are her mother Grace (Lara Jean Chorostecki) and her grandmother Faye (Frances Fisher). After each visit, the neighbours offer a dutiful farewell: “Many thanks to Isla.” People in the town don’t age, nor does the island bear immediate markers of time. Isla, a prodigal healer, keeps the community in a state of well-preserved limbo.
“We wanted to make it clear to the audience that these people were isolated and cut off,” notes Sparkes. “By the time the mainlanders arrive, there’s a sense of modernity creeping in. That brings all the fears and dangers that modernity has.”
The script by Albert Shin (Clifton Hill) and William Woods (The Kid Detective) plays with the isolationist mentality one might presumes in outport communities. As Isla’s power evolves, the community harnesses it for self-serving purposes. She goes from healing the sick to summoning the cod with Biblical power, an act that feeds the islanders, but brings fatal consequences.
“It’s leaning towards a a cult-like group-think mentality on the island,” agrees Sparkes. “By the time the Coast Guard shows up, we worked hard to create the idea that these people are descending and descending quickly.”
Sparkes notes that working with a screenplay by two mainlanders (Shin and Woods both hail from Toronto) allowed him to inject his own sense of authenticity to the story. “I brought an eye for detail that I think the script may have been lacking a little bit, which makes sense: The writers aren’t from Newfoundland,” he says. “I know its people and its culture. Some of it was turns of phrase. Some of it was just the physicality of how people do things. I think I was able to contribute there.”
Moreover, the cadence with which Sparkes directs the film lends itself to the eerily timeless atmosphere. He evokes a measured, classically-paced mode of filmmaking and way of life from decades’ prior. The film builds upon a similar sensibility for folklore and Atlantic Gothicism that made his 2014 film Cast No Shadow a striking feature debut in a new wave of filmmaking from the East Coast.
“It was interesting to give this dark cultish twist to Newfoundland specifically because Newfoundland is often painted as a cute, colourful, colloquial parody of itself,” observes Sparkes. “When you look at the tourism ads and you look at Republic of Doyle, people have this idea of the colourful houses and the happy people waving you over, and that’s great. It’s done Newfoundland proud and done well for the community. But that’s not my Newfoundland. That’s not the Newfoundland that interests me. I much more respond to the artwork of David Blackwood and Michael Crummey and this idea of Newfoundland Gothic. I’ve tried to contribute to that in my past films like Cast No Shadow. This was an opportunity to do it again.”
The King Tide accentuates the gothic nature of the atmosphere as Isla’s innocence contrasts with the underlying menace of the community. Faye proves especially sinister with Fisher’s Canadian Screen Award nominated performance offering a highlight of the film. But Lefler’s understated turn as Isla commands The King Tide. Everyone on the island orbits Isla’s aura.
“With most child actors, I think less is more,” notes Sparkes. “You want a kid who feels grounded and natural. In my experience, you just need to hold out. It was the same with Percy [Hynes White] in Cast No Shadow and now Alix in this film. You’re looking for a kid that just gets it. They’ve got an innate ability. You barely need to direct them at all. They just seem to have a great understanding of dramaturgy and are wise beyond their years. Alix had that right away from the [audition] tapes.”
As for Fisher, Sparkes shows obvious signs of pride for casting the Unforgiven and Titanic star. He notes she was the first actor who signed on for The King Tide. “Faye is a tricky role. It’s very easy for her to be likeable or unlikable,” says Sparkes. “She’s certainly one of the key antagonists, but hopefully the audience understands and at least partially sympathises with why Faye’s doing what she’s doing. I needed someone who could embody those qualities and who the audience could root for and understand.”
If Faye’s protectiveness leaves audiences unsettled, The King Tide arguably does its job. Sparkes hopes that the grey areas of the island help paint a fuller portrait of Newfoundland. He notes again that the film never names its setting, but perhaps offers a more nuanced portrait of Canada’s East Coast. “Newfoundland, again, is often painted a very specific colourful, cute way, and that’s fine. But it’s about time we have a more dark, more edgy take on Newfoundland culture,” says Sparkes. “I think all places have duality. And if I can be the one who shows the darker side, then I’m only too happy to do that.”
The King Tide opens in theatres on April 26.
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