Sitting on the Edge of Marlene

2014 / HD Colour / 96 minutes

‘As role models go Marlene leaves much to be desired. She uses her sex appeal to con, cheat, entrap or blackmail men, and now that her looks are on the wane she hides behind pills or booze, or just takes off whenever the going gets tough. On the other hand, she’s savvy in her way, tough as nails, and no ordinary housewife, that’s for sure. When the rebellious Sammie takes up with a local evangelical Church this troubled mother-daughter relationship threatens to erupt into all-out warfare.

Poised between tragedy and black comedy, classical Hollywood glamour and contemporary independent grit (at one moment you might think of Tennessee Williams or Flannery O’Conner, and the next Xavier Dolan or Gus van Sant) this homegrown debut feature from the talented Ana Valine keeps glancing off in unexpected directions, delving into the crooked angles that keep the indomitable Marlene simultaneously unbearably distant and inescapably close.’
Vancity Theatre

“And Hallmark blanches.”

Brad Wheeler, The Globe and Mail

“…a lush, Sirkian retro quality that rather spoils the eye…a very strange ‘timelessness’”

Allan macInnis, Alienated in Vancouver

“…demands the audience question their own definitions of tragedy and survival, hope and despair, while evoking a range of emotions, as all art should.”

Jury Statement, Women in Film and Television Vancouver

“Sitting on the Edge of Marlene is a movie that rattles you and never lets you feel completely comfortable, which is exactly the appeal of it.””

Katie Nohr, Vancity Buzz

Screenings, Nominations, and Awards to date

VIFF (Vancouver International Film Festival):

Best Emerging BC Filmmaker Award
Best Canadian Feature Nomination
Best BC Film Nomination
The Women in Film and Television Artistic Merit Award

The Women In the Director’s Chair: Feature Film Award
WIFT-T Kodak: New Vision Mentorship Award
WIFTV Whistler Film Festival: Mentorship Award
The Female Eye Film Festival: Best Screenplay Award
Leo Award Nominations: Best Feature, Direction, Screenwriting, Picture Edit, Production Design and Female lead
Leo Awards: Best Direction & Production Design Awards
Female Eye Film Festival: Best Canadian Feature Award
Vancouver Film Critics Circle Nominations: Best Supporting Actor in a Canadian Film & Best First Film by a Canadian Director
Busan International Film Festival: Flash Forward Nomination