Sugarcane isn’t the usual Disney+ fare, but the Oscar-nominated documentary is a worthwhile watch.
Most of those nature films come viaNational Geographic, an underappreciated wing of the Disney+ service.
Sugarcaneis not like most movies on Disney+.
Yet its because these crimes happened to humansand people who still exist and whose legacy continuesthatSugarcanemust be watched.
The Residential School taught us that.
However, all of these works have the distance of fiction to ease the truth.Sugarcaneoffers no such escape.
Sugarcanebegins with NoiseCat phoning Ed on his birthday and inviting him to come along on the investigation.
The moment doesnt end in any sort of resolution.
We see the two separate to work through their feelings.
The next day, they travel on, avoiding the subject.
Theres no anger in Eds response.
He just bows his head as he listens, understanding that the two of them are victims.
This ability to circle beyond Ed and NoiseCats experience givesSugarcaneits strength.
But the Indigenous never hear the word reparations uttered, nor about concrete actions to help the victims.
Instead the only catharsisSugarcaneoffers comes through the findings of investigator Charlene Belleau and archeologist Whitney Spearing.
But it is also very beautiful.
The cinematography from co-director Kassie and director of photography Christopher LaMarca makes every space look rich and dynamic.
Most of all,Sugarcaneis beautiful because it loves its subjects.
Sugarcane is now streaming on Disney+.
