In this week’s class, we watched Sarah Polley’s Stories We Tell; witnessing a beautiful medley of story revolving around her siblings, her mother, and her fathers. It was fascinating as we watched the story of her mother being constructed by the voices of those who knew her. Starting by asking about “the whole story,” Polley questioned her family members about everything that happened since they were born, or in her father’s case, since his marriage to her mother. From here, focus went to her mother’s laugh, energy, and what the family believed she was going through, and her emotions. In spite of this, it is compelling how a very distinct and seemingly true picture of her mother is portrayed through this medley of snippets shared by those who knew her.

A part that jumped out at me, apart from the stories being told, was the actual process of exacting stories from the interviewees. Depending on her tone and questioning, Polley commanded a lot of control over not only the subjects’ wording, but their reactions to certain questions depending on their framing (which we don’t always hear). At one point, her brother says, “what did I say? I trust you more than I trust myself right now!” Do the actual truths of situations not only have a layer of memory difficulty, but also another layer of self-mediation (as well as interviewer mediation) that exhibits or inhibits various ways of expressing a memory? For example, at the beginning of Stories We Tell, each family member awkwardly adjusts, gets comfortable, or deals with the nervousness of sitting in front of a camera. Depending on how comfortable they are in front of the camera will dictate a lot of how their tone and recollection of events will come across to a viewer watching Polley’s documentary.

As all of these factors and shots culminate into Polley’s final product, the viewer is given a version of these stories that proposes trust in Polley’s accounts of the story. Whether her intentions are in line with her mother’s, we shall never know. However, there is no doubt that she has a profound impact on the direction and narrative arc of the entire “medley.” With this in mind, does this story of discovery, loss, relationality, truth, and love become a shadow of the actual story, or an entirely new story altogether?

Please feel free to comment and let me know what you think!