Burning Cane

A hit at this year’s edition of the Tribeca Film Festival, Burning Cane left New York with three awards: for best film, for cinematography, and for best actor. The film marks the directorial debut of teenager Phillip Youmans, who not only wrote the script but also directed, shot, and edited the film—all while still in high school. Burning Cane is a portrait of a small town in Louisiana that has been forgotten by both God and people. It is precisely God that the Reverend Tillman (Wendell Pierce) tries to instill in the heart of the impoverished community, but he is far from ideal himself—a bitter man who grumbles about the modern world and frequently gets behind the wheel while under the influence. Trying to help him is his neighbor Helen (Karen Kaia Livers), a woman who, while mourning her dead dog, also has a problem with her unemployed son (Dominique McClellan). While the latter’s wife is at work, he prefers, instead of taking care of his son, to listen to old records and to keep filling his glass—not to mention one for the boy as well. In this bleak but poetic portrait of the American South, faith, family, violence, and poverty are linked in an overpowering embrace.