National Post
The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper and the flagship publication of the American-owned Postmedia Network. It is published Mondays through Saturdays, with Monday released as a digital e-edition only.
'', July 25, 2013. The film stars Rory J. Saper as Rufus, a mysterious young man who turns up in a small town in
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...
and is eventually revealed to be a
vampire
A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead humanoid creatures that often visited loved ones and c ...
. The cast also includes
David James Elliott
David William Smith (born September 21, 1960), known professionally as David James Elliott, is a Canadian actor. He was the star of the series '' JAG'', playing lead character Harmon Rabb Jr. from 1995 to 2005.
Early life
Elliott was born Da ...
,
Kelly Rowan
Kelly Rowan (born October 26, 1965) is a retired Canadian film and television actress and former fashion model. A native of Ottawa, Rowan studied acting in London and New York City before she started working as a model. She was featured in the h ...
,
Merritt Patterson
Merritt Patterson is a Canadian actress. She had her breakout role in 2013 on the ABC Family ''Pretty Little Liars'' spin-off series ''Ravenswood'' then went on to play Ophelia Pryce in the E! television series ''The Royals'' (2014-2015). Mer ...
,
Richard Harmon
Richard Scott Harmon (born August 18, 1991) is a Canadian actor. His roles on television include Jasper Ames in '' The Killing'' (2011–2012), Julian Randol on '' Continuum'' (2012–2015), and John Murphy in '' The 100'' (2014–2020). Harmon ...
, and
Kim Coates
Kim Frederick Coates (born February 21, 1958) is a Canadian-American actor who has worked in both Canadian and American films and television series. He has worked on Broadway portraying Stanley Kowalski in ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' and in th ...
.
The film premiered at the
Calgary International Film Festival
The Calgary International Film Festival (CIFF) is a film festival held annually in Calgary, Alberta, in late September and early October.
CIFF is the largest international film festival in Alberta and the sixth largest in Canada.
In 2020, thei ...
in September 2012, before going into general theatrical release in 2013.
Plot
Rufus is a mysterious young boy who arrives in a small town in Saskatchewan with an elderly woman. Saying she can go no further, the elderly woman commits suicide by walking in front of a tractor trailer. Hugh Wade, the town sheriff and his wife Jennifer, take him in as their house guest as Sheriff Wade attempts to find out who Rufus and the elderly woman really are and why they suddenly arrived in town. Tracy and Clay are two local teenagers who quickly befriend Rufus. Aaron Van Dusen is a mysterious man who arrives in town looking for Rufus for unknown reasons.
Merritt Patterson
Merritt Patterson is a Canadian actress. She had her breakout role in 2013 on the ABC Family ''Pretty Little Liars'' spin-off series ''Ravenswood'' then went on to play Ophelia Pryce in the E! television series ''The Royals'' (2014-2015). Mer ...
as Tracy
*
David James Elliott
David William Smith (born September 21, 1960), known professionally as David James Elliott, is a Canadian actor. He was the star of the series '' JAG'', playing lead character Harmon Rabb Jr. from 1995 to 2005.
Early life
Elliott was born Da ...
as Hugh Wade
*
Kelly Rowan
Kelly Rowan (born October 26, 1965) is a retired Canadian film and television actress and former fashion model. A native of Ottawa, Rowan studied acting in London and New York City before she started working as a model. She was featured in the h ...
as Jennifer Wade
*
Richard Harmon
Richard Scott Harmon (born August 18, 1991) is a Canadian actor. His roles on television include Jasper Ames in '' The Killing'' (2011–2012), Julian Randol on '' Continuum'' (2012–2015), and John Murphy in '' The 100'' (2014–2020). Harmon ...
as Clay
*
Kim Coates
Kim Frederick Coates (born February 21, 1958) is a Canadian-American actor who has worked in both Canadian and American films and television series. He has worked on Broadway portraying Stanley Kowalski in ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' and in th ...
as Aaron Van Dusen
* Tom Carey as Chet
*
Nancy Sorel
Nancy Sorel is a Canadian-American actress.
Life and career
Born and raised in Fall River, Massachusetts, Sorel received a degree in Theatre and Film from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. After graduation she went to New York City and beg ...
as Vickie
* Christina Jastrzembska as Louise Kettle
Reception
On
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
the film has an approval rating of 33% based on 6 reviews.
Adam Nayman of the ''
Globe and Mail
''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of more than 6 million in 2024, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it fall ...
'' was critical of the film, saying it "ends up feeling drab as well as looking it." Jay Stone of ''Canada.com'' was critical of the slow pace of the film and wrote: "Writer/director Dave Schultz stretches out this somewhat languorous - not to say somnambulant - material to almost two hours by adding a villain."
Bruce DeMara of the
Toronto Star
The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part of Torstar's Daily News Brands (Torstar), Daily News Brands division.
...
gave the film 4 out of 4 and was positive about the slowly building tension and the performances of the actors: "Schultz allows the tension to build slowly and for Rufus's secret history to be revealed in increments. There's also some great interplay between the actors".
Accolades
Erland and the Carnival
Erland & The Carnival were a British progressive folk rock band, formed in London, by Orcadian folk guitarist and singer Gawain Erland Cooper, multi-instrumentalist Simon Tong, and drummer/engineer David Nock. In 2010 they released their crit ...
received two
Canadian Screen Award
The Canadian Screen Awards () are awards given for artistic and technical merit in the film industry recognizing excellence in Canadian film, English-language television, and digital media ( web series) productions. Given annually by the Academy ...
nominations for
Best Original Song
The following is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various films, festivals, and people's awards.
Best Actor/Best Actress
*See Best Actor#Film awards, Best ...
Screen Daily
''Screen International'' is a British film magazine covering the international film business. It is published by Media Business Insight, a British B2B media company which also owned '' Broadcast''.
The magazine is primarily aimed at those involv ...
Library and Archives Canada
Library and Archives Canada (LAC; ) is the federal institution tasked with acquiring, preserving, and providing accessibility to the documentary heritage of Canada. The national archive and library is the 16th largest library in the world. T ...