The Year Dolly Parton Was My Mom
Directed byTara Johns
Screenplay byTara Johns
Produced byBarbara Shrier
StarringMacha Grenon
Gil Bellows
Julia Sarah Stone
CinematographyClaudine Sauvé
Edited byJean-François Bergeron
Music byLuc Sicard
Production
companies
Palomar
Buffalo Gal Pictures
Distributed byMongrel Media
Release date
  • March 4, 2011 (2011-03-04) (Canada)
Running time
95 minutes
CountryCanada
LanguageEnglish

The Year Dolly Parton Was My Mom is a 2011 Canadian coming-of-age film written and directed by Tara Johns and starring Macha Grenon, Gil Bellows and Julia Sarah Stone. Dolly Parton provides a voice cameo.[1][2][3]

Plot

Elizabeth lives in Winnipeg, Manitoba in 1976. She is nearly 12, which Marion, her mother, points out "makes you still 11". Elizabeth and her friend Annabelle are looking forward to their bodies maturing, including the possibility that they might get "big boobs" like Dolly Parton.

Her father, Phil, answers her questions about the family's blood types for a school project. When the project is reviewed in her science class, it reveals that her blood type means that she is not her parents' natural child. She is angry and hurt, and dreams of the possibility of Dolly being her real mother.

Annabelle's mother, Stella, who is active in the woman's movement, admires Dolly as a strong independent businesswoman, adding to Elizabeth's fantasy.

Elizabeth tries to ride her bike to a Dolly concert in Minneapolis, but is stopped hours later at the Emerson border. Marion drives to get her, and the two form a stronger connection over the next two days as Marion takes her to Minneapolis to meet Dolly.

Reception

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a 40% approval rating, based on 5 reviews with an average rating of 5.30/10.[4]

Bruce DeMara of Toronto Star said that "The Year My Mom Was Dolly Parton relies on a good but not great script, well-drawn characters and performances and a pleasant, fuzzy sense of a simpler time".[5]

Liam Lacey of The Globe and Mail wrote: "An ingratiating but overly contrived Canadian coming-of-age tale".[6]

Awards

YearAwardCategoryRecipient(s)ResultRef.
2012Young Artist AwardBest Young Actress in an International Feature FilmJulia Sarah StoneWon[7]

Streaming

In December 2019 the film was released online on the Canada Media Fund’s Encore + YouTube channel.

References

  1. ↑ McPeake, Dan (April 11, 2011). "The Year Dolly Parton Was My Mom: What would you do if one of the greatest singers was your mother?". The Vancouver Observer. Archived from the original on April 14, 2011. Retrieved April 11, 2011.
  2. ↑ Monk, Katherine (April 8, 2011). "Debut is a small gem: First-time director creates humble but satisfying film". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved April 11, 2011.
  3. ↑ Monk, Katherine (April 8, 2011). "Dolly director never gave up on her idea". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  4. ↑ "The Year Dolly Parton Was My Mom". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved July 17, 2021.
  5. ↑ DeMara, Bruce (March 17, 2011). "The Year Dolly Parton Was My Mom: Country charm". Toronto Star. Retrieved July 17, 2021.
  6. ↑ Lacey, Liam (March 18, 2011). "The Year Dolly Parton was My Mom: A film that needs more cleavage". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved July 17, 2021.
  7. ↑ "33rd Annual Young Artist Awards". YoungArtistAwards.org. Archived from the original on April 4, 2012. Retrieved March 31, 2012.


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