Film Review: ‘Mile End Kicks’ is a Very Pleasing Romantic Comedy with a Real Love for Music

Coming of age stories involving journalism, music, or even music journalism, have largely been depicted as male dominated. Our hero who needs a bit of life and love to hit them in order to grow up is nearly always a guy. Now, we got an all-time classic film in Almost Famous out of that, as Cameron Crowe mined his early days as a writer to create that absolute gem. If that’s the peak, often we see other movies try to ape that. There’s an element of that within Mile End Kicks, though it’s filtered through not just a very Canadian lens, but a female one at that. This gives the flick a welcome bit of originality within the sub-genre, as it otherwise is just a pleasing little romantic comedy, one with a palpable love for music.

Mile End Kicks wants to be more than a solid rom-com, and while it doesn’t always reach those heights, it’s never anything less than very enjoyable. The way it loves music, as well as depicts those who love it, is both pure and also real. The passion for writing about what you love is in evidence as well, and that’s always a delight to see. This may be the type of work that appeals to writers more than anyone, though I’d argue that ultimately there’s something for everyone here.

In 2011, Grace Pine (Barbie Ferreira) decides to move to Montreal in order to be close to the city’s indie music scene. A music critic in her early twenties, Grace is planning to write a book on Alanis Morissette’s classic album Jagged Little Pill. She’s also just incredibly passionate about music. With a contract for the book, she thinks spending the summer around the indie scene will help inspire her. Of course, it’ll do far more than that.

Renting a room from French-Canadian couple Madeleine (Juliette Gariépy), a DJ, and Hugo (Robert Naylor), a drummer, Grace ends up seeing his band Bone Patrol perform one night. Taking an interest in guitarist Archie (Devon Bostick) and lead singer Chevy (Stanley Simons), she’s torn between two very different types of musicians. She’s also sleeping with her editor Jeff (Jay Baruchel), and when she grows frustrated with that and blows him off, she winds up landing work with Bone Patrol as their publicist. This allows her to be closer to the music, but also closer to the band, leading to further romantic entanglements.

Barbie Ferreira has her best cinematic showcase here. Still best known for Euphoria, she fares much better in this film than she did last week in Faces of Death (reviewed here). Ferreira showcases the charm of Grace, sure, but also how incisive she can be, as well as her sharp knowledge of music. It’s a character you want to spend time with. It’s always nice to see Jay Baruchel play a bit against type, while Stanley Simons builds on the promise he showed in The Iron Claw. As for Devon Bostick, he’s solid as well, though he doesn’t pop quite as much. In addition to the aforementioned Juliette Gariépy and Robert Naylor, the rest of the cast includes Hasani Freeman, Emily Lê, Isaiah Lehtinen, Magi Merlin, and more.

Filmmaker Chandler Levack captures love, music, and the love of music in a way that’s never cheesy, yet never feels forced. Her writing is sharp, while her direction makes the most of a limited budget. If I Like Movies was her initial calling card, this film showcases that the talent is not a fluke. Between this and Roommates (also out this week), we’re about to see a lot more from Levack going forward. I know I’m down for whatever movie she decides to make next. If there’s a notable flaw here, it’s the running time veers close to two hours, when the story doesn’t necessarily warrant it. It’s not a huge issue, but at 90 minutes, this flick would have been great.

Mile End Kicks has enough of an echo of Almost Famous that it has a chance to become a bit of a cult classic, provided that the right folks end up discovering it. If that happens, it’ll especially become a dorm room favorite. Even if it doesn’t, this is quality indie cinema, showcasing an up and coming actress, an up and coming filmmaker, and a love for music that’s well worth celebrating.

SCORE: ★★★