VIFF 2024 Review: The Heirloom
The Heirloom (2024)
Directed by Ben Petrie
Starring Grace Glowicki, Ben Petrie, and Cheers
Following the success of his short film Her Friend Adam, which was featured at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival and later screened at SXSW and TIFF, Ben Petrie makes his feature-length debut with The Heirloom. The film centers on a young couple who get their first dog, a Whippet named Milly, with the backdrop of the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns. I quickly settled into their isolated world, where a mix of comedic narrative and documentary-style filmmaking kept me guessing what was scripted and what was improvised. This creative approach manipulated time in such a way that the short hour-and-a-half runtime breezed by.
For anyone who’s recently become a dog owner, this story will make you chuckle, cringe, and probably give your own pet some extra love when you get home. Petrie himself plays Eric, and Grace Glowicki stars as his partner, Allie. Glowicki is the perfect foil to Eric’s neurotic attempts to control every aspect of Milly’s acclimation. As Milly adjusts to her new home, the couple’s relationship takes center stage.
If the characters hadn’t been written as comedic extremes, The Heirloom could have easily turned into a low-budget version of Marriage Story (2019). Thankfully, it avoids that trap. The film’s emotional depth is enhanced by intercut home videos from Allie’s past, which give us insight into her desires for their family. This technique also highlights how, even on a small budget, indie filmmakers today can produce polished, professional-looking films that belong on the big screen.
Highly recommended.