Stories We Tell (2012) is a fascinating film, a documentary by Sarah Polley trying to capture “the truth” about her family. Her mother, actress Diane Polley, died of cancer when she was a teenager; her father Michael Polley is quite recognizable (from Slings and Arrows among other efforts); and at least one of her siblings is also an actor. Over the course of some years, Sarah discovered that her father, Michael, was not her biological father, and the movie in many ways is her search for her father, an attempt to reconstruct what was going on with her mother when she and her biological father had the affair that resulted in her conception, and how that discovery affects all those involved.
Much of the movie is told by Michael relying on a text he wrote of how it affected his life, though there is also much about its impact on Harry, the biological father, Sarah’s siblings, and Harry’s family. There is some “recreation” shot to look like old Super 8 home movies. The questions of truth and reality are handled with wonderful richness and nuance and leaves one with a greater realization of just how complicated all families are! A first rate use of 100 minutes!