Film Night at The Stop’s Green Barn

Film Night at The Stop’s Green Barn Present: Old Partner (2008)

“…an unexpectedly absorbing look at determination in a vanishing way of life.” – Ed Scheid, Boxoffice Magazine.

Nominated for the World Cinema Documentary at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival
Winner of the Audience Award at the 2008 Seoul Independent Film Festival and the PIFF Mecenat Award at the 2008 Pusan International Film Festival.

Directed by: Chung-ryoul Lee
Running time: 78 minutes.

Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened. — Anatole France.
In a remote, verdant valley in South Korea, old Mr. and Mrs. Lee live on a farm with their rickety ox. For forty years, the animal has served them faithfully—hauling untold firewood loads and dragging the plow through fertile fields. A gently unfolding meditation on the cycle of life, Old Partner playfully and poetically tells the story of the ineffable bond between Mr. Lee and his ox as their lives wind down in tandem. Rain or shine, hunched and gnarled, Mr. Lee tills, weeds, and harvests, often crouching on all fours like the ox that never leaves his side. The camera lingering intimately on the ox’s kind eyes and creaky bones allows us to sense the depth of this sentient being’s loyalty as he carts Mr. Lee to town at a snail’s pace. In return, Mr. Lee collects special fodder by hand and refuses to spray insecticides for fear of poisoning his beloved beast. Meanwhile, the cheeky Greek chorus, Mrs. Lee, complains incessantly from the peanut gallery. This traditional life and this ox will be her undoing! A charming, heartbreaking, existential buddy tale, Old Partner conveys the almost mystical inextricability of humans and nature. As laconic Mr. Lee intones, “The ox is my karma.”

Date: Tuesday, March 16th, 2010
Location: The Stop’s Green Barn 601 Christie St. Barn 4 in the Classroom (South Entrance)

Dinner starts: 6:15PM
Screening starts: 6:45PM

To attend, please reserve a spot by emailing ash [at] thestop [dot] org or calling 416-652-7867 ext 222.
The film screening and vegan/vegetarian dinner is by a pay-what-you-can donation, with a $12-20 recommendation. No one willl be turned away due to lack of funds. All proceeds go to The Stop Community Food Centre.