TIFF 2025 Review: Whitetail – “Remarkably beautiful.”

Grief is processed differently for everybody.  For Jen (Natasha O’Keeffe), she has spent her adult life as a park ranger, protecting and building up the forest where her sister met her tragic end many years ago.  Jen spends her days growing seedlings, monitoring the cameras that capture the wildlife, and studying insects.  After work, she goes home to her father (Andrew Bennett) who has some health concerns, but despite his own grief of suddenly losing a daughter, and as well a wife in Jen’s mother, he seems to be working through his emotions and he’s ready to move on.

Jen, however has trapped herself in this small Irish town, never leaving, unlike her old boyfriend Oscar (Aaron McCusker), who has just returned upon the death of his mother.  He was also witness to the tragic event that took Jen’s sister’s life, something that plagues them both still.  His return forces Jen to face her guilt and grief, just around the same time that a poacher starts leaving grisly traces of their hunting behind on the land Jen protects.  Spiralling, and determined to identify the poacher that police aren’t taking seriously, Jen’s world starts to unravel and the lines between the past, reality and her nightmares begins to blur.

Check out all of our TIFF coverageWhitetail, is the seventh feature from Dutch director Nanouk Leopold.  It’s having its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival and is tagged as a ‘slow burn thriller.’  The slow-burning part of that statement is certainly true.  The opening of the film before the title card is a fast set-up, but what happens afterwards is about as slow-paced as it can get.  In fact, there are often large chunks of time where nothing much happens.

O’Keeffe does great work here, though her character largely is just brooding and angry, having repressed her feelings for so long.  She stomps around town and the forest with often little dialogue, occasionally lashing out at those around her.  She is quiet and withdrawn, and we can only hope in a world after the film’s events that she starts to forgive and heal herself, as little of this is shown in this depiction.

While Whitetail can be a little dull for a film that is meant to be thrilling, it is remarkably beautiful.  Stunningly shot and framed, the Irish forest and setting is almost a character unto itself.  Leopold’s ability to capture this lush landscape in a way that benefits the narrative and her main character is formidable.  The peacefulness of Jen’s surroundings plays to the exact opposite of the inner turmoil she feels.  It’s a contrast that works, and feeds our understanding of her world and why she has never tried to escape.

Whitetail does indeed have a thrilling premise, and it’s a shame it never really satisfies its potential.  However, with a wonderful turn from its lead and the graceful splendour of its setting, there is enough to redeem this film.  Just don’t expect to be on the edge of your seat.

Whitetail has its world premiere Sunday, September 7th at the Toronto International Film Festival.  For more information head to tiff.net

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