| The G | |
| Director: | Karl R. Hearne |
| Producer: |
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| Screenplay: | Karl R. Hearne |
| Starring: | |
| Music: | Philippe Brault |
| Cinematography: | Vlad Horodinca |
| Editing: | Arthur Tarnowski |
| Studio: |
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| Distributor: | levelFILM (Canada) |
| Released: | [1] |
| Runtime: | 100 minutes[2] |
| Country: | Canada |
| Language: | English |
The G is a 2023 Canadian dark thriller film written, directed, and produced by Karl R. Hearne, and starring Dale Dickey as a grandmother seeking revenge. It premiered at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival on November 11, 2023. The UK premiere took place at the 2024 Glasgow Film Festival. The G had its North American premiere at the 2024 Fantasia Film Festival, where Karl R. Hearne won a Special Jury Prize for Best Director.[3]
After a corrupt legal guardian (Ramsay) puts her in a care home in order to take her property, Ann (Dickey) is a grandmother looking for vengeance with the help of her granddaughter Emma (Denis), who calls her "The G".[4] The film is set on the industrial edges of an unnamed American city.
Hearne, who directed and produced the film, as well as writing it, said the main character Ann was inspired by his own grandmother, "a woman who regardless of her age or situation- refuses to accept that her life is over". The film is also based on well-documented real-world scams that prey on the elderly. The film is produced by 3Buck Productions, whilst levelFILM has acquired all rights for Canadian distribution.[5]
The film premiered at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival on November 11, 2023.[6] The UK premiere took place at the 2024 Glasgow Film Festival, and the film was released in theatres in the UK/Ireland on June 21, 2024. The G also premiered at the 2024 Munich Film Festival and had festival premieres in Italy, France, Spain and Brazil. The G had its North American premiere at the 28th Fantasia International Film Festival on July 26, 2024.
Wendy Ide for Screen Daily praised Dickey's performance and called the film "a blistering winter noir..."[8] Variety called The G "a gender flipping tale of violent revenge...an original and entertaining thriller."[9] The Hollywood News called it "A deeply absorbing film from filmmaker Karl R. Hearne, it reminded me of early Coens... with brilliantly written characters and an outstanding central performance from Dale Dickey... the kick ass anti-hero. Seek it out."[10]
Amber Wilkinson gave the film four stars in Eye For Film, praising Dickey's performance and Hearne's direction.[11] Mike Davies, another reviewer, said, "In a different reality, this would be a major release rather than being hidden away on just a few screens, so all the more reason to seek out writer-director Karl R Hearne’s grippingly compelling thriller".[12]