It’s been seven years since Mona (Agam Darshi), a failed Canadian Punjabi writer in her thirties, returned to her childhood home to care for her father (Marvin Ishmael), who has cancer. When his health deteriorates and he slips into a coma, Mona begins to crumble as she realizes that her death would take away her only meaningful purpose in life.
Written and directed by Darshi, “Donkeyhead” is something of a coming-of-age movie, only its heroine is an extremely late bloomer. When her accomplished siblings – Rup (Huse Madhavji), Sandy (Sandy Sidhu) and Mona’s twin brother Parm (Stephen Lobo) – return home, Mona’s purposelessness in existence is brought to light. relief.
“Donkeyhead” attempts to build a complex family dynamic with humor and an eye for Sikh immigrant culture – a curious aunt transforms Mona’s home into a welcoming space for loved ones to pay their respects to the dying patriarch.
But Darshi’s script lacks flair and often resorts to cringe-inducing cliches, such as when Mona takes her stuffy siblings to a local bar and starts singing the Canadian national anthem. Secrets emerge as tensions rise above Dad’s will and the fate of the family home, and – predictably – Mona’s siblings aren’t as put together as they seem. .
The black sheep of the family who, on the surface, resists Sikh tradition, Mona is also having an affair with a married man, Brent (Kim Coates), who, like his father, is another obviously tenuous source of solace destined for himself. eclipse. Despite her minor rebellions, Mona remains a frustrating and opaque character; a troubled stereotypical woman whose eventual awakening merits at best a shrug of the shoulders.
Donkey head
Unclassified. Duration: 1h45. To watch on Netflix.
