Review: The Tracey Fragments

The Tracey Fragments
Starring: Ellen Page, Julian Richings, Zie Souwand, and Maxwell McCabe-Lokos
Written By: Maureen Medved
Directed By: Bruce McDonald












You may not have heard of The Tracey Fragments. It received a limited release back in May and pretty much flew right under the radar. You'd expect to hear more of it since it was Ellen Page's follow up to Juno. I'll check it up to the experimental nature of the film. It is the first fim to use Mondrian multi-frame compositions for the entire length of the movie.


The film is about a girl, Tracey Berkowitz, played by Ellen Page, who is on a desperate hunt to find her lost brother. This is a girl dealing with parents who think she is going crazy, parents who themselves are not the picture of mental health, especially since Sonny, the brother, has gone missing. We see Tracey Berkowitz' life through her eyes and thoughts, and multiple angles as each scene is generally split into several shots. It's up to you where you want to look. This makes for an movie experience that can be at times jarring and hard to get used to. Until you realize that's what this girls life is like at this point in time.


It is an entirely unique movie from beginning to end and Ellen Page gives an extraordinary performance that solidifies her standing, at least to me, as one of the best young actresses working today. She gives such a nuanced and brilliant performance that it is impossible to take your eyes away. This is an especially difficult role as she literally has to carry the entire movie herself. She IS this movie. She is in every scene of the film and she commands the screen in every one of them. One of the best performances of the year by far.

The Tracey Fragments takes you through a lot of different emotions as the layers are peeled away and we are exposed to certain aspects and events of Tracey's life. Some funny, some sad, some infuriating, some frightening. This truly feels like traveling through the mind and memories of this teenage girl. I honestly do not think this movie would have been half as good as it is had anyone else played this character. We need to believe Tracey, empathize with her and Ellen Page makes us believe in what we are seeing.

That's not to discount the rest of the cast. We may not see much of them as we learn about Tracey, but they all make their mark in the story. Every piece of this wonderful film fits together into the puzzle.

I have to mention the soundtrack. It's equally as gorgeous as the movie. They compliment each other perfectly. Featuring Broken Social Scene, Fembots, Duchess Says, Rose Melberg, Slim Twig, and Deadly Snakes. The soundtrack really drives the emotion of the movie. They're a perfect match.

In the end, Brad McDonald has crafted a beautiful and unique film experience. Shocking and sad, funny and scary, The Tracey Fragments is one of the best movie you've probably never heard of.

I would definitely pick up the DVD and experience The Tracey Fragments for yourself.