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Canvas

Play trailer Poster for Canvas PG-13 2007 1h 41m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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77% Tomatometer 26 Reviews 62% Popcornmeter 500+ Ratings
In a small coastal town, contractor John Marino (Joe Pantoliano) struggles to understand his wife, Mary (Marcia Gay Harden), when she starts behaving strangely. After a doctor's visit, they discover she has schizophrenia. Nothing the doctors do helps, however, so John must live with his wife's incurable mental illness, while also helping their confused child Chris (Devon Gearhart) make sense of it. But as Mary's mental state declines, John finds an unexpected source of comfort in his son.
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Canvas

Canvas

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Critics Consensus

Canvas is a faithful portrayal of mental illness highlighted by terrific performances.

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Critics Reviews

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Jason Anderson Toronto Star 12/12/2008
2.5/4
Though Canvas may not deviate much from the formula followed by so many other movies about families imperiled by health crises, it's unusually perceptive about the ways that loved ones process (or fail to process) the resulting stress. Go to Full Review Rick Groen Globe and Mail 12/11/2008
2/4
It's like a public service announcement with dialogue. Go to Full Review Rex Reed Observer 10/24/2007
Writer-director Joseph Greco makes a nice feature-film debut telling a true, disturbing story about a 10-year-old boy struggling to cope with a schizophrenic mother. Go to Full Review John Griffin Montreal Gazette 01/09/2009
3/5
It's worth hanging on for where Greco goes with this. Go to Full Review Chris Alexander Metro 12/12/2008
3.5/4
Movies don't come more personal than Canvas, writer/director/co-producer Joseph Greco's serious-minded exploration of the devastating effects unleashed by mental illness upon an otherwise tightly knit American family. Go to Full Review Bruce Kirkland Jam! Movies 12/12/2008
3/5
There is something to be said for a filmmaker like Greco who takes the truth -- no matter how tough it is -- and turns it into a compelling drama about people we might know in life. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Cees T 04/01/2024 8.5/10 - Great. Could use more detail. See more 04/03/2016 Good acting and good story. See more Frances H 08/05/2014 What I liked about this film is that it could have been like an overdramatic Litetime movie, but instead treated the subject seriously, yet hopefully. My mother became a schizophrenic and was repeatedly hospitalized for it for long periods beginning when I was 8 years old, so I know how it goes. There are really bad periods, but also long periods of normality. Unlike in the 50s when my mom was ill and there was only electroshock treatment, medications are helping today. And this film made the point that the the illness doesn't really take away your loved one forever--like Altzheimer's does. The acceptance of family is everything. See more 02/14/2012 Writer-director Joseph Greco makes a nice feature-film debut telling a true, disturbing story about a 10-year-old boy struggling to cope with a schizophrenic mother.The performances are also terrific SEE IT!!! See more 12/08/2011 Wonderful, overlooked drama with Marcia Gay Harden. Pantoliano's best work in a lead role. See more 07/04/2011 This movie is a little overly mellow and slow-moving, but it's also very human and touching. The best acting, surprisingly, comes from Devon Gearhart, but the entire cast performs incredibly well and really involves you in the lives of this struggling family. It serves to put things into perspective and make you think about how lucky you really are and how no matter how hard you think things are, there's always someone who's got it worse. I expected this to be bleak and depressing, and at times it is, but ultimately it gives hope and encouragement, which is not something a lot of recent movies can do. See more Read all reviews
Canvas

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Cast & Crew

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Joseph Greco

Director

Joe Pantoliano

John Marino

Marcia Gay Harden

Mary Marino

Devon Gearhart

Chris Marino

Sophi Bairley

Dawn

Marcus Johns

Sam

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Canvas

Canvas (2006) Canvas (2006) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis In a small coastal town, contractor John Marino (Joe Pantoliano) struggles to understand his wife, Mary (Marcia Gay Harden), when she starts behaving strangely. After a doctor's visit, they discover she has schizophrenia. Nothing the doctors do helps, however, so John must live with his wife's incurable mental illness, while also helping their confused child Chris (Devon Gearhart) make sense of it. But as Mary's mental state declines, John finds an unexpected source of comfort in his son.
Director
Joseph Greco
Producer
Lucy Engibarian-Hammel, Adam Hammel, Joe Pantoliano
Screenwriter
Joseph Greco
Production Co
Rebellion Pictures
Rating
PG-13 (Mature Thematic Elements)
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Oct 12, 2007, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Jan 26, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$32.5K
Runtime
1h 41m
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