A slow and quietly empathetic film about an amazing old lady hanging on in Canada’s mid-west, directed by artist Amalie Atkins.
Mid-west Ma’am by Phil Wilson
3 stars
CAUTION: Here be spoilers
A very independent and resourceful woman who prefers to live in an old farmhouse and do the large vegetable garden there, where she grows everything from watermelons to beans.
Filmed lovingly over several years we follow her planting, harvesting and preserving activities with tips and anecdotes from a well-lived life. Agatha never married but still regales us with memories of her courting life: the suitor who wanted to take her to breakfast…because it was cheaper than lunch!
Like many who grew up in a world without convenience stores, she keeps useful odds and ends in labelled boxes and she’s a self-confessed duct-tape obsessive. All part of her no-nonsense practical attitude. Her independence gives her a quite down-to-earth and realistic approach to problems with health and growing old in the country.
A heart-felt film whose gently imparted observations and wisdom could have a wider appeal.
Agatha Bock is the 90-year-old aunt of the director.
Agatha’s Almanac screened at Bertha Dochouse on 11 August 2026
