Sarah Prefers To Run (2013) - Chloe Robinchaud

Sarah, a high-school student is passionate when it comes to track and field.  One of the best runners on her team, Sarah dreams of going to the University of Montreal where she can further the path to her dreams.  The problem is her mother doesn’t see Track as something her daughter should be wasting her time with, often citing how running “won’t put food on the table”.  Against her mother’s wishes, Sarah leaves for the University where she soon begins to discover herself. Chloe Robichaud’s Sara Prefers To Run is a coming of age story which captures the importance of passion but also the obstacles and shortcomings which can arise in other aspects of ones life.  Sarah is extremely passionate about running and the film touches on Sarah’s inability to separate her passion from anything else in her life.  We see how her unadulterated love for running sets her back in other facets of life, most notably socializing and her inability to embrace being feminine.  The most interesting aspect of Sarah’s inability to truly understand herself lies in her being homosexual.   This is my favorite aspect of the film, being done with an incredible amount of nuance and restraint, the film suggests that Sarah’s suppressed sexuality towards other females is simply another by-product of her passion for running and sheltered life.  While it’s never outright stated in the film it’s clear that Sarah grew up with a mother that sheltered her greatly from much of the outside world.  Sarah is essentially a child trapped in a 20 year old’s body with much of her problems in not understanding herself coming directly from her relationship with her mother.  This relationship between Sarah and her mother is fascinating, nuanced and subtle and my only real complaint would be that I wish the film would have gone a bit further in studying this mother – daughter dynamic Chloe Robichaud’s Sara Prefers To Run is a fascinating exploration of a character’s intense passion, capturing how such drive can sometimes leave other important aspects of life by the way side.
8.25/10

---