“LABRADOR - AUTOPSY OF SILENCE” // TRIBECA 2026
BY MATEO MORENO
There are films that move so slowly through the story that you wonder if you’ll ever reach the end. Films that run out of steam and pads the film with unneeded narrative turns. Then there are films that slowly move through the plot, meticulously letting you in when its needed. Films that color in such a rich environment around you that you don’t mind that there aren’t many “flashy” moments, that you’re asked for patience while it spools around you. Thankfully, the Tribeca award winning LABRADOR - AUTOPSY OF SILENCE is the latter. Winner of Best International Feature, Best Performance (Christopher Angatookalook) and Best Cinematography, it is a searing and powerful film, one that grips you with each frame. And it does move through the motions slowly, deliberately and meticulously. If you don’t think that’s your vibe, I urge you to rethink and give this film a try.
Alupa Tulugak (Angatookalook) is a queer Indigenous Inuk man who works as a mechanic aboard a ship called “Adeawiktak (Which, when translated from the Mi’kmaq tribe of Newfoundland, means “to bid him farewell.” one of many eerie hints that lay among the surface of the film). Alupa is having an affair with the ship’s cook Alex (Alexandre Landry) but that, like most things that happen on this ship, is a well-guarded secret. Another secret is that Alex is also having an affair with the married first officer Michelle (Gabrielle Poulin B.), though he seems to have much deeper feelings for Alupa and seems to be pushing Michelle away, something that isn’t going unnoticed from her. When Alex’s dead body is discovered one morning (killed from a stab wound), the entire ship is seemingly under investigation. However, it’s Alupa that becomes the prime subject and since we don’t actually see the crime until close to the end of the film, we are left with no idea of what happened. We only see the fear projected off of Alupa, something that could describe both an innocent and guilty man. Alupa maintains his innocence, but the odds are stacked against him. This is also the place where the effects of colonialism showed up every day on his ship and the racism that affects him after he steps off (nearly everyone mispronounced his name). His story is told in long silences and wide shots of his searing emotion, emotion that he refuses to let out. It’s devastating to watch.
Writer/Director Rodrigue Jean has crafted an excellent film, one that tracks the effect of a love triangle turned killing and plays it as a slow burn in the truest of sense. The cinematography is gorgeous and lead first time actor Christopher Angatookalook is a revelation. There’s more told in his silent stares that most actors can express in an entire film. His gentle, aching soul is a thing of gorgeous beauty and one that I hope we see much more of. Alexandre Landry also holds a powerful presence, as does Gabrielle Poulin B. The story itself is loosely based on a true story of an unsolved murder aboard a Canadian cargo ship that served the Inuit people. The ship now is said to be haunted, and after watching this film, you’ll feel haunted too. Haunted by justice that never happens the way it should. Haunted by a life cut short. Haunted by the pain of queer, Indigenous people everywhere treated as second-class citizens. Labrador is an exquisite, heartbreaking film. One that sits with you and refuses to let go.
GRADE: A
WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY Rodrigue Jean STARRING Christopher Angatookalook, Alexandre Landry, Gabrielle Poulin B., Jassinth Thiagarajah, Arsaniq Deer SELECTED AS PART OF THE 2026 TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL. FOR MORE INFO:https://tribecafilm.com/films/labrador-autopsy-of-silence-2026