A Colony

A Colony is a Canadian drama film from Quebec, directed by Geneviève Dulude-De Celles and released in 2018. The film centres on Mylia (Émilie Bierre), a young girl starting high school who is torn between her new friendships with Jacinthe (Cassandra Gosselin-Pelletier), a bad influence who encourages her to experiment with sex and alcohol, and Jimmy (Jacob Whiteduck-Lavoie), an artistic First Nations student. The film's cast also includes Irlande Côté as Mylia's younger sister Camille, and Noémie Godin-Vigneau and Robin Aubert as their parents. Plot In rural Quebec, Mylia begins high school while living with her younger sister Camille and her parents, Nathalie and Henri. They live on the border of an Abenaki First Nation reserve and Camille struggles with being bullied by her peers, with Mylia being her only friend. When Mylia gets to high school, she finds her locker is next to her cousin Gab, but Gab is cold to her. Mylia is placed in a history and citizenship class. There, she meets Jacinthe. Jacinthe notices that Mylia takes notes in history class and asks for Mylia's help with the course, to avoid a failing grade. The two girls meet and collaborate on their homework; afterwards, Jacinthe invites Mylia to a party. Mylia goes, and begins drinking alcohol. Intoxicated, she leaves and vomits. She wakes up in a home on a reserve, where a local boy Jimmy lives, and Jimmy's grandmother lets her recover on her couch. When Mylia returns home, she finds her father Henri on the couch for the night, and denies she was drinking. Mylia becomes increasingly acquainted with Jimmy as he allows Camille to use his trampoline. In history class, the students discuss their readings on the Europeans' early contact with indigenous peoples in Quebec. When students begin asking about passages about the indigenous people's depravity (from the racist perspective of the European settlers), Jimmy becomes angered and has a physical altercation with the boys in the halls. He is afterwards suspended. Jacinthe invites Mylia to a Halloween party, where she and her friends plan to dress as the Fifth Harmony. Although the party falls on Camille's birthday, Mylia agrees to join. Later, Mylia meets with Jimmy. Jimmy, who says Halloween costumes reveal one's true self, discloses he will be dressing as an "Indian".