One Week

Canada, 2008, 94 min

What would you do if you only had one week, one month, or one year to live? The question might be trite, but the film that explores it is definitely not. Michael McGowan’s film One Week follows protagonist Ben Tyler as he struggles to find meaning after he’s diagnosed with a stage four cancer. After Tyler (Joshua Jackson) receives the news that he’s come to the end of his figurative road, he decides to search for meaning and answers on the literal road; he leaves behind his fiancée, family and career and takes a road trip from Toronto to Tofino.

One Week could, in some ways, double as a commercial for Canadian pride. There are a plethora of Tim Horton’s references, a cameo by The Tragically Hip’s lead singer, Gord Downie, and a slew of Canada’s most iconic landmarks.

The narration and script of One Week is what sets it apart from all the other “quest for meaning in the face of death” films. The narrator, who’s retelling Ben’s story, does so with lots of wit and sarcasm, which prevents the film from becoming a melodramatic weep fest.

One Week takes a cliché topic and creates a film that is original, smart and charming.