Reviewed by RaeAnne Marsh
(2007 Heartland Film Festival) Director: Sherry Devanney
Starring: Documentary In-a-nutshell:
Water in churning chaos is an apt opening for this documentary. The chaos resolves itself into something recognizable - water agitated by the paddles of a dragon boat - and we are introduced to the team of women crewing the boat as they thrill to the sport. That this team is comprised of breast cancer survivors is revealed next. Thus, although this fact constitutes the core of the movie's theme, the movie sidesteps any tendency toward pity and encourages the viewer to share with these women a sense of life well lived. Of course, we wonder how they are doing. Our Race filmmaker Sherry Devanney lets the women answer this in their own words and actions, as she follows the development of a close-knit breast cancer survivor support group into an even closer-knit team of athletes who have taken on the challenge of dragon boat racing. Intimate interviews with the survivors alternate with long shots of the river on which they practice and ultimately race. The long shots also serve as metaphor for the broader experience of the world shared by these women - more than symbolically, for some of them, as their new purpose draws them beyond previous home-town boundaries to a new experience of travel. Poignant and positive as it ends, the 40-minute film unfolds perhaps too slowly at first. A viewer uninformed by synopsis or preview may struggle through the opening minutes trying to identify the film's intent. Although the filmmaker remains dispassionate, this may be a give-away that she is truly involved in the situation; it's human nature to presume, when we are immersed in something, that others share our awareness of the most fundamental aspects. With its focus made clear, the film moves forward to show dragon boat racing to be both means and goal for these women. In Our Race, Devanney provides a film that honors her subjects and offers inspiration to others. Filmmaker Sherry Devanney shares her experience on creating an impact in "Our Race: Community Inspiration." | 
