Sugarcane
Introduction
At a crucial junction in the documentary Sugarcane, nominated for Best Documentary Feature at the Oscars of 2025, the makers heading a searing investigation uncovering the scandal of the St. Joseph’s Mission School (one of the many residential schools for ‘Indians’, children of the indigenous group), get hold of a report. It states that a mother was sternly sentenced to one year in jail given that she had abandoned her baby which was just about found alive. The report further stated the claims of the judge that had the baby died, the punishment would have been even more severe. Yet, the elephant in the room wasn’t addressed at all – how did the school allow the rape victims’ babies to die, or alternately did they have a separate law for the same. There are similar questions that will continue to bother you in this remarkably infuriating documentary that highlights the generational trauma endured by the survivors and their families, having being subjected to atrocities at the hands of the church. The thing to be noted here is that the victims (and a handful of survivors) did belong to the indigenous community whose identity has been diminishing from the world, at a rather alarming rate (remember Killers Of The Flower Moon?). And this raging documentary is reflective of their trauma that has transcended to generations.
The Good
It is almost a dreaded feeling that you get with the chilling opening visual of the documentary Sugarcane. The image is of the statue of Mother Mary holding her child (Jesus) with literally red spots (signifying blood) smeared on the structure. And almost immediately, everything that the documentary wishes to highlight is silently showcased through that chilling visual. The documentary is disfigured in a way to tread over different perspectives – one, involving the actual dodgy investigation that takes place on the suspicion of missing children from the Indian community of a residential school in Canada. The second one involving a traumatic account of a survivor from the 60s, who was a child back in the day. And lastly, the generational trauma that has passed on by the survivors, whose lives continue to be haunted every single day. The documentary is immersive while tactfully interjecting its monochrome shots from the 1962 documentary The Eyes Of Children, while offering a starkly different perspective with its narrative style.
One look at the victims and you can see the pain that is reflective in their eyes and body language, so much so that they do not wish to recall the atrocities subjected to them. It is similar to reliving their nightmare every single day, that is reflective in their slurring speech or haggard body posture. This trauma is also reflective on the faces of their future generations who do aide in the investigation in order to know the truth, which would further blur their thought-process. All this, while a parallel investigation only drops bombshells along the way while not preparing you enough for the truth that is far buried in the past. After a point, I began to feel the pinch of the documentary, particularly when my mind wandered towards the children being subjected to heinous crimes, even as the power centers of the religion remained unflinching and unapologetic. And to think of the fact that this was just one Catholic school subjugated, as opposed to so many others, made me even more hollow even as I failed to do the math of the number of indigenous children impacted.
One of the most infuriating junctures in the drama did arrive at a point wherein the victims were supposedly invited by the Pope (regarded as the leader of the Church under which the accused Priests and Brothers were given shelter), in order to issue an apology. That apology was literally read out in Italian with the only English words being ‘Bye-Bye’, signifying the downplay of the events to a very large degree. It was infuriating in many ways also because the apology did not account for the generational trauma undergone by many members of the survivor’s families. This, followed by a startling discovery at the end of the documentary that was worth a million nightmares.
The Not So Good
The only little complaint that I had with the documentary was with the fact that the narrative wasn’t cohesive but marginally scattered. This did allow the documentary to be layered but at the same time, the impact of the documentary would have been even higher if the documentary had better transitions, in order to link the events a little better. This however, doesn’t drastically impact the watching given its traumatic subject matter that allowed me to overlook a few minor flaws. The idea of leaving you hollow by the end of it while forcing you to ponder over the past, the present and the future (remember so many children may well be subjected to trauma, just as I type), was indeed worth a million nightmares.
My Final Thoughts
Immediately after completing Sugarcane, I decided to watch The Eyes Of Children (1962), to better understand the subject matter in hand. That documentary did provide a broad stroke into the chronicles of lives of children in the premises of the residential school (parts of its footage was used in Sugarcane). What that documentary did was whitewash the image of the schools, but just because I happened to watch it after Sugarcane, my perspective was completely different. I found myself sinking further watching the children participate in school activities or in classes wherein they are sternly taught about the Catholic religion. Their smiles suddenly felt more daunting, their happy expressions perhaps hiding a trauma or two, oblivious to the ones shooting. It brought me to think of why is there a game of one-upmanship as far as race and religion is concerned. The idea of White Supremacy or even Religious Supremacy has literally reduced the world to rubble, while eradicating the different cultures that were once prevalent across the globe. It is quite saddening to witness members of the indigenous tribe, once the beholders of heritage being subjected to atrocities, particularly children who are naive and innocent. The thoughts inside me kept circling long after the documentary was over. Hope peace prevails, and soon!
Conclusion
Nominated for Best Documentary Feature At The Oscars of 2025, Sugarcane is an infuriating bombshell on generational trauma, atrocities and devastation that makes for a painfully pondering watch filled with searing emotions. Available on Hotstar and Highly Recommended!
