★★

Sometimes, despite your best efforts, a movie just does not click with you.

And such is the case with me and Team Hurricane, a Denmark import from director Annika Berg, who has ignored all the conventions of documentary filmmaking and crafted a singular take on an intriguing concept for a film.

Admittedly, Berg has crafted a bold, out-of-the-box, experimental story of eight young women, fearless on camera and effortlessly sharing a wide array of stories and experiences. Cast from a search on social media, the women share honest, revealing, sometimes difficult stories about their lives, and what they fear, struggle with, and have dealt with throughout their lives. They re-enact staged scenes that blur the lines of documentary and fictionalized storytelling.

And as raw and clever as that may sound, Berg inundates her film with a barrage of edgy camera tricks, distracting on-screen effects, and a lack of cohesiveness when presenting her story. Team Hurricane wants to embody and embrace the punk, DIY lifestyle these girls inhabit.

Celebrating a genuine, real, unfiltered dose of strong femininity is something we need to see more of in our stories and movies. However, any impact of what the women share is lost in a storm, as Team Hurricane overwhelms and exhausts us, as we continually wade through all the unnecessary obstacles Berg throws our way.

Starring: Eja Penelope Roepstorff, Ida Glitre, Maja Leth Bang, Mathilde Linnea Daugaard Jensen, Elise Pedersen, Sara Morling, Zara Munch Bjarnum. 
DIrector: Annika Berg
Running Time: 96 Minutes

SIFF SHOWTIMES:
May 18 | SIFF Cinema Uptown | 3:30 PM
May 19 | Ark Lodge | 3:45 PM
May 20 | SIFF Cinema Uptown | 8:30 PM