Alberta Number One

What is the contemporary role of museums, institutions that often perpetuate representations of cultural authority? Are these public places complicit in maintaining unequal power relations and existing stereotypes? These are — among other things — the questions posed by Vanessa Wright, a film professor and director. Accompanied by a likable team of doubters, she embarks on a tour of museums and roadside stops in Alberta to film an existentialist documentary. A jazzy and poetic exploration of the Prairies' Far West, Alberta Number One thoughtfully questions cultural identity and its portrayal while offering an original meditation on grief. Funny, endearing, and very timely.