After going virtual in 2020 and offering up a food festival in lieu of a parade in 2021, the Toronto Caribbean Carnival (a.k.a. Caribana) is back in full force. And just in time for this year's Caribana festivities is Becoming a Queen, a documentary about Joella Crichton, a nine-time Queen of Caribbean Carnival vying for her 10th title.
A crown jewel of the Toronto summer event calendar, Caribana attracts tourists from around the world who flock to the city to take part in the weekend-long events topped off with a parade down the Exhibition Place Grounds (previously University Avenue). Kicking off the festival is the King & Queen Showcase, where men and women compete to be named King and Queen of the Toronto Caribbean Carnival. The competitions and parade are renowned for the incredible costumes worn by all participants, particularly those in the showcase.
Directed by Chris Strikes, Becoming a Queen focuses on the Crichton family whose daughters have found success in both showcase competitions. Joella is one of the most well-known faces on the circuit (having even been featured on a TTC Metropass back in the day), and her older sister Mischka has won the Female Individual competition twice, a separate competition in the showcase. Both have been involved in Caribana from a young age thanks to their mother Lou-Ann, who was born and raised in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and is a lover of Carnival.
Behind the Crichton family's success is Kenney Coombs, a childhood friend of Lou-Ann's and the designer of Joella and Mischka's winning costumes. And truth be told, Becoming a Queen might have been a stronger documentary had Coombs been the focus. The elaborate designs and intricate construction of these grande pieces are truly spectacular and something to behold. While we do see a bit of what goes into making the costumes and hear Coombs describe some of his inspiration and motivation behind the themes and designs, a film focusing entirely on this would be especially insightful and captivating.
Strikes instead builds Joella's journey as if she's heading into Game 7 of the championship series, and in many ways, she is. She's the established Queen of the festival, which means everyone is looking to take her down, including young talent out to make a name for themselves. And to add to the stakes of that year's competition, Joella says from the outset that 2018 will be her Carnival swan song — win or lose, she's done competing.
Becoming a Queen revisits Joella's past wins and losses, showing the evolution of her showmanship and confidence throughout the years. Joella also responds to her critics and discusses rumours around cheating and other allegations, which have clearly weighed on her. Leading up to the main event, we have a solid understanding of who Joella is and the people who helped her achieve success. We are left, however, with the question as to what her motivation is beyond simply wanting to win. Joella's connection to Carnival and her pride in her heritage is clear, but besides 10 being a nice round number, we aren't given a grounded reason to root for her.
This disconnect is exacerbated by the fact that we don't get to know any of her competitors. Towards the end of the film, rising star Celena Seusahai is shown and described as Joella's main competition. Without any direct interviews or profiles on Seusahai or any of the other contestants, we aren't given the full picture of the competition, and so the Game 7 buildup doesn't feel as momentous as it should.
Where Becoming a Queen falls as a competition film, it rises to the occasion in celebrating Carnival and its history. Strikes provides an interesting overview of the festival's origins in Ancient Egypt, its roots in Caribbean culture, and its expansion into North America and Europe. One of the best moments in the film is the discussion about body image — holding up Carnival as a place where men and women of all shapes and colours are welcome to take part and celebrate their beauty and the beauty of Afro-Caribbean culture.
Becoming a Queen gives audiences a glimpse behind the curtain of one of Toronto's most well-known events that should pique the interest of the uninitiated. And while it fails to fulfill its sports-like premise, it succeeds in showing the beauty behind Caribbean artistry and the importance behind the festive ritual.
(Game Theory Films)A crown jewel of the Toronto summer event calendar, Caribana attracts tourists from around the world who flock to the city to take part in the weekend-long events topped off with a parade down the Exhibition Place Grounds (previously University Avenue). Kicking off the festival is the King & Queen Showcase, where men and women compete to be named King and Queen of the Toronto Caribbean Carnival. The competitions and parade are renowned for the incredible costumes worn by all participants, particularly those in the showcase.
Directed by Chris Strikes, Becoming a Queen focuses on the Crichton family whose daughters have found success in both showcase competitions. Joella is one of the most well-known faces on the circuit (having even been featured on a TTC Metropass back in the day), and her older sister Mischka has won the Female Individual competition twice, a separate competition in the showcase. Both have been involved in Caribana from a young age thanks to their mother Lou-Ann, who was born and raised in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and is a lover of Carnival.
Behind the Crichton family's success is Kenney Coombs, a childhood friend of Lou-Ann's and the designer of Joella and Mischka's winning costumes. And truth be told, Becoming a Queen might have been a stronger documentary had Coombs been the focus. The elaborate designs and intricate construction of these grande pieces are truly spectacular and something to behold. While we do see a bit of what goes into making the costumes and hear Coombs describe some of his inspiration and motivation behind the themes and designs, a film focusing entirely on this would be especially insightful and captivating.
Strikes instead builds Joella's journey as if she's heading into Game 7 of the championship series, and in many ways, she is. She's the established Queen of the festival, which means everyone is looking to take her down, including young talent out to make a name for themselves. And to add to the stakes of that year's competition, Joella says from the outset that 2018 will be her Carnival swan song — win or lose, she's done competing.
Becoming a Queen revisits Joella's past wins and losses, showing the evolution of her showmanship and confidence throughout the years. Joella also responds to her critics and discusses rumours around cheating and other allegations, which have clearly weighed on her. Leading up to the main event, we have a solid understanding of who Joella is and the people who helped her achieve success. We are left, however, with the question as to what her motivation is beyond simply wanting to win. Joella's connection to Carnival and her pride in her heritage is clear, but besides 10 being a nice round number, we aren't given a grounded reason to root for her.
This disconnect is exacerbated by the fact that we don't get to know any of her competitors. Towards the end of the film, rising star Celena Seusahai is shown and described as Joella's main competition. Without any direct interviews or profiles on Seusahai or any of the other contestants, we aren't given the full picture of the competition, and so the Game 7 buildup doesn't feel as momentous as it should.
Where Becoming a Queen falls as a competition film, it rises to the occasion in celebrating Carnival and its history. Strikes provides an interesting overview of the festival's origins in Ancient Egypt, its roots in Caribbean culture, and its expansion into North America and Europe. One of the best moments in the film is the discussion about body image — holding up Carnival as a place where men and women of all shapes and colours are welcome to take part and celebrate their beauty and the beauty of Afro-Caribbean culture.
Becoming a Queen gives audiences a glimpse behind the curtain of one of Toronto's most well-known events that should pique the interest of the uninitiated. And while it fails to fulfill its sports-like premise, it succeeds in showing the beauty behind Caribbean artistry and the importance behind the festive ritual.
