"the players" capsule review

By Nadia Dalimonte

Stefani Kimber in The Players (2025)

Sarah Galea-Davis’s feature directorial debut The Players tells a universal story of power dynamics and gender roles through an avant-garde lens. Set in Ontario in the summer of 1994, the film follows aspiring young actor Emily (Stefani Kimber), whose dream comes true when she gets cast in a local production of Hamlet. Emily begins to feel seen and heard by the group of actors, as though she’s found her family through experimental expression. But in her naivete, she trusts that her aspirations will be nurtured and not taken advantage of. She trusts that putting herself in pain is “necessary” in the name of art. The company director, Reinhardt (Eric Johnson), operates his theatre like a cult, blurring lines between personal and creative relationships to feed his ego and toxic behavior. Written and directed by Davis, the film resonates as a coming-of-age story and a cautionary tale for young women who wish to get into the industry. Davis deftly captures the 90s mentality around what behaviors were tolerated. Additionally, Davis points out how this pre-#MeToo era made it more difficult for women to speak up about exploitation and abuse, not to mention the lack of safe spaces for women to discuss their experiences with one another. Led by an impressive performance from Stefani Kimber, The Players strikes a reverberating chord.

The Players premieres on Saturday, March 29 at 6:30 pm and will be preceded by Dan Abramovici’s short film Spaceman.
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Canadian Film Festival (CFF) runs from March 24-29, 2025 at Cineplex’s Scotiabank Theatre in Toronto.