A u t u m n  G o l d
WINNER FILMMAKERS AWARD – HOTDOCS 2010
Standing Ovation at Every Screening

Nature’s first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold.
Directed by Jan Tenhave, AUTUMN GOLD tells the stories of five senior athletes who all have one goal of participating in the World Masters Championship in Finland.  The dramatic element is that all of them are between the age of 82 and 100.  At first glance, I thought this film might end up being a freak show.  However, after the first couple of minutes, I realized it would be quite the opposite.  This film actually tries to answer the question of the meaning of life: Holding on to your dreams is the the key to longevity.  Dreams, garlic and good DNA seem to be the secret to keeping the hue of life golden.

Her early leaf’s a flower;
But only so an hour.
Time is the true antagonist in this film.  This villain does nasty tricks to all of these athletes’ minds, bodies and souls.  Each athlete deals with time a different way.  But in the end, they all prove that being a champion has nothing to do with winning.  It is all about getting-up time and time again to purse that goal.

Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
AUTUMN GOLD is full of humor, hope and life.  However, the only downside was not seeing enough of the World Masters Championships.  The five athletes have incredible backstories and seeing more of them competing was amazing.  In fact, I would rather watch these athletes compete more than watching USAIN BOLT break a world record.

So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.
And I can’t argue with Erica T. when she says the film deserves an “A”

Poem: Robert Frost
Review: Velo
Grade: Erica T.