Wilderness (2011)

• 80%
• 2011
• Drama
• Dawn Wilkinson
• Penny Eizenga
• Jamie Johnston
• Kevin B Hartley

When Linda Michaels (Penny Eizenga) wakes to find her teenaged son, Kevin (Jamie Johnston), has left home in the middle of the night, she begins the all-too-familiar search for him in the gritty downtown streets of the city. Kevin refuses treatment for schizophrenia, causing him to become more and more erratic and paranoid. Linda visits the mental health clinic, but privacy laws prevent her from learning about Kevins medical status. Frustrated and helpless, she walks the streets and alleys in a desperate attempt to find him, only to see first hand, the homelessness and addiction that may well be a reality in Kevins future. When the mens shelter director, Bill (Kevin Hartley) locates Kevin crouching under a bridge, Lindas hopes soar, only to discover that Kevins psychosis has escalated. Fearful of police involvement and possibly jail, Linda hesitantly leaves Kevin under Bills watch. Linda, left alone with her thoughts and fears, must face the reality that ultimately, she has no control over her sons uncertain future. Wilderness, is about the enormous suffering experienced by those who stand alongside the people they love and care about who struggle with severe mental illness.