No Visible Trauma

Deftly upending the popular assertion that Canadian law enforcement agencies differ from those in the US, this provocative exposé fixes a sharp lens on the Calgary Police Service’s rampant, unchecked use of excessive force. Calgary has more officer-involved shootings than any city in Canada, and in 2018 it had more fatal police shootings than either Chicago or New York. Born and raised in the city, the filmmakers spent five years meticulously dissecting three such incidents, seeking justice and accountability for victims Anthony Heffernan, Daniel Haworth, and Godfred Addai-Nyamekye.

Intimidation tactics, rookies coached to turn a blind eye, the stonewalling of police watchdogs, questionable entanglements with prosecutors… all are written off under the cover of "a few bad apples." Racism and "wellness checks" also come into play, while several other violent interactions (miraculously caught on camera) reveal misconduct that must be seen to be believed. Alarmingly, nothing here will ring false to the marginalized populations who bear the brunt of police brutality in this country. In the end one truth becomes abundantly clear: this department is more than just a few bad apples. It’s rotten to the core.

From viff.org