When living so far north (supposedly a million miles away from anywhere), teens may struggle to find ways to entertain themselves, discover who they are, and successfully protect their isolated community from an invading alien species. Taking place in a Native community, four young girls discover a shapeshifting monster who seems to come from ancient Inuit myths, but the origin of these creatures might be a little more outer-worldly. Director Nyla Innuksuk takes a familiar alien invasion movie but uses a unique setting, characters, and culture to tell her story. SLASH/BACK places four girls at the front of an alien invasion and they must rely on their intelligence and cultural knowledge to save themselves.

The film starts in the Cumberland Peninsula, Nunavut, at the edge of the Arctic circle, where we see a lone snowmobiler riding across the endless expanse of snow and cold. He records some scientific measurements but before he can leave, he spots a bit of movement in the ice. He foolishly goes to investigate and meets a bloody end. The nearby hamlet of Pangnirtung (affectionately called Pang) sports an impressive population of 1,481. The camera pans over a scattering of houses and mobile homes that sit on an isolated coast. Maika (Tasiana Shirley) and her friends Uki (Nalajoss Ellsworth), Leena (Chelsea Prusky), and Jesse (Alexis Wolfe) live a similar life to any other teen girl as their hobbies include texting, making snide remarks, and rolling their eyes.

Pang’s population represents the importance of their culture in just about everything that they do as the girls and most people in their small community switch effortlessly between speaking English and Inuktitut. The surrounding mountains add for an amazing scenic touch, but also make the girls seem small and insignificant as they hike along the unforgiven landscape. Most of the girls dream of getting out and traveling to the exotic land of Winnipeg, but for now, they have to settle for minimal phone data, a boring town, and a white cop who harasses anyone from the Native tribe. Only Uki defends their tiny hamlet and embraces the culture as well. After an encounter with a deformed polar bear, Uki and Maika argue over the reason for the attack. Uki claims the animal was actually an Ijiraq, a shapeshifting, child-stealing monster. But disappointed in her culture and the old-fashioned ways of her people, Maika dismisses Uki’s claim and maintains that none of these stories are real and simply come from a time before the internet.

SLASH/BACK combines horror and sci-fi, but also creates a conversation about the robbing of native land and the long history of aggression experienced by Indigenous people. The aliens represent the European colonizers who invaded North America, robbing, and murdering the Native people of their homes, culture, and even their lives. Even within the film, Maika demonstrates disdain for her culture. At the beginning of the movie, Maika listens to the radio, but soon losses interest when the language switches to her native tongue. Her parents also speak to her in Inuktitut, but their daughter only responds in English. Maika further tries to distance herself from the culture by mocking the art and the food, saying she prefers KFC instead. However, towards the end of the film, Maika wears a jacket that reads “No Justice on Stolen Land”, which stands as a protest against the aliens, but also lets the movie speak up for the long-standing injustice for Native people.

All the adults busy themselves with a square dance to celebrate the Solstice, which leaves all the kids unattended and left to fend for themselves. So, the kids go to Thomassie’s (the hottest guy in school) house for an underage party. The kids awkwardly interact and prove when young and hormonal, the opposite sex becomes the most alien species. But as the actual aliens grow hungry for blood, they seek out the easy targets and begin to hunt the kids. The sci-fi aspects of the film call for some special effects and some of the visuals nail it while others do not. The CGI polar bears appear very low budget, which makes the discovery of the aliens more comical than fearful. However, the effects and make-up (especially with the alien infected people) effectively recreate the image of body-invading aliens.

SLASH/BACK, serving as a play on the phrase ‘clap back’, depicts the strong and proud youth fighting to protect what is theirs. The film offers a pretty recognizable sci-fi story, but the characters of Maika, Jesse, Uki, and Leena make this alien invasion different from similar stories because we get a different perspective. Also, the young actresses portray teenage girls differently than what normally gets displayed on screen. The story follows a coming-of-age pattern, but the girls go even beyond that. They show they care for each other, but do not necessarily like one another and find themselves arguing even when killer aliens are banging on the door. The small community forces the girls together out of lack of options for friends, but their culture and heritage bonds them together regardless of their opinions of one another. The fierceness of the girls and their commitment to their community, culture, and each other (even if they don’t want to admit it) creates a fun and enjoyable movie.

SLASH/BACK had its World Premiere on March 13, 2022, at SXSW.