Turnabout on AllMovie

One of Canada's pioneering independent filmmakers, Don Owen, directed this neorealistic drama about the unexpected consequences of a reunion between two friends. Alexandra (Judith Gault) and Crystal (Jane Gibson) were classmates in high school, but have not seen one another in years when they bump into one another in the Cabbagetown section of Toronto while shopping for groceries. Cabbagetown was a poor working-class neighborhood that recently felt the effects of gentrification, and Alexandra and Crystal reflect the sharp divide of the town -- Alexandra is married to a wealthy man and leads a life of leisure, while Crystal lives in a housing project with her boyfriend, who has lost his job, leaving Crystal as the sole breadwinner of the household. As the two women talk, they discover they share an envy for one another -- Alexandra longs for Crystal's freedom, while Crystal wishes she had Alexandra's money. Turnabout was created as an updated companion piece to Owen's 1966 film Notes for a Film About Donna & Gail, and is the last film Owen completed before retiring from filmmaking; it received a revival as part of a Don Owen retrospective at the 2005 Toronto Film Festival.