Filmed in Toronto, Nika & Madison takes viewers on a wild, Thelma & Louise-style ride

The first solo feature from Walpole Island First Nation director Eva Thomas is a wild, Thelma & Louise-style film that puts a spotlight on long-standing issues in the Canadian justice system.

Filmed in Toronto and surrounding areas, Nika & Madison premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival this week.

The story focuses on two young Indigenous women, Madison (Star Slade) and her former best friend and cousin, Nika (Ellyn Jade).

The film begins with Madison’s return to her home community from university. After Nika rejects Madison’s offer to go out to the local bar, Madison gets into trouble and winds up in the back of a young police officer’s car. The officer attacks Madison, and Nika comes to her rescue.

The pair are forced back together, on the run, as two police officers, played by Amanda Brugel (The Handmaiden’s Tale) and Shawn Doyle (Star Trek: Discovery), investigate what really happened.

As the well-paced story unfolds, the relationship between the two women deepens and the reasons for their estrangement are revealed.

At the film opening, Thomas said she wanted to tell a Thelma and Louise-type story and wondered how that 1991 film would have been different if the women were Indigenous.

“That was the spark of the idea,” Thomas said at the premiere on Sept. 7. “I also really wanted to tell a story about two Indigenous women, and I wanted to tell that story about a rez girl and a city girl, and I really wanted to show how they were different.”

Nika & Madison director Eva Thomas speaks at the TIFF premiere.

She achieves this contrast with Nika, who loves the outdoors and hunts, and Madison, who enjoys city life and university.

Nika & Madison follows Thomas’ short film Redlights, which premiered at TIFF in 2023. Redlights focused on the Canadian police practice of driving Indigenous people to isolated locations outside of city limits in freezing conditions, at times leading to death.

Nika & Madison expands on this complex relationship between police and Indigenous communities.

While remaining highly entertaining, the film shines a light on systemic discrimination in the Canadian justice system.

Cast members of Nika & Madison celebrate at the TIFF premiere.

Thomas said the topic allowed her, as an Indigenous artist, to talk about law enforcement, an issue that is fraught with distrust and a history of violence.

“This was an opportunity for me to say something about that,” Thomas said.