What Would You Do?: One Week (2008)

I debated about whether or not to even include this film on this blog.  After all, it did earn Joshua Jackson a Genie Award (that's the Canadian equivalent of the Oscars for all my American friends), and another nomination for Liane Balaban.  Still, with all its acclaim, this gem of director Michael McGowan's remains relatively unheard of outside its native Canada.

The film focuses on Ben Tyler, a man who at the very start of the film is diagnosed with stage 4 cancer.  However, rather than being a melodrama where Ben is shown fading away in a hospital bed, loved ones at his side, this film has its protagonist take a radical approach.  He decides on a whim to purchase a motorcycle and just ride.  The trip begins as a two-day excursion, but transforms into an cross-country journey from Toronto to Vancouver, Ben meeting a cast of characters along the way.

Photo credit: timeslikethose

The whole idea behind this film and Ben's reasoning for his trip did nothing but inspire me.  For being a film about someone with cancer, I never once felt depressed.  It balances the profound moments with a lot of humor, and the people Ben meets as he goes are all unique and interesting, each with their own story.

Ben's frequent stops at various sites along his path got me thinking.  Where would I go if I just decided to go on a week-long trip one day?  How would I travel?  What would I see?  Maybe a cross-country trip of my own?  I could start in New York, pass through all these different places I've never stepped foot in before, and finally end at the foot of the Pacific.  Who knows?

My question is...Where would you go?