There have been many films about immigration, migrants, and homesickness. Brooklyn, Lost in Translation, East is East, My Beautiful Laundrette, and House of Sand and Fog are some of the films that discuss the struggle that comes from migrating to a new country and adjusting to that lifestyle. Maple Leaf Dreams is a story of a couple that moves to Canada but faces many hardships in their pursuit of a good lifestyle.
Spoilers Ahead
How did Molly and Macky meet?
Molly had been dreaming of moving to Canada for a while. Initially she wanted to do a caregiver’s course in the hope it would land her a job in Canada and she could pursue her life from then on. Molly met Macky at a favorite restaurant of hers, Manang Dinakdakan, and they shared a meal together and introduced themselves to each other. A year later, Macky was working in the same city as Molly. While Macky was a manager at a small company, Molly was working with her cousin as her assistant. She was not happy with the situation, as her father was also dependent on his brother for work and money.
Why did Molly plan to move to Canada?
Molly realized she could not watch her father be dependent on anyone else for money and asked him to consider starting up his garage, which had been his dream for many years. Molly’s mother, however, asked her to be grateful to her uncle and cousin, who were responsible for her and her sister’s education. Molly was not convinced and confessed to Macky about wanting more in life than serving for people that do not respect her or her family. She lets him know about her desire to restart her work on moving to Canada on an international student visa.
Macky also knew his job in the Philippines was not enough to sustain his ailing father. He agreed to Molly’s plan as he loved her and planned to work in Canada full time until she graduated. After she graduated and secured a proper job, Macky would study to get a job as per his liking. The whole plan seemed perfect on paper. Molly had a tough time convincing her mother about her plan to move to Canada as she wanted her family around. Her father somehow understood Molly’s need to get out of the Philippines and have an independent identity of her own.
Initially Molly had planned to work as many jobs as possible to gather money for tuition. Her father, however, as the ultimate showcase of love, offered the money he’d saved up to start a garage. At first, Molly rejected the money as she felt her father should not give up on his dream of starting a garage. Her father convinced her to take the money, as that was the need of the hour. Molly realized she would be able to pay back the money from the job she gets in Canada.
Did they adjust in Toronto?
Molly and Macky bid a tearful adieu to their families. They began to chronicle every aspect of their journey to Toronto by recording it on their phone. On reaching Toronto, they experienced every aspect of the public transport in the city to reach the place they were going to stay at. They meet a fellow hallmate, Roselle, and her son Benito. Roselle and Benito, by the looks of it, had been living in Toronto for a while, and she was the only contact the couple had.
Molly began her course to study digital marketing while Macky was looking for any kind of work that would bring him an extra income. Molly had also begun working at a grocery store as a part-time job as a way to bring in more income in the household. Macky was homesick within a month, and he was unable to find any job as every vacancy was asking for Canadian experience. One day he walked into a restaurant serving Filipino food and was happy to find the owner was from his home country. He asked the said person if the restaurant had any job openings, and he was offered the job of janitor/cleaner, who would help with cleaning the restaurant, including the kitchen. Macky took up the job as it would allow him to work with people from the Philippines.
Molly and Macky were going through their own ups and downs as they were living together. The work and studies were taking a toll on both of them, and both did not stop sniping at each other as the days went by. Molly and Macky eventually found their way back to each other after every fight as they were in love and promised to not abandon their relationship at the first sign of weakness.
What did Filipino expats tell them?
The couple, along with Benito and Roselle, spent Christmas night at an expat’s home. The whole night turned into a nostalgia festival as every single Filipino began to share the struggles they faced after moving to Canada. Most of the women moved to Canada as caregivers for children and ailing adults. They worked their way up professionally, slowly and steadily. They also mentioned they had to sacrifice many things, including not being able to take care of their own children. Most of them were teary-eyed while discussing their ordeal in detail, especially single mothers. There was a lot to learn from their experience, as one of them stated; people need to be mentally prepared to sacrifice and face setbacks when they move to a new country. The night ended with Molly and Macky giving each other gifts, a Christmas tradition.
Why was Molly depressed?
Molly one night received a call from her mother, who tearfully had to let her know that her father had passed due to a heart attack. The news crushed her, and she was inconsolable for many days. Molly could not go back home for the funeral, and as a result, she stopped going to her classes out of guilt for not being there. Macky was getting worried as she had stopped eating and doing other normal things. He was trying to be there for her, but she requested he leave her alone as she was processing the tragedy. Macky tried to converse with her once again in the hope he would be able to convince her to talk and eat food.
A heartbroken Molly revealed that her will to live in Canada has evaporated, as she had been doing everything for her father and his dream to start a garage. Since he wasn’t around anymore, she does not feel motivated to continue her plan to live in this country. Macky had to let her know that her father gave her the money out of love for her and she was not indebted to pay it back. He added that her father would have wanted her to build a life for herself instead of running back on the first sign of a setback in life. Macky further added that he loved her, which was why he’d followed her in the hope of building a life and family together. Just like he had to pick up his life from scratch, he wanted Molly to do the same as life would throw many curveballs at her.
How did Molly and Macky reconcile?
Molly still wasn’t convinced after Macky requested her to change her mind about moving back to the Philippines. Molly was being herself as she felt guilty for not being there for her father. She was also facing a major setback at a time when it was only her and Macky together. If she had been in the Philippines at the time of her father’s passing, the impact would have been less severe. Molly did not understand the fact that life was unpredictable, and her father’s passing came at a time when she felt everything in her life was perfect. She was unable to get over her father’s passing and felt she needed to be with her family rather than spend time here where she felt her future might be uncertain.
Molly and Roselle had a conversation about grief and loss. Roselle had learned that Molly and Macky were not in a good place emotionally ever since her father’s death. She was also shocked to learn Molly was letting go of this opportunity to study and work in Canada and moving back. Roselle could understand her grief as she shared that she lost her husband a long while back, but she did not let grief take over her. She added that the grief of losing a person would come and go, and Molly should process it instead of suppressing it. She indicated that losing a loved one was the hardest thing, but life would have to move on.
Roselle realized that she could help Molly in making the right decision by sharing her life experience. Roselle added that she had Benito to live for, and she knew her deceased husband would have been happy for her and their child for having made something out of their lives. Roselle was trying to let Molly know that she should not uproot her life, and instead should process the loss. Molly finally understood Roselle’s advice and realized she was right indeed. A heartfelt conversation was what she indeed was. Roselle acted like a therapist who gave her a logical scenario of how to make a decision if one loses their loved ones.
Molly set up a Manang Dinakdakan style of dinner for Macky on his return from work. She apologized to Macky because she realized she had been about to abandon their dreams. Molly confessed she would always love him and would not do anything to hamper their life plans. Since this was an emotional romantic drama, reconciliation was inevitable. Macky genuinely loved Molly, and she reciprocated his effort to keep the relationship afloat.
Did Molly and Macky get their permanent residency?
The movie ended with Molly and Macky going back to chronicling their life in Toronto as before. This was their way of staying connected with each other. Maybe they would send this footage to their family as well to let them know they were happy with the plan they had decided for themselves in a country miles and miles away from their home. Molly and Macky were happy to be with each other after all this time, even though it was not easy to get through the first year of their stay in a foreign country. Their love only grew stronger all this while, and it pushed them to decide to continue living in Canada.
The epilogue of the film had Macky finally finishing her studies a year later. She was now working with an agency and had a steady job. Their life was going as per the plan they made as Macky went back to studying music as Molly was taking care of the finances. Molly asked her mother to prepare their documents as she could be getting her Canadian permanent residency. This was Molly’s dream: to bring her family here, and it was finally going to happen. Even though her father wasn’t around to see all of this, she knew he must be happy for her. Molly shared the news of her receiving the Canadian permanent residency with Macky. Since he has been with her from the start of their journey, it was only right for him to be the first person to know it.
Molly was contemplating her decisions in the past of not going back home at the time of her father’s passing. Macky helped her understand that she should not feel guilty about doing something her father would have been proud of. Macky was right because ever since the tragedy, Molly has only moved forward in life and now achieved her dreams as well. Molly and Macky walked into the party thrown by their countrymen, indicating that all was well.
