PINK LUDOOS (2005)

By Rick Jackson

Pink Ludoos is a smart coming of age comedy in which a contemporary young woman wants to live her life without being tied down by the traditions of her Sikh family.

Jay Kazim is simply wonderful to watch as Gugan Dhaliwal. Her performance is down-to-earth and funny as she searches within herself enough courage to cry out and be heard among her mother's platitudes and superstitions.

Early in the film, Gugan learns she is pregnant with three girls out of wedlock. Tradition says that boys are the choice gender. When a baby is born, it is celebrated by sweets called "pink ludoos."

Written by Belle Mott, the focus of the story is on this important Sikh tradition and how Gugan seeks to change it. When she meets Raymond (Chenur Hendel) she doesn't realize who he really is.

Shaheen Khan, who played the mother in Bend It Like Bendham, plays Mrs. Dhaliwal. She wants Gugan, her eldest daughter, to follow tradition and watch out for certain things such as the upcoming eclipse. Gugan also doesn't like the spices she throws around the air because she doesn't like them.

The rest of the supporting cast features Jolly Bader as Mr. Dhaliwal, who is torn by past mistakes and has become a lazy drunkard, and Agam Darshi is Pria, Gugan's younger brother.

Under Guarav Seth's capable direction, Pink Ludoos is a delightful surprise.

March 5, 2005

Copyright 2005 Rick Jackson

THREE NEEDLES (SEVILLE PICTURES, 2005)

By Rick Jackson

In this episodic drama about AIDS, writer/director Thom Fitzgerald brings a sense of urgency to do something in addressing the global epidemic which has affected the Third World. Underneath the separate stories, it is the sheer humanity and concern to actually work at this resolve that underscores the need for us to react positively.

Set in China, Canada and Africa, we are introduced to a young novice and aspiring actor in Canada who is given needles, and a man who returns home to be circumcised for he believes it will mean his growth to manhood.

The most impressive of the three is the one in Africa. Chloe Sevigny plays Clara, a nun who wants to help the natives. You learn for anyone who wants to give blood, they have to be at least 12 years old and up and healthy. Each blood donor makes $500.00 and there is a continuuing need for blood products.

Safe sex is not practiced here and superstitions among the Africans make it impossible to do all that is needed. Asisting Clara are nuns Mary (Sandra Oh) and Hilde (Olympia Dukakis). They all help the young white doctors in their struggle against the AIDs epidemic.

One of the sub-plots involves the nuns with Mr. Hallyday, the plantation owner who manipulates the situation since he has the money and power to make a difference. Clara offers herself as a sex slave for him in exchange for the supplies the hospital needs.

In China, you meet Jin Ping (Lucy Liu), who travels from one rural village to another seeking anyone who can give blood. When she meets a rich farmer named Tong Sam (Tanabade Cholepikaltong), he uses his influence to try and find a solution to the AIDS there after his wife and child fall ill as a result of unsanitary conditions while giving blood.

Back in Canada, Shawn Ashmore plays Denny who supports his parents by pursuing a porno acting career. Stockard Channing plays her mother Olive and she doesn't know about her son's chosen profession. The gravity of his situation becomes apparent when he hides his negative test results for AIDS from everyone.

The plot threads move back and forth among the three stories which tell us how wide the AIDS pandemic can quickly develop. Although not all the characters are fleshed out like they should, it is important to remember the overall theme and the efforts to deal with it. Each example in the three countries delineates the problems inherent in finding a cure, and it is not easy to find one due to the increasing financial and political problems of this health crisis.

Tom Harting's stunning cinematography, especially in Africa, shows the irony of such a beautiful country faced with the inability to fight due to the ignorance of the population and its far reaching problem which is overwhelming.

The performances by Sevigny, Oh, and Dukakis show the difficulties in a bad situation getting worse with Sevigny's role symbolic of the acts of desperation in convincing those who are in position to do more to help.

Roberts plays Mr. Hallyday with the same cunning and resourcefulness as any villain and it's Fitzgerald's fault in letting him turn a nun against her own strict morals.
Not knowing the basis for his thinking for this, it's hard to know if it was based on fact or not.

Despite its plodding pace, Three Needles manages to succeed in bringing across the gravity of the world's AIDs epidemic. Dukakis' narration helps keep it in focus.

March 11, 2006

Copyright 2006 Rick Jackson

LUCID (MONGREL MEDIA, 2005)

By Rick Jackson

Co-written, produced and directed by Winnipegger Sean Garrity, Lucid is an incisive and thought provoking drama about reality vs. delusion.

On the surface, Garrity and his screenwriting partner, Jonas Chernick, who also plays psychologist Joel Rothman, focus their story on him and his average caseload which includes three patients who figure prominently: Sophie (Lindy Booth), a drug addict with signs of post-traumatic stress disorder; Chandra (Michelle Nolden), a delusional compulsive-obsessive whose sister has been left in a coma after an accident; and Victor Koblinsky (Callum Keith Rennie), a paranoid, angry man who has a history of domestic violence and is also delusional.

As you watch Rothman work with them, something strange is afoot but we are never really clear exactly what it is, including Rothman's own problem with sleep deprivation. Instead of explaining the root of it, we are thrown into his upheaval existence which only he is to blame after he is caught sleeping with another woman when his wife pays him a surprise visit. When his patients begin to show a series of hallucinations, they are mixed with tragicomic and neurotic results.

Garrity's effective direction keeps you on the edge of your seat with the odd touch of humour to keep you entertained. Although there are some loose ends which leave you wondering what happened or where or why, it is the director's own sense of creating something different from mainstream Hollywood.

Despite a Canadian cast not as polished as their American counterparts and Chernick's penchant to overact in some scenes, Lucid manages to become a unique Canadian moviegoing experience. You wonder if, like the characters in his movie, are either asleep or awake watching it. A satisfying conclusion makes it all worth the price of admission.

It is rated 14A, with the warnings: coarse language, disturbing content and mature theme. After premiering at the Kingston Canadian Film Festival, it opened for a regular run at The Screening Room on April 7.

March 11, 2006

Copyright 2006 Rick Jackson

C.R.A.Z.Y. (TVA FILMS, 2005)

By Rick Jackson

Family life is celebrated in C.R.A.Z.Y., a powerful and intelligently told film co-written and directed by Jean-Marc Vallee. Framed at the beginning and end by the birth and eath of a family member in the Beaulieu family, it's what happens in between that serves as a universal slice of life. It is told through the eyes of son Zach, who is born on Christmas Day 1960.

In their screenplay, Vallee and Francois Boulay focus on Zach's own individuality as a person who felt different from his three older brothers and one younger brother. As the narrator, he reveals how strong the family ties are and the emotions and feelings of how he managed to survive as the gay member, and his father who accepted him back in the family fold after ten years.

Early in the film, Zach says, "I had just turned seven and unwittingly I had declared war on my father." While growing up he is called a fairy and a faggot but it's his determination to live in a world of diversity, including a world trip to visit Jerusalem, that he comes to terms with his religious beliefs. Raised a staunch Roman Catholic, he becomes an athiest but leaves the possibility open for change.

His brothers Raymond, Antoine, Christian, and Yvan all have their own problems. As adults, all of them but Raymond, the oldest, is able to cope with life until he becomes a drug addict.

How Vallee shapes the mult-layers of family life underscores the problems faced by these five brothers. For anyone who grew up in a large family, you will be able to identify with it.

One of the most important characters is Gervais, the father, well played by Michael Cote. His strong performance holds the film together as the strict disciplinarian because he feels his children must learn to grow up responsibly. For this family it becomes a testing ground for the unwelcome changes in attitude, including disrespect for your elders.

Religious symbolism guides the story's main plot thread since the church plays an important role in the development of French-Canadian life. Quite effective is how Vallee shows a teenaged Zach at the midnight mass rising above the congregation singing "Sympathy For The Devil" by The Rolling Stones.

A box-office hit in Quebec in 2005, C.R.A.Z.Y. closed the Kingston Canadian Film Festival on its last night with a free screening.

March 11, 2006

Copyright 2006 Rick Jackson

SIX FIGURES

By Rick Jackson

Written and directed by David Christenson, Six Figures is one of the most excruciating dull films I have ever sat through. The entire cast all talk in such monotone voices there isn't one redeeming character.

Christenson's screenplay is based on the novel by Fred Leebron which focuses on a man in his mid-thirties and his mid-life crisis. Not having the book, I cannot tell how faithful he is to it.

J. R. Bourne plays Warner, who works at a corporation where he is a dealing with an important client. It's an important portfolio and unbeknownst to him his success or failure with the company will decide if he will be kept on or dismissed. During this whole time, he and his wife Claire (Caroline Cave) have bought a house. You also learn that she has been given a raise at her job at the local gallery where she is a valuable employee. Meanwhile, Warner is put on probation when his deal doesn't come through. Just before that happens, his supervisor advises him this is not the right time to buy a new home.

When Claire is later beaten up in what may be a robbery attempt, since this is not made clear, the entire film changes direction by becoming a case of wife abuse due to Warner's past history. It all ends up being a long winded daytime drama with the authorities seemingly taking control of a situation still under investigation.

Poorly edited by Emma Barry who lets you assume the worst in deciding Warner's fate, the entire film is mired in a series of predictable events and emotions which are completely cliched. You've also seen it all before.

The rest of the cast features Deborah Grover as Claire's mother, Louise; Brooklynn Proulx as Sophie, Warner and Claire's oldest child; Andrew Krivanek as Dr. Lyon, and Marty Antonini as Detective Norton.

Christenson's latest effort is timeworn and hardly exciting. You don't need to be reminded of your financial problems, especially if you have recently gone through something like this. For those who haven't, it is an example of the worst acting in a Canadian film so far this year.

It is rated 14A, with the warnings: coarse language and mature theme.

March 11, 2006

Copyright 2006 Rick Jackson

METAL: A HEADBANGER'S JOURNEY (SEVILLE PICTURES, 2005)

By Rick Jackson

Written and directed by Sam Dunn, Scott McFayden and Jessica Joy Wise, Metal: A Headbanger's Journey is an illuminating and informative documentary about metal music.

It not only covers a history of this musical genre but discusses its relevance and popularity from its earliest beginnings to the present. Whether or not you're a fan of heavy metal, it has a loyal following. Fans of this genre are, perhaps, more passionate than other kinds of music, but this point can be argued and debated for long hours.

Interviewing key figures such as Bruce Dickinson (Iron Maiden), Tony Iommi (Black Sabbath), Alice Cooper, Ozzy Osbourne and many others, it is presented in several sections beginning with the roots of heavy metal with Cream, Jimi Hendrix, Blue Cheer, Led Zeppelin,Deep Purple, Geddy Lee (Rush), and John Kay.

Black Sabbath is singled out as the first heavy metal band by Iommi who explains their "tri-tone sound," and metal music's musical roots going back to classical composers such as Bach and Wagner whose orchestrations have provided the dark, heavy background that has been amplified. You may also be surprised to learn of their musical history in the blues or what Iommi calls "oppressed music." I didn't know Black Sabbath was a blues band in its conception.

The musicians who comprise heavy metal bands come from mostly poor sections of towns and cities. Individually, each seems themselves as being angry young musicians because they are longing to be heard and understood.

The lyrics they each sing about defines the individual musician on a personal level where it can conceivably be inspired by simply playing licks on your guitar.

In the section, Environmentalist, it mentions an "alternative universe" which Iommi says is part of the outsider or loner who is trying to be heard.

The elements of the heavy metal genre begin more with the way they dress. The black leather and silver threads make it possible for the musician to feel his way where evil and freedom co-exist on a larger plane kept alive by a dedicated core of fans.

Tattoos are worn as part of their appearance for both the musicians and hard core fanatics see this as a common denominator that unites them in a brotherhood where they feel they can communicate and, thereby, understand each other and the world they live in.

The sub-genres of heavy metal, such as power and glam, are mentioned and there is an interview with Metal Mayhem.

What many non-fans of heavy metal may find interesting is the section discussing the controversy that exists, especially censorship.

The genre's connection to religion comes up when Twisted Sister's lyrics come up since they can be best understood by looking at them in a didactic way.

What becomes apparent quickly while watching this documentary are the themes of the genre: hedonism, death and sexuality. Once male dominated and aggressive, its impact can also be discerned among the bevy of female heavy metal bands like Doro and Kittie.

Returning to its relationship to religion, especially satanism, writer Gavin Baddely says the sound of Black Sabbath is related to symbols, i.e. the pentagon, which helps define a certain band with a certain sound.

Slayer is mentioned as a progenitor of thrash metal which, in turn, is a reflection of society.

Yet with the all its darkness and impending religious motifs, Venom, Slayer and others related to their brand of heavy metal are surprisingly labelled as "cool."

Before ending their journey, the filmmakers look at Norway where Satanic heavy metal is a big cultural export and the Norwegian black market.

Rev. Wolf Rasmussen talks about certain incidents where anyone defying heavy metal openly in public has been punished by the aggressive and sick behaviour of certain fans who feel they need to destroy public property to make their point.

The establishment feels this destruction breaks down Christianity while fueling hard rock music. Their fans are expressing themselves as part of an elitist religion, although its unclear if the fans actually do.

The point is made that heavy metal fans comprise "a culture of outsiders." Their obsession with mortality and death unite them since they are singing about their position in society and how they each grasp a certain understanding whether or not you agree with it.

They are the voices of a genre whose collective thoughts are linked by the knowledge they can help themselves and others through the different amalgam of sounds, gyrations and lyrics.

By the time the end credits roll, it is quite evident this has all become an objective experience and all of it brings into focus a genre of music that you may well increase your understanding of it. However, it doesn't change this film critic's opinion about the genre as nothing but noise for the most part. At the same time, one must admit that it fills a void for those who need it. Besides, I do like some of the songs by Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin among others. After seeing Heavy Metal: A Headbanger's Journey it will be entirely up to you how you perceive and understand it.

March 11, 2006

Copyright 2006 Rick Jackson

LOVE IS WORK (2005)

By Rick Jackson

Written and directed by John Kalangis, from his own story, Love Is Work looks at five couples who are at different stages in their relationships. Watching it all unfold, you immediately come to the conclusion that all five conversations are more real since each participant is locked in the present with their true thoughts and feelings. This is why the entire film rings true as an evocative and timely drama set in a restaurant in Toronto.

Before the film begins you already know that love is complex and Kalangis doesn't offer any quick fix solutions because there is nothing simple about love between two people. For this reason their conversations are a natural progression and this makes what may seem simple so profound.

The women come across as impatient and unimpressed with the dishonesty, deception and uncomfortable positions their men have put them in. All they want is completely the opposite. They see this as the foundation of any relationship, which the men fail to grasp completely.

The women as you will observe are not perfect, especially when you see both sexes come unhinged at the drop of a hasty remark or action without thinking.

Men like to boast about their conquests with the opposite sex and they are afraid to commit, want to wait longer before tying the knot, and are unsure of themselves when it comes to focussing on strengthening their biased opinions about love and women in general.

Since there is not any psychiatrist or sex therapist to guide us through these five couples and their conversations, Kalangis is content to let the film work by itself and it does so with amazing results. The couples whose relationships are on thin ice are exposed. Real true love becomes not just a Hollywood stereotype, but a concept where it may actually exist under the right circumstances.

The ensemble cast features Fab Filippo as Victor, Shauna MacDonald as Celia, Kathryn Zeana as Samantha, Ryan McVittie as Charlie, and Natalie Radford as Zoe.

Kalangis keeps everything in perspective with a lot of close-up shots to let us experience the veracity of each character. The expressions on their faces often speak volumes before they say anything.

It is clear from the beginning this could well pass for a documentary because it reveals our true nature as human beings who seek companionship or something more permanent. To see it come to fruition, we must first understand ourselves better before deciding to make the next important step.

Both men and women, in general, as evidenced here need to spend more time speaking out and discussing the issues important to any relationships, especially if you want love to work toward a more positive and real conclusion.

March 11, 2006

Copyright 2006 Rick Jackson