Lost and deliriously screwed up

By Angela Baldassarre

While not Canadian born, Lea Pool is one of our countrys most treasured filmmakers. Based in Montreal, Pool has represented Canada at film festivals world-wide, not only winning praise for her emotionally rich tales and gorgeous cinematography, but also collecting many awards along the way. All her films deploy incredible range and depth; feature strongly written and powerfully delivered dialogue, as well as striking control of mood and atmosphere to reflect growing emotional tension.
Following the success of 1999s Emporte-moi, which won the Toronto Film Critics Associations award for Best Canadian Film, as well as prizes at Giffoni in Turin, Berlin, New York, Valladollid, Namur, Sarajevo and Chicago, Pool has decided to try her hand at the English language with Lost & Delirious.
"Well, I really didnt decide to make a movie in English," clarifies Pool. "It just happened. Producer Lorraine Richard had this project and called me and said she had a script that she wanted me to read. I read it, and so I decided to do it. That was perfect for me because I was trying to find another subject and I knew it would be very difficult for me to write a new script right away, because I had just finished this very personal film, Emporte-moi. And it was a challenge that was fine for me. Trying to work in another language, trying to work on a script that wasnt mine, that was something I wanted to try. I didnt decide it. Of course now that Ive done the film, and knowing that I could do a film in English, Im being sent more scripts and producers are calling me. So it has changed my career. But I still want to do films in French."
Based on Susan Swans novel The Wives of Bath, Lost & Delirious is a hauntingly evoking tale of three adolescent girls first loves, discovery of sexual passion, and search for identity. Mouse Bradford (The Sixth Senses Misha Barton) arrives at Perkins Girls College still grieving from her mothers death several years earlier. There shes placed in a room with Paula (Coyote Uglys Piper Perabo) and Tori (Stardoms Jessica Pare). While this Gothic tale of loves blooming, its innocent ecstasy, and ultimate obsessions is a tour de force for the viewer, its not a piece of cake for Mouse. There shes forced to witness the burgeoning love affair between her roommates, the ostracization of troubled Paula by the rest of the schools students; and ultimately the threat of boys who disrupt the status quo.
"I was fascinated by the story of these three girls and how each of these girls were living this period of their lives," explains Pool. "They were impassioned, and confused and certain things in life were frightening them a lot. I was very interested in the deception, and in all these feelings that one just cant control. I loved the book, and Judith Thompson is a great scriptwriter. I was also grateful to work with three such talented young actresses. It was a wonderful experience to walk these three girls through their very powerful roles. When I read the book, I had a very clear view on how to make it, and the images that I wanted to portray on the screen. And the girls helped me through it perfectly."
As a woman, one cant deny the appeal of making a movie about adolescent sexual discovery. And Pool has made a career of extracting clues from her own life: the mad mother in Ann Trister, the difficult childhood and the tension in her half-Jewish, half-Catholic upbringing as well as the shadow of the Holocaust in Emporte-moi and, now, sexual ambiguity,
"Although sexual ambiguity wasnt really an issue for me when I was in school," confesses Pool, "I understood Paulas retreat into Shakespeare when things got dark. I remember that when I was about her age, I would immerse myself in some literature to try and discover something about myself, to find a place where there is some sort of echo of what Im going through. So this was interesting to me, and I believe this attitude is universal in all teenage girls, no matter what year it is."
Pool came to Canada almost by fluke. At the age of 25, the Swiss native wanted to follow her then boyfriend who had applied for a teaching job at a Canadian university. "I was a teacher myself, so I applied for a student visa in order to travel with him," remembers Pool. "But at the last minute he was denied the visa, and I wasnt. So I came anyway with the intention of going back a year later. I never did."
And that was our gain. In 1979 Pool wrote, directed and produced Strass Café, a short film that won awards at every festival it played. Five years later her first feature film, La femme de lhôtel, won awards in Montreal, Toronto, Chicago, and actress Louise Marleau was given a Best Actress Genie Award. Pools other films A corps perdu, La demoiselle sauvage, and Mouvement du désir continued the awards streak to culminate in her best film to date, Emporte-moi.
Yet despite her status as one of the countrys most recognizable cinematic figures, Pool has never been nominated for a Best Director Genie, nor have any of her films ever been nominated for a Best Picture Genie. Following the Academys snub of her masterwork Emporte-moi, this caused nasty editorials from critics around the world.
"Theyve never recognized me for anything," says an unfazed Pool. "All my films were nominated, at least five nominations for all of my films, but I never got best director, writing or film. But Im used to it." But I assure the soft-spoken Pool that we film lovers are not.
So the question now begs to be asked: Will she work in English again, or was the experience too different?
"It was a little different, but not horribly so," she admits. "Its more a matter of expression. It was not so different, but it was just another experience. It was looking at the world with another view."
A view certainly worth seeing.

Lost & Delirious is currently playing in cinemas.

Weakling Apes

by Angela Baldassarre

Planet of the Apes (2.5 out of 4)
Starring Mark Wahlberg and Tim Roth. Directed by Tim Burton.

I was so hoping that Planet of the Apes would be the movie of the summer, a Tim Burton-style visual spectacular that would blow my jaded little critical mind away. Unfortunately all I got was a teeny fizzle. Even though I was mesmerized for about a minute, the plots implausibilities even in sci-fi terms turned the movie into a tedious exercise.
Captain Leo Davidson (Mark Wahlberg) is a U.S. air pilot on a space station sometime in the future. After one of his chimps goes missing somewhere in space, he goes after him in one of his ships probes. After being caught up in an electrical storm, he stumbles on a strange planet where primates are the leaders and humans are the very abused pets/slaves. Leading the pack is a very sadistic Thade (played convincingly by Tim Roth) who is intent on getting rid of all humans. But stopping him is the senators daughter, Ari (Helena Bonham Carter). Now a prisoner, Leo takes advantage of Aris kindness to escape and try to establish contact with his ship.
The 1968 original Planet of the Apes was an amazing political-sociological allegory, cast in the mould of futuristic science-fiction, featuring an intriguing blend of chilling satire, a sometimes ludicrous juxtaposition of human and ape mores, as well as optimism and pessimism. The 2001 version pretty much only has some good make-up going for it. Certainly the morality issue is important, but theres nothing mind-shatteringly enlightening about what is presented here. Additionally, the plot makes so little sense, particularly the shock-inducing ending, that it becomes laughable. Its pretty obvious it was put there to spawn sequels.
In the past Burtons formula has usually been, if nothing else, consistent: mind-blowing first hour with outstanding visual atmospherics followed by a weak second half. In the case of Planet of the Apes, its weak all the way through.


Americas Sweethearts (2.5 out of 4)
Starring John Cusack and Julia Roberts. Directed by Joe Roth.

Its already being dubbed this summers My Best Friends Wedding, and while Americas Sweethearts isnt as intelligent as the Diaz vehicle, its enjoyable nevertheless, despite the maudlin and messy ending.
Gwen Harrison (Catherine Zeta-Jones) and Eddie Thomas (John Cusack) have been the screen darlings of Hollywood for years, appearing in blockbuster movies together. But since Gwen shacked up with Spaniard Hector (Hank Azaria) and left Eddie, both their careers have flopped. Now publicist Lee Phillips (Billy Crystal) is hired by producer Dave Kingman (Stanley Tucci) to promote the couples last film together. The films director, Hal (a hilarious Christopher Walken) will only screen the movie at a media junket, so now its up to Lee to get Gwen and Eddie in the same room together. Helping him out is Gwens frustrated assistant/sister Kiki (Julia Roberts). If youve seen the trailers, youll guess the rest.
Thanks to a script largely written by Crystal, and terrific comedic performances by Cusack, Walken, Azaria and Alan Arkin (as Eddies therapist), Americas Sweethearts will have you smiling, if not laughing, most of the time. Unfortunately the movies final reel just falls apart in its nonsense and its semi-attempts at farce.
A comedy of manners in the style of old Hollywood, Americas Sweethearts falls victim to too many studio hands, becoming exactly what the movie intended to make fun of. After all the director, Joe Roth, is a veteran studio producer himself.


Hedwig and the Angry Inch (3 out of 4)
Starring John Cameron Mitchell and Michael Pitt. Directed John Cameron Mitchell.

If youve seen the play, youll love the movie. If you havent seen the play, and like rock music, youll still love the movie. While obviously conceived for the stage, Hedwig and the Angry Inch works beautifully on screen thanks to inventive flashbacks and the use of appealing animated sequences.
Written, created, directed and starring John Cameron Mitchell, the film focuses on Eastern European Hedwig (Mitchell) and her band The Angry Inch who play small restaurants throughout the U.S., shadowing the big-stadia performances of superstar Tommy Gnosis (Michael Pitt). Through music and monologues, Hedwig recounts her life as young boy growing up in East Berlin who is seduced by an U.S. army man (Maurice Dean Wint). In order to leave Berlin as a wife, Hedwig gets a botched-up sex-change operation& thus the name of her band. Once in the U.S., and divorced, Hedwig must fend for herself and falls in love with and mentors young Tommy. But now Tommy is famous (supposedly on songs written by Hedwig) and the Inch are determined to tell their story.
Despite its unusual premise, Hedwig and the Angry Inch is highly involving and brutally honest. Mitchells script has won praise in theatres world-wide (David Bowie was an original producer) for its sincerity and bitterless vision of an inhospitable world. Indeed, the story is ultimately full of hope, and this makes the journey through Hedwigs life is certainly worth taking.


George Washington (3.5 out of 4)
Starring Donald Holden and Candace Evanofski. Directed by David Gordon Green.

Occasionally a movie crosses my path that reminds me why I love cinema so much. In the past, indies such as One False Move, Laws of Gravity and The Blair Witch Project reinvented the medium, thrusting us critics into a frenzy of much-needed excitement. This year its the turn of David Gordon Greens exceptional George Washington.
Featuring non-actors, George Washington is an emotionally charged study about a group of young kids in a rural North Carolina town who try to survive in their not-so-perfect environment. Nasia (Candace Evanofski) narrates the story of her friend George (Donald Holden), a quiet 13-year-old boy forced to wear a helmet because of a potentially fatal skull condition. He loves animals, but the uncle with whom he lives, kills them so hes forced to hide his pets. His friends are equally enlightened within, but their sensitive hearts are put to the test when, during an innocent game, one of them is killed. Now they must all harbour a terrible secret and learn to live with a lie.
Watching George Washington is like reading a Faulkner novel where situations are unhurried, where conversations are sincere and matter-of-fact, and where the timing is definitely distinctive. Theres little question that Green has a style all his own, that of trusting his young subjects, not rushing their performances, and never omitting even the tiniest of details. And theres that wonderful leisurely pace; I cant remember the last time a "slow" film moved me so.
Theres a beautiful light that emanates from within these children, and Green captures it magically in the pic. George Washington Nasia calls her friend this because she believes he will do great things is one of this years best movies because it captures your heart with a quiet force.

A wonderful perspective

This week the Toronto International Film Festival announced its Perspective Canada programme, and the line-up is a veritable smorgasbord of themes and technology.
Featuring 12 world premieres and six debuts as well as 27 shorts, Perspective Canada will reflect the marvellous cultural and creative make-up of this great country of ours.
Opening the series is Andre Turpins (Zigrail) Un Crabe dans la Tete, about a young man who goes to Montreal for a short visit, only to get caught up in a series of complicated relationships.
Shown to exceptional acclaim at the Cannes Film Festival is the first Inuit feature ever made (so they say), Atanarjuat: The Fast Runner. The movie, which makes its North American premiere as a Special Presentation, is based on an ancient legend about two Igloolik brothers who must contend with jealousies and evil spirits. Not to be missed.
Returning to the festival is Carl Bessai (Johnny) with Lola, about a frustrated woman (Sabrina Grdevich) who takes on the identity of her doppelganger. Also back is Sturla Gunnarsson (Such a Long Journey), this time a with a comedy titled Rare Birds, about a man who falsely announces the presence of a rare bird to attract business to his failing restaurant. The movie stars William Hurt and Molly Parker.
That other Canuck favourite, Peter Lynch (The Herd), is present at the fest with the offbeat Cyberman, about a university professor who believes hes a& robot. And if you loved her delightful Kissed, you wont want to miss Lynne Stopkewichs documentary Lilith on Top, about the final tour of the all-female Lilith Fair.
Veteran Canadian filmmaker Anne Wheeler is also here with Suddenly Naked, about a respected female author who finds the man of her dreams& problem is, hes half her age.
Ten of Canadas top short-film directors will be introducing their first features at the festivals. Among them is Anais Granofsky with On Their Knees, about two sisters who transport their grandmothers body to their hometown; Catherine Martins Mariages, about the sexual awakening of a woman in Victorian-era Quebec; David Weavers Century Hotel, featuring the secrets of an old hotel; and Rick Caines dissection of Ottawas hated Frank magazine.
Searching for love in all the wrong places is at the heart of Helen Lees The Art of Woo; and forbidden sexual desires is what drives four young people in Sean Garritys Inertia.
Among the serious-themed pics is Asghar Massombagis Khaled, about an inner-city boy who tries to hide his mothers death from authorities; Laurie Maria Baranyays Walk Backwards, about a Vancouver woman coming to terms with her past; Bernard Emonds La Femme Quit Boit, about an old woman who dissects her troubled life; and William Phillips Treed Murray, about a professional executive at the mercy of young thugs.
The final features are Denis Chouinards Lange de Goudron, about an Algerian family trying to fit into life in Canada; and Paul Cowans Westray, which analyzes the 1992 coal mine disaster in Nova Scotia that took the lives of 26 men.
The opening night gala, on September 6, is Bruce Sweeneys Last Wedding, about a waterproofing specialist (Benjamin Ratner) who falls in love with a country singer (Frida Betrani) with dreams of grandeur.
The Toronto International Film Festival takes place September 6 to 15. For details on tickets, please call 416-968-FILM.

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On July 28, Pleasure Dome presents Open Screening Under the Stars! If youre an aspiring filmmaker, just head out to Trinity Bellwoods Park with your shred of celluloid or tape (no longer than 10 minutes), and be prepared for an audience. Its on a first-come first-served basis. All formats accepted. Participants must arrive by 9pm; screenings begin at 9:30pm. Call 416-656-5577 for details.

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If youd like to hang around with movie stars, heres your chance. The Toronto International Film Festival is looking for volunteers to help on a variety of duties from September 6 to 15. You must be 18 years of age or older. Those interested should call 416-967-7371, #2208, or e-mail volunteers@torfilmfest.ca.

Angela Baldassarre can be seen live on www.virtuecast.com