2008 Program guide - Victoria Film Festival

HANK & MIKE
DIRECTOR: MATTHIEW KLINCK
ONTARIO
2007 82 MINUTES DIGIBETA
PRODUCERS: THOMAS MICHAEL, NICHOLAS D. TABARROK, PIERRE EVEN
WRITERS: PAOLO MANCINI, THOMAS MICHAEL
Hank and Mike are best friends – and bunnies. Not just any bunnies,
Easter bunnies! They’re a kind of yin-and-yang, Felix-and-Oscar duo.
If Felix-and-Oscar made cameos on Jerry Springer, that is.
Sure, they hand deliver baskets of Easter eggs to unsuspecting families
and they have long standing positions at Pan Enterprises, a
multi-national corporation that owns all holidays. But they’ve become
a little too comfortable in their bachelor lifestyles, a quality not
desirable in this job or even at home. So when there’s a corporate
need to increase profi ts and “think outside the box”, the fi rm’s board
of directors calls in Mr. Hubriss to trim the fat and get the company’s
profi ts back in order. And before they know what’s hit ‘em, Hank and
Mike are just former “tier 2 holiday” employees going where no Easter
Bunny has gone before: the Welfare Offi ce.
Hank and Mike is a refreshing change in the Canadian fi lmscape. Never
afraid to offend, it’s a comedy that can be alternately raunchy and
sweet without ever needing to be stupid in between. Its often caustic
dialogue is never an excuse to skimp out on some witty scenarios,
great set designs, and moments of cinematic purity.
Screened with
A LETTER TO COLLEEN
Andy London, Carolyn London USA 9 minutes
Andy London has been haunted by the events of his 18th birthday for
years. In this short animated fi lm set in the early 90’s, he writes a letter
to Colleen in an attempt to put his demons to rest.
AMAL
DIRECTOR: RICHIE MEHTA
ONTARIO
2007 101 MINUTES 35MM
PRODUCERS: DAVID MILLER, STEVEN BRAY
WRITERS: SHAUN MEHTA, RICHIE MEHTA
Named in the Top Ten Canadian Films for 2007
In chaotic New Delhi, an aged and irascible man cheats everyone he
meets. Amal, Rupinder Nagra an auto-rickshaw wallah, generously
allows him to dodge his fare. When a beautiful client has her bag
stolen from Amal’s auto-rickshaw, Amal chases after the young
thief, but the little girl runs into traffi c and is struck by a car. Amal
takes her to the hospital and assumes responsibility for her care – an
expense he cannot afford.
Meanwhile, the irritable old cheat has died, and his funeral reveals
he was in fact the patriarch of a wealthy family. Disillusioned with his
grasping children, he has willed his fortune to Amal. Now, within thirty
days, the estate’s executor must fi nd one anonymous man in this city
of fourteen million. Familial machinations descend to vicious levels as
the search goes on.
A delightful rags-to-riches-to-rags story: this is a very grown up and
sophisticated fi rst fi lm. Amal deftly manages to play around with ideas
about fate and free will (plus class and status), without ever leaving
the characters fl oating in inertia. Now that’s a tricky balance! It’s a
rich, fully populated story – full of affectionately drawn and cleverly
portrayed characters. Amal has always known something that the rich
man only just learned; we are defi ned as much by what we sacrifi ce as
we are by what we possess.
Saturday • February 2 • Capitol 6 - 1 • 2:30 PM
Saturday • February 9 • Capitol 6 - 6 • 6:45 PM
Friday • February 8 • Odeon • 7:00 PM Sunday • February 10 • Capitol 6 - 6 • 9:00 PM
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CANADIAN WAVE