Weirdsville

Infobox Film
name = Weirdsville


image_size = 250px
caption = Theatrical release poster
director = Allan Moyle
producer = Michael Baker
Hartley Gorenstein
Morris Ruskin
Jennifer L. Stivala
Nicholas D. Tabarrok
Perry Zimel
writer = Willem Wennekers
narrator =
starring = Scott Speedman
Wes Bentley
Taryn Manning
music = John Rowley
cinematography = Adam Swica
editing = Michael Doherty
Brigitte Rabazo
distributor = Magnolia Pictures
THINKFilm
Equinoxe Films
Shoreline Entertainment
released =
runtime = 90 minutes
country = USA
CAN
language = English
budget =
gross =
preceded_by =
followed_by =
website = http://www.weirdsville-the-movie.com/
amg_id = 1:349930
imdb_id = 0758798

"Weirdsville" is a black comedy directed by Allan Moyle and written by Willem Wennekers. The film premiered January 19, 2007 at the 2007 Slamdance Film Festival.http://www.slamdance.com/2007/festival/film_detail.asp?film_id=1000 Retrieved 2007-09-13] The film has also been shown at the Edinburgh International Film Festival, the Toronto International Film Festival, and the Raindance Film Festival.http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0758798/releaseinfo Retrieved 2007-09-13] The film opened in limited release in the United States on October 5, 2007 in 1 theater in Austin, Texas, and expanded to 2 more theaters (in Atlanta and Portland) two weeks later. [http://www.magpictures.com/dates.aspx?id=39011e04-cfd3-4fa2-931b-7aeca565cce7 Retrieved 2007-09-13] The film was released on November 16, 2007 in the United Kingdom.

The film takes place in Northern Ontario and was filmed in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, and Brantford Ontario, Canada.http://wc04.allmovie.com/cg/avg.dll?p=avg&sql=1:349930~T0 Retrieved 2007-09-13] cite web|url=http://www.imdb.com/List?endings=on&&locations=Hamilton,+Ontario,+Canada |title=Internet Movie Database - List of Films shot in Hamilton, Ontario|accessdate=2008-01-29] Filming completed April 8, 2006. [http://www.weirdsville-the-movie.com/main/vids/scottandwes.flv Retrieved 2007-09-13]

Cast

*Joey Beck as Sheldon
*Wes Bentley as Royce
*Raoul Bhaneja as Omar
*Greg Bryk as Abel
*Randy Butcher as Hockey Goalie
*Maggie Castle as Treena
*Joe Dinicol as Jeremy Taylor
*Matt Frewer as Jason Taylor
*Derek Gilroy as Squinty
*Taryn Manning as Matilda
*James McQuade as Garry
*Mark Parr as Anthony
*Jordan Prentice as Martin
*Dax Ravina as Seamus
*Allan Redford as Theo
*Scott Speedman as Dexter
*Shayne Wyler as Todd

Plot

Dexter (Scott Speedman) and Royce (Wes Bentley) are two slackers living in Northern Ontario. One night it appears their friend Matilda (Taryn Manning) has overdosed on drugs, which they were supposed to sell for a local drug dealer named Omar (Raoul Bhaneja), so they decide to bury her body in the boiler room of a drive-in theater that's closed for the winter. They interrupt a Satanic cult performing a ritual sacrifice and have to run away from the cult and the drug dealer that are both after them.

Reception

Joe Leydon of Variety said the following: "Deconstructionists will delight in divining the influences that inform "Weirdsville," a cleverly constructed, capably crafted and often uproarious shaggy-dog black comedy that riffs on everything from "Trainspotting" and Quentin Tarantino to "Race With the Devil" and Elmore Leonard. Nimbly directed by Allan Moyle, this Canadian-produced potential sleeper could command an even larger cult following than the helmer's enduringly popular "Pump Up the Volume." Savvy marketing and a shrewd release strategymight help it make at least a minor splash with mainstream auds as well.". [cite web|url=http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117932470.html?categoryid=1270&cs=1&query=Weirdsville|title=Variety| Weirdsville |accessdate=2007-10-01 |author=Joe Leydon|date=2007-01-19 |publisher=vareity.com] "

Stephen Farber of The Hollywood Reporter wrote "Director Allan Moyle has described "Weirdsville" as a Canadian "Trainspotting", which is a bit of wishful thinking", saying "it lacks the inventiveness and biting edge of Danny Boyle's landmark movie" and while the film "has some quirky pleasures, it seems unlikely to achieve either major cult status or boxoffice success." Farber said that some of the incidents in the script "are bizarrely funny" but " [Allan Moyle] fails to provide the energy necessary to keep us involved." Farber described the film as "frenetic and convoluted rather than pleasingly impudent." Speaking of the cast, Farber said "the cast is generally better than the material", "Speedman and Bentley...demonstrate more charm incarnating these grungy characters than they have sometimes shown in blander heroic parts", and also said "Manning...is wasted here." Farber said "plotting is far too haphazard to hold the audience's attention" and wrote "some of it is funny-weird, but too much is pointlessly weird." [cite web|url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/film/reviews/article_display.jsp?&rid=9763 |title=Weirdsville |accessdate=2007-09-13 |author=Stephen Farber |date=2007-09-10 |publisher=The Hollywood Reporter]

Rich Cline gave the film 4 out of 5 stars and said "this absurd crime odyssey has so much gonzo enthusiasm that it's impossible not to enjoy watching these crazed characters bounce off of each other" and said "the actors are hilariously charming, delivering scruffy, lively performances as a bunch of knuckleheads trying desperately to get out of a mess that gets more and more tangled." Cline also said "as it progresses, the plot gets a bit strained, and perhaps too farcical. But we stick with it because of the amiable cast". [cite web|url=http://www.shadowsonthewall.co.uk/07/weirdsvi.htm |title=Shadows on the Wall | Weirdsville |accessdate=2007-09-13 |author=Rich Cline |date=2007-06-13 |publisher=shadowsonthewall.co.uk]

External links

* [http://www.weirdsville-the-movie.com/ Official site]
*imdb title|id=0758798|title=Weirdsville
*rotten-tomatoes|id=weirdsville|title=Weirdsville
*mojo title|id=weirdsville|title=Weirdsville
*amg movie|id=1:349930|title=Weirdsville
* [http://www.slamdance.com/2007/festival/film_detail.asp?film_id=1000 "Weirdsville"] at slamdance.com
* [http://www.magpictures.com/films/weirdsville/weirdsvillepressnotesfinal.doc "Weirdsville" Production Notes] (DOC) at magpictures.com