The Mortician

If there ever was a time for Method Man to credit himself by his real name: Clifford Smith I feel this was the one to do it.

Now don't get me wrong I think Method Man doing his thing is great (one of the better rappers turned actors for me) but with this one he truly did commit to do something different. And that's a big reason why I like this movie.

He plays a lone-wolf mortician, a bit of an "social reject" if you will who unwillingly becomes dragged into a messy situation involving the local gang-members.

The poster makes it look to me like more of a horror movie (which it's definitely not) and the synopsis is not really accurate (although I will try to update it so hopefully that will change).

What it is is more of a drama and a character study of the mortician with moments of suspense and even though it has some flaws regarding the script and Method Man's everchanging beard the good most definitely outweighs the bad for me.

The Mortician, written and directed by Gareth Maxwell Roberts is a beautifully crafted example of emotionally powerful cinema. The film stars Method Man as a reclusive mortician. Who's life becomes turned upside down after a chain of events starting with receiving a new porter in the form of an ex-convict named Noah played by E.J. Bonilla. Soon after the body of a young woman with a tattoo of Venus arrives at the morgue and a young boy played by Cruz Santiago starts to repeatedly try to gain access to the building. Meanwhile a local gang leader played by Dash Mihok begins hassling the mortician each day asking if he has seen the young boy around setting the pieces into place to send the soft spoken mortician on a life changing journey that will ultimately force him to face a inner demon that has haunted him since childhood, forcing him out of his defensive shell created out of pain and loneliness.

The first twenty minutes of this film are spent almost solely on character development of the mortician; we are given small glimpses into his day-to-day routines and personality. Quickly you forget its even Method Man on screen and only see the character himself due to his immensely believable performance. A lot of this development is done without dialog due to the reclusive nature of Method Man's character and instead portrayed through very visually descriptive scenes, often supported by excellent use of music that is relevant to the story, as well as ambient sounds to perfectly create the mood of each scene.

After getting to know the mortician, the movie creeps into the main plot as each of the previously mentioned events start to connect in a very fluent fashion. Watching the mortician grow as the movie progresses from an almost emotionless robot into a big hearted kind human being is nothing shy of breath taking. This film really shines when it comes to invoking a response in the viewer, I found myself continuously becoming genuinely moved by the story that was unfolding in front of me.

The writing is unbelievable in terms of high quality, the relationships between each of the main characters come together so perfectly, and authentic feeling that it is nearly impossible to not feel for their situation. This is especially true when it comes to the relationship between the mortician and Noah, at first, he can only see Noah as a criminal, and in return, Noah only sees the mortician as another person who does not care or understand who he really is or about his situation. The age-old message of never judge a book by its cover is one of many messages one could walk away with after viewing the movie. Each of the plot twists is pulled off flawlessly and the use of subtle hints through out the films build up form the perfect set up for the ending causing me to walk away completely rocked by the power of the films message.

I briefly mentioned the use of music relevant to the story earlier, this is a aspect that continues through out the film and ends up creating one of the best movie soundtracks I have ever had the pleasure of experiencing. This is one of those rare movies where the music does not feel like its just there for the sake of being there but instead honestly ads to the overall telling of the story.

While the movie does feature a fair amount of imagery that some may find disturbing it falls more into the category of a gritty drama over any of the other genres it splashes over into. I think many horror fans will also be able to appreciate the macabre and somber tone the film takes on, a very interesting way to tell a story of redemption that is both unique and engaging. - The Liberal Dead

Although it was a bit chunky, you knew the story line was waiting around the corner, and it was. I thought the actors were great although the capture of the young boy was maybe too mushy for real life. The music was a great addition since it set the mood at each segment. Since I hadn't seen Method Man or the other actors before...I was pleasantly surprised.

A very entertaining thriller with an interesting plot, great performances by the entire cast but it's Method Man that stands out with a very subtle and understated performance. Definitely give this movie a chance. It is well worth your time.

First, please forgive me for sounding rather bitter about this movie, however there are some disclosures I must first make about my relationship to the film and its subject mater. I have previously worked as a mortician, having multiple professional qualifications in the field of funeral service, restorative art, and embalming. In the course of my work as a funeral director, embalmer, and mortician, I can say that the "Mortician" character this movie was not a member of any of the aforementioned professions. This would be no different than titling a movie "The Banker" when, in fact, it is about an attorney. Perhaps it would be more appropriate to title the movie,"The Autopsy Technician", "The Morgue Attendant" or something else. The only thing that a mortician and the above mentioned professions have in common is the fact that we work with dead bodies...Very little else. I can also mention that a city morgue in any sizable metropolitan area would be a much larger operation with other skilled technicians and professions, including most importantly, a forensic pathologist to actually perform the autopsy. Everything involving the treatment of human remains, from the removal from the scene of death to the forensic processing is grossly inaccurate, and considering the tone of the movie, I find it quite a disappointment.

The acting is respectable, commendable at times. The over-all production quality is quite fine, and story is interesting, but I would expect a considerably higher level of research to have been done before the script was produced.