Ill Fated

This unmistakably Canadian film is a fantastic first feature effort by Mark A. Lewis. I can't wait to see what he does next. The film features consistently breathtaking framing with a lot of "big sky" that reminds me of Howard Hawks. There is a lot of attention paid to how the audience will relate to the characters through the lens.

The writing is very strong. I recently worked with John Callander on my first short film and he's equally impressive as both actor and writer.

Paul Campbell's performance as Jimmy is terrific. The entire team behind Ill Fated is worth watching closely. I have a feeling that most of them are only at the beginnings of what will be incredible careers.

Nearly turned it off a few times but I kept going, I should get a medal. So badly put together and developed, there should be a category for something as bad as this.

Let's see, there's (I think) drama, there's promiscuity with no one ever, ever practicing safe sex, there's incest, there's deaths of inconvenient characters, there's a demented school bus driver, there's the Keystone Cops, and best of all there's a gun fight at the OK Corral - right at the very end.

I had a hard time keeping track of the characters and who fathered who. There's a crackpot old grandfather thrown in for good measure. And on. And they probably got hefty Canadian government grants to make this. My brain is bleeding. Sometimes us Canucks embarrass ourselves SO publicly. Sorry, world.

4 out of 10 for the poor bewildered performance of Paul Campbell. Did anyone ever, ever struggle to rise above his material so desperately? All the points are for you, buddy.

I think "scott_lewis" (other viewer) should take another look at the ending. Not sure what they are referring to... and it wasn't as though the ending was ambiguous. The majority of the characters run off screen, chasing Earl down the hill in what is a terrific finale. All the characters except for Jimmy, Barb and Jennifer... when something horrific happens - but not in the way that the above writer thinks. I won't ruin it because it is a bit of a surprise... although in retrospect, inevitable. It's a hard ending, but necessary. And it really does tie everything together... particularly thematically. One of the main characters runs from the sins of his past (something I think most people can relate to, at least to a certain extent), however, this character experiences the consequences of his actions to an extreme... but this is storytelling... conveying poignant messages but in an exaggerated, dramatic, and, ultimately, entertaining way. By the way, I am a friend of someone who was involved in this film... but truly believe the above to be true.

Immediately reminiscent of Coen brother's "Fargo". Humorous and entertaining in a way that doesn't take the audience to be halfwits. John Parker's role as Grampy was inspired and his "meltdown" was hilarious. My personal favourite character was the sheriff. His constant frustration with the townspeople and his volunteers made for constant laughs. Finally a film that Canadians can be proud to call their own. Mark Lewis has set himself a very high standard. I hope he can continue to bring us great films up to par with his first.

This movie was cleverly written, every scene has something to say either with words, background or props. The characters were hilarious. The acting was great. I think people that watch this movie and "get it", are more intelligent than those that didn't get it, or they despise Tragic Comedy. For those who found the movie confusing or bad...you weren't paying enough attention, give it another shot. The DOP was brilliant, which makes for some awe-inspiring shots (shot outside Kamploops, BC during their big fire a few years ago). I am proud to say this is a great Canadian movie and look forward to seeing more from Mark Lewis and John Callander. I would be honoured to be a part of any of their upcoming projects in the future. If you're lucky enough to rent a copy of Illfated, which is never in, laugh and enjoy.