Something More

I went to see this movie simply because I enjoy Michael Goorjian and I knew he was starring in this movie. I dragged a couple of my friends to it too, they weren't expecting anything too great, but we were all pleasently surprised. Michael Goorjian was excellent. I was also pleased with the performance of an actor that I don't remember his name now (I was hoping to find it on the imdb but it isn't listed) but Canadians will remember him as the "If I wanted water, I would ask for water" guy from the beer commercials a few years back. This guy can really act! Anyway, it was a very good movie, and it was nice to see a canadian movie that is not simply about being stereotypical canadians! If this movie is playing in your city, take a chance and go see it, you won't be dissapointed.

Of the Relationship Labyrinth genre, this work, filmed and set in Regina, Saskatchewan, with Canadian players and crew is, just the same, rife with bromides nurtured in United States based pictures, as evidenced by its predictable scenes and dialogue relating incidents concerning a coterie of men in their late twenties whose lifestyles and interests revolve about young women and playing basketball. Sam (Michael Goorjian) and his teammates from a church league cage quintet have enormous troubles in their relationships with females, and when he as well as his best friend ( David Lovgren) seek the affections of Kelly, played by Chandra West, expected complexities are the result, especially since the two have widely disparate abilities when in company with the gentler sex. Although there is genuine chemistry between Goorjian and West, character development is lacking within the script, and most of the portrayed personalities are basically unpleasant as depicted, as are many of the scenes that are additionally marred by erratic direction and mean-spirited endeavours at humour that are simply not funny, and while Sam spasmodically cites philosophers Kierkegaard, Sartre, Camus and Descartes, they are quoted in an embarrassingly witless fashion. Continuity weaknesses often appear along with a shortfall of storyline logic, and at no time does the scenario reveal anything of the men's occupations, as apparently they only play basketball and chase women, but Lovgren takes the acting garland with his solid reading as a persistent libertine, and striking compositions from cinematographer Jon Kranhouse enable one to upon occasion ignore the discursive plot.

An excellent and hilarious look at the relationships between male friends and men and women. The script is full of humour with a decent amount of feeling as we follow a Church League men's basketball team through their relationships with each other and women. Definitely worth the price of admission.

Sometimes movies that deal with four or five friends is difficult to pull off because you concentrate on one perosn and the others lack and therefore the film lacks. And Something More falls into that mold, in the sense that it does concentrate on one person more than the others. But in this film that is okay because it is such a fresh film and it is very very entertaining. If this film had actors like Michael Rapaport, Kevin Bacon, Billy Baldwin, Cameron Diaz, Matt Dillon and then perhaps one star like say Tom Cruise, it would have been a major Hollywood production and it may have gotten major distribution. But as it stands, it is a low budget Canadian film that was funded in part by the Saskatchewan Provincial government, the government of Canada and various other Canadian film boards, so it will see limited release in Canada and probably never see an American movie screen. And that is too bad because Something More is really a bitter sweet, realistic, honest look at dating and the difficulties that men and women have relating to each other. And since this film is not going to be seen too much, if you do happen to come across this review, please do yourself and the makers of this film a favour, see it. You will laugh. It'll make you feel good. You will relate to what is on screen and when you leave the theater, you'll wish you could have seen more of the characters lives. It is that good of a film. It reminded me of the American film Beautiful Girls and Chandra West reminded me of the Uma Thurman character. Both are beautiful women but they are so talented and natural on screen that when they are not on screen you yearn for them. And believe me, I am not a typical Canadian reviewer that has orgasms over a Canadian film just because it is Canadian. I find most of the films that my native land puts out to be boring and slow and pretentious. But not this one. Something More really lives up to it's name and gives us something more than a typical film might.

There is so little publicity surrounding this film that I don't even know the principle names of the actors that are in it. All I know is Chandra West plays Kelly and she is wonderful in here. The guy that plays Simon is great as he is the one that pretty much carries the film. It is a story of how difficult Simon finds it to not only date but to relate to women. He is also extremely jealous of his taller and better looking best friend that seems to get all the girls. Late in the film the two share a great moment together when Jim is trying to apologize to Simon for going out with Kelly even though he knew that Simon had a thing for her. And then there is one of the best lines I have ever heard in any film when Jim says " Simon, I'm sorry that women look at me the same way we look at them." And there is nothing that Simon can say. He is verbally beaten. And as much as we like Simon in the film, we have to concede what Jim is saying is true. And it is little moments like that which make Something More so poignant and honest. And even though the film explores Simon from the inside and out, it does a very good job of the secondary characters as well. All of Simon and Jim's friends are having their difficulties with women. Harry has just gotten married to a women that has been cheating on him for years, one of his other friends just got thrown out of his house by his wife, and the other friend can't seem to find the right woman either. There is also a nice touch to do with a dog and how attached Simon has gotten to her. And of course Jim, the stud that he is, can never truly be happy by having his one night stands and then sneaking out the fire escape. All the characters are real and in some way I can relate to them and see my friends in almost all the guys on screen.

Something More has great acting, beautiful casting, comforting cinematography with what must be warm shots of sunsets in Saskatchewan in the autumn and exquisite French restaraunts in downtown Regina or Moose Jaw or perhaps Prince Albert at night. Rob King, the director has done a wonderful job of making us feel like we know the characters in here and he makes us feel like we are looking into our own neighbourhood when we watch the film. The only bad thing about this film, and I know this may be cliched, but here it is so true, is that I really didn't want it to end. I would have been happy seeing a three hour movie with these characters in it. I can honestly say that this is one of the best Canadian films I have seen and it is such a bittersweet movie. It made me feel happy and inspired when I left the film and my 45 minute walk home was a pleasant one. The images from the movie stuck with me. I really hope that many people, especially Canadians, go to see this, not because it is Canadian but because it is a wonderful film and it deserves an audience. It is too bad that we as Canadians can't financially support the film industry in our country the way they do in the States or even in Europe, because I believe that there are so many talented people in this country that have so much to offer the film world. Movies like this prove that. And I really hope to see more from Rob King, the writers of Something More and especially from Chandra West and the guy who played Simon. This is a terrific film. Go see it before it is swept away from your theater by the influx of more expensive American films. You will gain a very positive experience.

I Really liked this movie it was made where I live and it was fun to see the places I go everyday. I like the character Sam the most, he reminds me of someone I care about very much. Make sure when you watch this movie it's with someone you love, you will like it that much more.