The Reception

I thought THE RECEPTION had its moments, although I don't know if I was that fond of any of the characters (especially the guy with the purple hat - why on Earth did the director let him wear that?). Nonetheless, the upstate setting worked quite well for me. It appears the cast and crew got some unexpected snow which added nice topping to storyline. They also drank lots of wine and ate good food, and the film made me want to go upstate. Unfortunately, the French woman and the woman playing her daughter looked about ten years apart which damaged some credibility. Their relationship was off kilter and bizarre. With the two guys - it may have been a little bit better. Still, kudos to the writer/director. And, I'm not talking about the budget or what not. I'm talking about working with story and actors and making it watchable for 80-90 minutes. That's a great accomplishment.

John G. Young ('Parallel Sons') is a fine writer and director whose fertile mind is slowly offering beautiful little quiet films that bravely address many difficult issues. THE RECEPTION is a very low budget film (not evident in the product, but in actuality it is said to have been made for $5000. - meaning it is a labor of love on the part of the cast and crew), an Indie film garnering respect in the festivals and will likely gather a following now that it is available on DVD. Young does not write or direct exploitational African American films: Young writes about less flamboyant issues that make his work less ethnic and more universal.

Jeannette (Pamela Holden Stewart) is an aging divorced French 'writer' who has moved to upstate New York to a beautiful home to drink, lives with an HIV-positive African American painter Martin (Wayne Lamont Sims), a disillusioned gay man who has retreated from the artistic and emotional pains of Paris. The two care for each other, two isolated souls in mutual need of understanding. Into this snowy solace comes Jeannette's daughter Sierra (Margaret Burkwit), whom Jeannette has not seen in years having left her with her father at the time of an early divorce suffering the anger of the estrangement and distance, and Sarah's new husband Andrew (Darien Sills-Evans) a handsome African American law student from a wealthy family. Jeannette demands they stay until the weekend when Jeannette will throw a big reception party for the newly wedded couple. At a dinner party for a 'potential lover' for Jeannette all of the underpinnings of the drama become evident. Nothing is as it seems: every character has secrets and lies that gradually and painfully surface and change the story in surprising ways. Original intentions are thwarted by dishonesty and resolutions of broken lives bring the film to a quiet end.

Young addresses issues such as gay love, living with HIV, alcoholism, dysfunctional mother/daughter relationships, deception, greed, lust, desperation - all in a tight little story that makes its messages clear though not only well written dialogue but also the extended silences in the isolation of a place in the snowy woods. The cast acts with an unforced natural manner, allowing us to slowly discover the real complexities of the characters. The scenery is ideally captured by cinematographer Derek Wiesehahn. It is refreshing to see how touching a film can be made with so little money, eight days shooting time, and a devoted group of fine artists. Grady Harp

ditto to Ted. It was very slow for me also. Who was mother/daughter? Where is this going. an African American relationship movie? gay/straight it went off into too many different directions and never quite arrived, unless thats your genre of film. If you liked this movie there is an interesting untapped genre not looked at by most Americans and thats the interesting world of French Canadian cinema. Most movies are available with English subtitles.

Though in French, the genre is still very North American. Though lacking in flashy special effects of Hollywood, relationships are explored and they have good sometimes very entertaining story lines with the beauty of Canada for a stage. Search Luc Picard, Roy Dupuis, Sophie Lorain, Patrick Huard for samples. Perhaps that was the purpose of the film? A nice doorway to Canadian films.

Just saw this film at the San Francisco LGBT Film Festival. Writer and Director John G. Young shot this film in eight days with $5000, and yet it is vastly superior to most films costing, literally, 10,000 times as much. The storytelling, the dialogue, the acting, and the photography are all superb. Young elicits rich, natural, and sensitive performances from his four principal actors. His script reveals a deep understanding of the complexity of human relationships, needs, and pain without resorting to hackneyed conventions or contrivances. The characters are written so beautifully and distinctly, and are revealed so skillfully, that I do not even want to provide a basic outline of the plot. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

It is a great day to see a film made for love of art, not made as a product. This shows that if you have a story to tell and an excellent cast it doesn't matter what format you shoot on.

All the cast is great and the director/writer does himself proud. Pamela Holden Stewart will especially knock your socks off . If actors in films of this budget got academy awards there would be one coming at her. (Especially when, after the screening at Outfest in LA I found out she isn't French!)

This film could serve as textbook for aspiring film makers in the simplicity of its structure. The action is placed in one house, there is a minimum of characters and their interaction is personal and emotionally resonant. The redemptive theme is payed off at just the right moment to sustain tension. Nothing is wasted.

Even without considerations for the minuscule budget (reported to be an unbelievable 5g) this film is an emotional gem. It is a pleasure to see indie film which is truly independent yet entertaining and affecting.