Filmy2020

I have always been a fan of the Corner Gas series, and was quite sad when it went off the air. I was actually unaware that a movie was being made until a week before it debuted. Of course I bought tickets to the movie.

As a fan of the show, I'll admit that some of the episodes, while always entertaining, only really became funny to me once I watched the episode a second time.

Much like the show, the movie has no laugh track, but the jokes were very funny, consistent in their pacing, and a bit less subtle than the TV show. The whole theatre (which was completely sold out) was in stitches the entire film. All of the actors did a stand up job reprising their roles, and it felt like the same old crew even years after the series ended.

The plot line was good, and in true Corner Gas fashion, all of the wild tangents that each character went on tied together in the end. Also, as a special surprise, Lorne Cardinal was at the theatre and introduced the movie in person. Over all, a great time! Maybe we will be lucky enough for a second movie sometime in the future.

I quite like gritty film making, and from a cinematic perspective, this move doesn't disappoint. The cinematography was gritty, low key. The actors were made to look like real people, not Hollywood stars, and the soundtrack was appropriate and low key. The performances were well acted and believable (with the possible exception of Forest Whitaker).

But that's where the train of goodness stops, people.

The plot line is predictable and cliché at best, and in a way, almost self indulgent. It's as though the directors and producers thought "oh what an Oscar worthy screenplay. We really MUST have this film dripping with drama!" and it makes the film gratuitous and slow moving. I've had more suspense waiting for the washing machine to finish a load of laundry.

I also found the sets to feel out of place. The movie takes place around 2007ish. While I get that the setting is a small, poor industrial town, the old school telephones, small tube TV's and ancient vehicles seem like a miss. They make you aware that something with the backdrop just doesn't feel realistic.

Overall, the movie feels like it is trying too hard, and in doing so, loses the suspense, and takes away from the truly talented actors who try to carry this mess to the finish line. Definitely give it a pass.

There is not much good I can say about this film. It is by no means the worst film I have seen. There were parts of it that were captivating for a short while, but it was far from edge of your seat exciting. As for being a family movie, I felt it lacked an appropriate connection with the viewer to be the kind of film that tugs at your heart.

The script tends to wave back and forth from dull to cheesy, which makes it difficult to find many of the characters likable or real.

Admittedly, the horses in the film are beautiful, and horse enthusiasts may get some enjoyment purely from the animals.

The absolute worst part of this film was the cinematography. I don't generally have issues with Spielberg films in this regard, but War Horse really missed the boat here. Many of the back drops looked fake (whether or not they actually were, I'm not sure). The colour filters, terrible outdoor lighting and constant underexposure of the film, even in happier upbeat moments of the film was a constant annoyance and frequently kept me from being completely engrossed in the story, as it was always in my consciousness that I was watching a screen.

If you liked the original story, good for you. But I'm not on board with the film.