Roc-Rz
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Sample: Title; rating (out of 4); principal setting; year of release; international co-producer (if any); cast; description; scriptwriter; director; content warning; running time.
"Rock and Roll", John Gray's musical was turned into a CBC special by its author under the title The King of Friday Nights
ROCK & RULE
* 1/2 setting: USA.
(1983) voices of Paul Le Mat, Susan Roman, Don Francks,
Dan Hennessy, Sam Langevin, Catherine O'Hara.....In a post W.W. III
future an aging, malevolent pop star (Francks) decides to release a demon
into his reality but needs an aspiring singer (Roman) in order to breach
the dimensional barrier. Adult animated SF musical has good vocal performances
and some great, even amazing, animation (better than Heavy
Metal, the movie that probably inspired it) though it's considerably
less raunchy (which, depending on your point of view, might be a minus).
But like so much "adult" animation, it's thin on plot and true characterization
(despite stabs at the latter) and suffers from an awkward mix of mature
subject matter and juvenile delivery. If only all this effort could have
been expended on a truly grown-up animated movie. Largely unmemorable soundtrack
performed by American pop stars Debbie Harry, Lou Reed and others -- these
folks are fine on the radio, but for a musical you need singers (and songs)
with more oomph. sc: Peter Saunder, John Halfpenny with additional dialogue
credited to five other writers (story Patrick Laubert, Saunder). dir: Clive
A. Smith. - violence, brief nudity.- 85 ...78 min.
THE ROCKET see Maurice Richard
ROCKET BOY *
* 1/2
(1984) Dave Thomas, Ron James, Robert Denner, Gillie
Fenwick, Kathleen Laskey, James Hong, John Candy, Mark Parr.....Super
hero Rocket Boy (Thomas) must stop an alien (Denner) from stealing everyone's
hair and destroying the earth. Low-budget (and low-brow) made-for-TV SF/super
hero spoof looks like an extended sitcom (with a laugh track, yet!) but
it's pretty inoffensive and does manage some chuckles. Stick with it. Denner
and Candy (in a bit part) come off best. sc: Dave Thomas, Tom Gammill,
Max Press. dir: John Blanchard.
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(2013-2017) * * * ... * * 1/2 (/U.K./U.S.)
Thandie Newton ("Grace Travis"), with Sarah Jeffery/Sarah Jeffrey ("Evie Travis"), and Kavan Smith, Martin Donovan; (1st season): Marton Csokas ("Jimmy Laszlo"), Ian Tracey ("Lucas Mitchell"), Joshua Sasse ("Alec Lazlo"), Jarod Joseph ("Nicholas Flemming"), Ian Hart ("Buddy Wilson"), Leah Gibson ("Cathy Laszlo"), Claudia Ferri ("Lt. Hernandez"), Matthew Beard ("Max Laszlo"), others; (2nd season) Cole Hauser ("Ethan Kelly"), Andrea Roth ("Marlene"), Clare Higgins ("Vivian"), Alec Newman ("Ray"), Brendan Fletcher ("Spud"), Rupert Evans ("Elliott"), Aleksa Palladino ("Sarah"), others.....Dark crime-drama about an American undercover cop (British actress Newton). It's a bit hard to summarize because, perhaps taking its nod from the 1980s American undercover cop series, "Wiseguy," each season is almost a mini-series, involving a different plot and supporting cast, with only Newton and Jeffrey (as her embittered teenage daughter) mainstays. Though other characters reoccur, such as Kavan as her husband -- a regular in the first season, but only an occasional player in the second season (now as her ex) -- or Donovan as a corrupt police official. And even Newton (and Jeffrey) were written out partway through the third season -- with Hauser brought back from the second season as the new lead (and though one can wonder about the optics/politics of replacing their black female lead with a white man, equally it may simply be a case of them scrambling to pull something together because Newton's departure was precipitated, I believe, by her pregnancy). Anyway, as such, each season maybe warrants its own description/review.
SEASON ONE: An emotionally troubled undercover cop (Newton) goes back on the job -- without her bosses' authorization (hence why she's gone "rogue") -- when she learns some recent mob hits may be connected to the unsolved murder of her young son. Csokas plays the mob boss who discovers her dual identity in the first episode, resulting in a covert alliance against their mutual (unknown) enemy -- and a sexual attraction. Tracey plays "Grace"'s former mentor; Sasse "Jimmy"'s reckless heir apparent (and Gibson the son's wife); and Beard the favoured son. Hart plays "Grace"'s weasely, slightly corrupt handler. Ferri plays the local police c.o. and Joseph an up-and-coming detective. There is an irony to a series featuring British, New Zealand, Canadian and some American actors, and with a similar mix behind the cameras, shooting in Vancouver (which arguably gives the series its singular, moody look -- the environment almost a character in itself) and yet the best they can do when they pool their collective imaginations...is have everyone adopt American accents and set the story in California, arguably the most oft-used locale in English-language television. And who says creativity is dead, eh?
This TV series -- marketed as the first series made for the U.S. satellite station, Direct TV (though shown in Canada on The Movie Network) -- is slick, boasting an atmospheric, murky visual look (credited the Vancouver location masquerading as the U.S.). The first season started out a bit uneven, feeling forced in trying to seem dark and noirish, the actors almost overly intense, and the scripts struggling to find the right tone, the characters sometimes inconsistent and unconvincing. But worth sticking with, as it got more sure footed, the character dynamics more involving, the twists and turns more intriguing. It could be uneven -- strong, effective scenes, surprise twists, and nuanced characters and emotional complexity, sometimes still sitting next to more simple-minded or dubious plot points -- but the strengths out weighed the weaknesses. British actress Newton is engaging, and New Zealand actor Csokas particularly effective, alternating between charming and vulnerable, and feral and dangerous, with the rest of the cast growing into their parts.
Arguably echoing the earlier Canadian-made crime drama, Intelligence (in which Tracey starred) -- both series chronicling the parallel worlds of cops and crooks, steeped in moral ambiguity and focusing on the tentative alliance between a cop and a mobster (both even about a black female cop and a white male mobster named Jimmy). But if there is a connection, Rogue is the darker, pumped up, more emotional take on that milieu. The first season of 10 episodes built to a climax -- resolving most key questions even as it deliberately left aspects hanging for a second season...yet in a way that it's hard to imagine where the plot would go. But that's because each season is meant to act as its own story, changing the plot, setting, and supporting cast. Made for non-commercial network broadcast (the episodes often 55 min. without commercials), there's profanity, violence, and even nudity and explicit sex (including a surprising amount of nudity from Newton!) which might hold your attention as well.
SEASON TWO: "Grace" has been loaned to the F.B.I. and reluctantly goes back undercover after a fellow cop disappears while investigating ex-army buddies who run a private security firm (Hauser, Newman, and Fletcher) and who have a mysterious stockpile of hidden money. Evans and Roth play "Grace"'s immediate superiors (often at odds with each other) and Higgins her estranged mother who comes to stay with her. Palladino plays the cop whose possible murder sets things in motion. On one hand it can seem like a slightly more ambitious plot -- much more cryptic and mysterious as to who's doing what to whom and why and like with the first season as much about the guys being investigated, and how their world and friendships start to unravel, as about the cops investigating. Unfortunately -- it's less compelling than the first season. Despite some genuine twists, the ultimate revelations about what's going on and why aren't that unexpected, and the plot lacks the emotional intensity of the first season where "Grace" was investigating her own son's murder and drawn into a doomed romance (the motivation this time around -- "Grace" maybe feeling guilty about the missing cop -- never really seems as all-consuming). And "Ethan" just isn't as interesting as "Jimmy." It isn't that American actor Hauser doesn't deliver a fine performance -- he does! (as do Newman and Fletcher as his buddies) -- but it's just not as riveting a character (Csokas' "Jimmy" was all feral intensity, Hauser's "Ethan" is cool restraint). And the story itself was slower to develop -- maybe they thought this would make it seem more sophisticated, but it just seemed slow. The first season took a few episodes to start to cook, and the second season took even longer, though, likewise, improved as it went. Though seeming to climax the story arc, answering most questions, it ended on an even more blatant cliff-hanger than the first season. The R-rated sensibilities seemed to be toned down for season two. Still with profanity, and a bit of nudity and violence, but considerably less than in season one (Newton kept her clothes on this season!) -- maybe the story just didn't call for it or maybe the more gratuitous first season was just to establish some cable TV "cred."
SEASON THREE & FOUR: unreviewed at this point.
Created by Matthew Parkhill. Hour long episodes. - female nudity, male nudity, explicit sexual content, extreme violence.-
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ROLLERCOASTER
* 1/2 setting: B.C.
(1999) Brendan Fletcher, Kett Turton, Crystal Buble,
Brent Glenen, Sean Amsing, David Lovegren.....A group of troubled,
anti-social teens sneak out of their group home to spend a day at an abandoned
amusement park, where two of them intend to end the day by committing suicide.
Nice performances from the cast, and director Smith puts together a slick,
good looking film...but writer Smith produces an aimless, pointless script
that never delivers the promised insight into either the characters...or
disaffected young people in general. Frankly, it seems a little like the
movie was given the go-ahead before Smith had a script, or even a clear
idea. Presumably it's hoping to be a Canadian "River's Edge", but one can't
decide if Smith knows his world of nihilistic, "lost" youth too well, and
needed to take a step back...or doesn't know it at all! sc./dir: Scott
Smith. 87 min.
ROLLING VENGEANCE *
setting: USA.
(1987) Don Michael Paul, Lawrence Dane, Ned Beatty,
Lisa Howard, Todd Duckworth.....Trucker (Paul) uses a monster truck
to go after the local red-neck clan (headed by Beatty) who killed his father
(Dane). Lethargic, stupid revenge flick is really awful. It doesn't work
as a drama, comedy or even a catharsis. Dangerous attitudes, too. sc: Michael
Montgomery. dir: Steven H. Stern. - violence, brief female nudity.- 90
min.
ROMANTIC LADIES see Dames galantes
ROMANTIC UNDERTAKINGS
* * 1/2 setting: Ont.
(1995) (/U.K.) William Katt, Valerie Buhagiar, Ishwar
Mooljee, Paul Berry, Greg Blanchard, Simon Richards.....Story of the
love-hate relationship that evolves between a woman (Buhagiar) who reluctantly
inherits her father's funeral home, and her border (import Katt), a short
order cook whose shady past starts to catch up with him. Modest but amusing
and genuinely likeable romantic comedy. sc: Melissa R. Byer, Treena Hancock
(story Chuck Micallef). dir: Peter McCubbin. 94 min.
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(2015-) * * * ... * *
Andrew Airlie ("Wolfgang"), Jenny Chen ("Lily") (1st), Juan Riedinger ("Rufus"), Stephanie Bennett ("Dee") (1st), Eugene Lipinski ("Al"), Manny Jacinto ("Wing Lei"), Sophia Lauchlin Hirt ("Eva") (1st), Mathias Retmal ("Miguel") (1st), Brian Markinson (2nd), Leeah Wong ("Lily Song" II) (2nd), Fei Renn ("Mei Mei") (2nd), Jorge Montesi ("Harry") (2nd),others.....Crime-drama set in the murky and overlapping worlds of organized crime and government intelligence and espionage. And I've decided to review the first two seasons separately (for reasons that might become obvious):
SEASON ONE: Airlie plays a university professor who is really a spy master and "handler," whose job involves recruiting and running various assets. Riedinger plays one of his assets, embedded with a local drug lord just as the criminal organization itself has to adjust to new Chinese partners. Chen plays a Chinese-Canadian fellow professor with whom "Wolf" begins a romantic relationship, while also trying to subtly recruit her (for her connections to the Chinese government) -- unaware she's actually working for the Chinese and trying to play him, too. Plus there are many other characters and threads.
After a long relationship with the CBC, Chris Haddock broke rather publically with the network after they cancelled his last series (Intelligence). Haddock stormed off south with the presumption being Hollywood would treat him right. But whereas in Canada he had been granted carte blanche to create his own series, in Hollywood he ended up working on "Boardwalk Empire" -- someone else's series (better to serve in heaven than to rule in hell, I guess). But Haddock and the CBC eventually kissed and made up (the reconciliation presumably mutually beneficial: the CBC had continued to be lambasted by critics for letting Haddock slip away -- the same sort of critics who otherwise deride the network for supporting low-rated series -- and Haddock presumably missed the creative freedom of being a big splash in a little pond). And in The Romeo Section it can feel a bit as if Haddock is picking up where he left off -- essentially doing a re-boot of Intelligence. Once more he's exploring the parallel and intertwined worlds of criminals and cops/spies, where the latter are more concerned about making contacts and recruiting informants than they are making immediate arrests, all presented with a subdued cool, with lots of hushed conversations, clandestine meetings and uncertain loyalties. But it's a bigger, more ambitious version of the premise, with more characters, and more story threads, and maybe Haddock's sojourn in Hollywood taught him a few tricks. Because though the new series is still deliberately paced, and exudes an aura of thinking it's "smart" (whether it actually is smart is up to the individual viewer to decide) it is a bit tighter paced than Haddock's other series, with a (slight) sense of urgency to some of the plot threads, as if things are actually happening (though Haddock is still prone to stretching threads out and sometimes there's a feeling as though they can turn into shaggy dog stories). There's more of a "human" factor to this series than in some of Haddock's previous efforts, while still seeming a bit academic, where you observe the characters more than become emotionally invested in them. And with who they are inside, or even why they do what they do left vague. Still, this is probably the best compromise, retaining what Haddock's fans like about his work while being more accessible and compelling than some of his earlier efforts. The acting is solid throughout, with Airlie -- traditionally more a supporting/character actor -- easily settling comfortably into the centre chair.
SEASON TWO: Unfortunately, if the first season was evidence of Haddock having learned from his Hollywood sojourn...the second season was Haddock falling off the waggon and back into his worst vices. Discarding any sense of a unifying theme/plot, the storylines have only tenuous links to each other -- largely forgetting about the whole recruiting and running "assets" idea! It's as if Haddock saw this hour as just his creative free-time (not unlike some of the efforts of another one-time CBC auteur, Ken Finkleman). "Wolfgang" is asked to re-investigate a terrorist attack from a few years before (aided by Markinson as a boozy ex-agent); "Rufus" cut his ties at the end of the first season, so no longer an undercover operative his plot line is pretty much just a mob/gangland story; and a plot involving the filming of a Chinese historical movie in Vancouver seemed in part so Haddock could try his hand at a historical epic (and to articulate his theme of parallels between the modern "war on drugs" and the old opium trade). Some of the changes may have been pragmatic: Chen was replaced by Wong in the same role (with little public explanation of the behind-the-scenes shift, though an unexpected pregnancy may have led to Chen being let go rather than re-writing the character to accommodate her); but aside from Chen being a sympathetic presence (something it's hard for a new actor to compensate for) the character was shunted off into a seeming extraneous plot line, dropping the relationship between her and "Wolf" from the first season. Aside from the lack of central focus, the second season suffered from glacial-slow pacing in service of thin, largely emotionless plots that aren't anywhere near as smart or clever as they seem to think they are, being often tritely cliched. The high points of the second season were few (Markinson's performance, being one; the movie-within-a-movie scenes might have been interesting if they didn't suffer from repetition). Despite years of critics lambasting the CBC for having let Haddock go after Intelligence...this new series was, unsurprisingly, cancelled after its second season.
Hour long episodes on the CBC.
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(2010-) * * * 1/2 (/U.S.)
Missy Peregrym ("Andy McNally"), Gregory Smith ("Dov Epstein"), Enuka Okuma ("Traci Nash"), Travis Milne ("Chris Diaz"), Charlotte Sullivan ("Gail Peck"), Ben Bass ("Sam Swarek"), Eric Johnson ("Det. Luke Callaghan"), Matt Gordon (Oliver Shaw") , Noam Jenkins ("Det. Jerry Barber") (-3rd), Peter Mooney ("Nick Collins") (3rd-), Melanie Nicholls-King ("Noelle Williams"), Lyriq Bent ("Frank Best"), Aidan Devine ("Sgt. Boyko") (1st), with Peter MacNeill.....Serio-comic crime drama focusing -- initially -- on a quintet of rookie police officers and the various veteran cops and supervisors. This joins the recent trend of all-Canadian (actors, writers, etc.) TV series made with some American financing and winning a spot on American prime time which followed the success of Flashpoint (and was initially kick started by a Hollywood writers' strike -- though the strike was long over by the time this hit the air). The significance of this new wave is that previous generations of US-Canada co-productions usually involved Americans as the dominant partner, with an American actor or two brought up to star, and explicitly set in the United States -- and those rarely, if ever, landed coveted network primetime slots! Although, Rookie Blue may not be overtly "Canadian", it still seems to be set in Canada (as opposed to a deliberate Anytown, North America).
This TV series was hyped a bit as a cop version of "Grey's Anatomy" (the latter being a comedy-drama about a bunch of medical rookies) -- the second Canada-US co-production to use that comparison (after Defying Gravity, which was hyped as "Grey's Anatomy"...in space). In execution, it's well done, boasting a solid, engaging cast from Peregrym who, as the nominal lead, is appealing (and, yes, beautiful) to the always effective Gordon as a jaded veteran cop, and everyone inbetween, including Okuma, Bass, Johnson, etc. With surprising deftness it juggles the serious plots with the light-hearted and comic ones (eschewing the film noir sleaze of The Bridge or the intensity of Flashpoint), boasting nicely done scenes that make the hour pass easily. BUT...we've seen it all before and, ultimately, it is what is, and isn't much more than a 21st Century version of "CHiPs" or "Adam 12" or even "Hill Street Blues". And though the "Grey's Anatomy" comparison isn't inappropriate (both even feature a female lead -- despite being nominally an ensemble -- who has a troubled relationship with a parent who used to be part of the same profession, here played by MacNeill) it doesn't entirely succeed in finding its own voice the way "Grey's Anatomy" did. The characters are personable enough (generally level-headed and well meaning rather than hyper-macho, gun waving characters) without being entirely compelling. Still, on an episode-by-episode basis, it's entertaining. Its ambitions may be modest, but it's reaching them with confidence, and strong ratings in both Canada and the US (in a summer/mid-season slot) suggests there's an audience looking for a (quasi-)realist cop show that's not too glib or cartoony (with quirky detectives solving impossible crimes) yet not too gritty or nihilistic. And the series perhaps boasts the greatest claim to success: emulators! In 2012 the American CBS network announced a new series -- "NYC 22" -- about a group of mismatched rookie cops learning the ropes on the streets of a big city (some reports even suggested it was originally going to be called..."Rookies"). Hour long episodes, shown in Canada on CanWest-Global.
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ROOKIES *
* setting: Ont.
(1990) Yannick Bisson, Peter MacNeill, Ian Tracey,
Dean McDermott, Jason Blicker, Andrea Roth, Christianne Hirt.....Talented,
small town hockey player (Bisson) goes to the big city to play for a minor
league team. Slick, well-acted made-for-CBC TV drama drags out too many
cliches and the protagonist never comes into focus. Recommended only to
hockey fans since it lacks the character emphasis to appeal to those who
don't care about the sport. sc: Paul Shapiro, Jeffrey Cohen. dir: Paul
Shapiro.
ROSWELL: The Aliens Attack
* * setting: USA.
(1999) (/U.S.) Peter Flynn, Kate Greenhouse, Heather
Hanson, Brent Stait, Sean McCann, Donelly Rhodes a.k.a. Donnelly Rhodes.....In
1947, a couple of aliens arrive in Roswell, New Mexico (USA) to destroy
the earth by sabotaging an army base...only to have the male alien (Flynn)
start to have second thoughts when he befriends a local woman (Greenhouse)
who works at the base. Made-for-U.S. TV SF thriller (inspired, after a
fashion, by the real life Roswell incident) is well-acted all around and
good looking, and wants to be smart and character driven, but is slow and
meandering, without enough plot -- or character -- to keep it interesting.
Not to mention it's kind of dumb in spots. Too bad. Donnelly Rhodes' name
is misspelled in the credits! sc: Jim Makichuk. dir: Brad Turner. app.
90 min.
THE ROWDYMAN
* * * 1/2 setting: Nfld.
(1972) Gordon Pinsent, Frank Converse, Linda Goranson,
Will Geer, E.P. "Ted" Henley.....Irresponsible, devil-may-care man
(Pinsent) finds his care-free lifestyle conflicts with the attitudes of
other members of his small hometown. Fine comedy/drama, marred by occasionally
excessive melodrama. Strong dialogue, direction and cast, particularly
Pinsent, who's exceptional and won the Best Actor Etrog, and Converse is
strong as his best friend. This was the first talkie to come out of the
Rock and it makes good use of Newfoundland locations (even American imports
Converse and Geer adopt Newfoundland accents). It was later turned into
both a musical and a novel by its author. sc: Gordon Pinsent. dir: Peter
Carter. 95 min.
ROWING THROUGH
* * 1/2 setting: USA.
(1996) (/Japan) Colin Ferguson, Leslie Hope, Peter
Murnik, Kenneth Welsh, James Hyndman, Helen Shaver, Michiko Hada, Christopher
Jacobs.....Story of the career of U.S. rower, Tiff Wood (Ferguson),
and the conflicts that arise during the 1984 training camp for placement
in the Olympics -- his last shot at the Olympics. Hope plays a journalist
and long-time friend, who narrates. O.K. drama is slick enough, though
not much more. Filmmakers, particularly Canadian ones, make an awful lot
of sports-themed movies -- and few of them actually work, critically or
commercially, largely because they make sports movies, as opposed to dramas
that happen to be about an athlete. Still, it's jolly nice to see a Japanese
filmmaker capturing the essence of so many Canadian movies: it's set in
the States and features characters that never manage to be particularly
likeable. Based on a true story. sc: Masato Harada, Will Aitken, with Rebecca
Ross (from The Amateurs by David Halberstam). dir: Masato Harada.
- female nudity, casual male nudity, sexuual content.- 116 min.
THE ROYAL SCANDAL *
* * setting: other
(2001) (/U.S.) Matt Frewer, Kenneth Welsh, Liliana
Komorowska, Daniel Brochu, Seann Gallagher, Robin Wilcock, R.H. Thomson.....Sherlock
Holmes and Dr. Watson (Frewer and Welsh) get involved in a case involving
blackmail, espionage, Irene Adler (Komorowska) and Holmes' brother Mycroft
(Thomson). Third made-for-TV teaming of Frewer and Welsh as Holmes and
Watson might cause purists to balk as it strays further from the source
than had their previous outings. This time trying, not always convincingly,
to adapt a couple of Holmes stories into one plot, while giving it a modern
ambience of conspiracies and shadowy spies, and Adler (the woman
in the Holmes' mythos) as an international thief, the story may not entirely
hold together logic-wise. Worse, the movie loses some of the point of the
Adler character because she doesn't out fox Holmes (well, except
in a muddled flashback). With all that being said, it's still a fun romp.
Avoiding the stodginess of some Holmes movies, it's told with energy and
fun, while still maintaining a reasonable respect for the character. Probably
Frewer's best performance in the role to date, as the plot allows more
room for character development and nuance. Though added to the suspect
British accents are some dodgy German accents. At least Komorowska's accent
is real. See Sherlock Holmes. sc: Joe Wiesenfeld
(from the stories "A Scandal in Bohemia" and "The Naval Treaty" by Sir
Arthur Conan Doyle). dir: Robin Gibbons. 88 min.
RUB & TUG *
* 1/2 setting: Ont.
(2002) Don McKellar, Kira Clavell, Tara Spencer-Nairn,
Lindy Booth, Richard Zeppieri, Michael Cram, Anthony Lemke, Susanne Sutchy,
Pascal Petardi.....Story of the goings on at a shady massage parlour,
with the novice, nebbishy manager (McKellar) finding the girls (Clavell,
Spencer-Nairn, Booth) are more in charge than he is. Serio-comic flick
is O.K., as long as you aren't too demanding, like asking yourself: where
is this headed? or do I really care? Particularly when at least one plot
question seems to go unresolved (McKellar is suspicious that one of the
girls is offering "full service" -- ie: sex -- which would shut them down).
But, admittedly, it benefits from a general watchability, with a brisk
tempo to the scenes, and a decent cast (though Clavell's part is an awkwardly
written immigrant cliche...though, ironically, the guilessness of her character
makes her the most sympathetic). And are all massage parlours really just
one step removed from brothels, or is that a cinematic cliche that, frankly,
slurs what may be a legitimate business? Despite the, intentionally, lurid,
racy premise, it's mainly the guys, not the women, who flash their skin
(save Sutchy in a brief part as a new employee). a.k.a. Rub and Tug.
sc: Soo Lyu, Edward Stanulis. dir: Soo Lyu. - casual male nudity, partial
female nudity, sexual content.- 89 min.
THE RUBBER GUN *
* * * setting: P.Q.
(1977) Stephen Lack, Allan Moyle, Pam Holmes-Robert,
Pierre Robert, Peter Brawley, Joe Mattia.....Story of a group of counter-culture
drug suppliers -- as opposed to drug pushers -- (led by Lack) and
the university student (Moyle) who wants to study them. Effective, fascinating
and off-beat drama is hip and extremely well- done with a atypically charismatic
performance from Lack. Despite the realist, improvised-feel, it has a strong
narrative and character development. Not for all tastes. Great music by
Lewis Furey. sc: Stephen Lack with John Laing, Allan Moyle. dir: Allan
Moyle. 86 min.
RUDE
* * 1/2 setting: Ont.
(1995) Maurice Dean Wint, Rachel Crawford, Clark Johnson,
Richard Chevolleau, Sharon M. Lewis, Melanie Nicholls-King, Steven Shellen,
Andy Marshall.....Three stories are intercut (as opposed to interwoven)
revolving around black characters in downtown T.O. over the Easter week-end
while a pirate radio d.j., Rude (Lewis), broadcasts. Moodily atmospheric
but a kind of shallow and insubstantial drama; writer/director Virgo wants
to look at serious issues like unwanted pregnancies, homophobia, and drugs,
but has trouble coming up with much to say about them. The most developed
storyline, with Wint as an ex-con resisting the urge to return to his dealer
ways, is still awfully undeveloped. Still, stylish with good dialogue and
performances (especially from Johnson, Wint and Shellen) -- enough so to
be worth catching. sc./dir: Clement Virgo. -casual male nudity, brief female
nudity, sexual content.- 90 min.
RUNNING HOME
(1998) Claudia Christian, Kristian Ayre, see Tales
of Intrigue
RUNNING WITH THE HITMAN a.k.a. Zeyda and the Hitman
RUGGED GOLD
* * setting: Ont./USA.
(1995) (/New Zealand) Jill Eikenberry, Art Hindle,
Ari Magder, Graham Greene.....True story of a
proper Toronto bred widow (American Eikenberry) who, in the '50s, moves
with her son to the wilds of Alaska with her gold prospecting new husband
(Canadian Hindle). Middling drama is slow and even kind of extraneous --
after all, similar stories have been done before. Often. Eikenberry whines,
Hindle offers sage advice, and both actors are a little bland. Greene adds
some flare as Hindle's curmudgeonly partner. This TV movie aired only weeks
before Legend of the Ruby Silver, a superficially
similar (and slightly better) film. Filmed in New Zealand. sc: Sarah James
(from the published journal O Rugged Land of Gold by Martha Martin).
dir: Michael Anderson. 94 min.
RUN ROBOT RUN!
* *
(2006) Chris Gibbs, Lara Kelly, Peter Mooney, Christian Potenza, Sandi Ross.....In the near future, a colourless, repressed corporate worker (Gibbs) gets jealous when his company hires a handsome android (Mooney) as a new employee -- and the robot is more likeable than he is, even seeming to win the affections of the co-worker (Kelly) he likes! Comedy is clearly struggling with a minuscule budget, and in that sense is arguably better than you might expect...without being as good as it needs to be. The actors are competent, the individual concepts are okay, the script is cute, but without being witty or funny enough. It can seem more like a collection of sketches (as he tries various ways to sabotage the robot) rather than a story with a well developed plot. Perhaps another problem is when the whole premise of a feature film is that the hero is supposed to be kind of dull and unlikeable (and even the robot is more a caricature of a nice guy, rather than being a nice guy). Ultimately, given the budget, is it something anyone involved in has to be ashamed of? No. But does it work? Not really. sc./dir: Daniel O'Connor. 82 min.
Runaway: Diary of a Street Kid, Evelyn Lau's memoir, became the CBC TV movie The Diary of Evelyn Lau
RUNNING *
* 1/2 setting: USA./P.Q.
(1979) Michael Douglas, Susan Anspach, Lawrence Dane,
Eugene Levy, Charles Shamata, Philip Akin, Jennifer McKinney, Jim McKay,
Gordon Clapp.....American (Douglas) who's never managed to stick with
anything for long, decides to become a marathon runner in the '76 Olympics
while, at the same time, patch things up with his ex-wife (Anspach). Good-looking,
well-acted drama has some good scenes, as well as some manipulatively hokey
ones. Not bad if you take it on its own level. sc./dir: Steven Hilliard
Stern. 103 min.
RUNNING BRAVE *
* setting: USA.
(1983) Robby Benson, Pat Hingle, Claudia Cron, Graham
Greene, Denis LaCroix, Jeff McCracken, August Schellenberg.....Fictionalized
bio of native U.S. runner Bill Mills (Benson) who became an Olympic champion
in 1964. Well done but no soul to the film, nor is it very exciting. Questionable
values too (like painting up white-man Benson). Greene is especially good.
sc: Henry Beam, Shirl Hendryx. dir: D.S. Everett (alias Don Shebib). -
casual male nudity.- 105 min.
RUPERT'S LAND
* * * setting: B.C.
(1998) Samuel West, Ian Tracey, George Wendt, Susan
Hogan, Gabrielle Miller, William MacDonald, Suzy Joachin, Bernie Coulson,
Ted Kozma..... Rupert, a prim British solicitor (West), and his coarse
Canadian half-brother (Tracey), reunite for the first time since childhood,
taking a road trip through the backroads of B.C. to attend their father's
funeral. Smart serio-comic flick is well-acted (particularly British actor
West and the always reliable Tracey) and well-put together, with a sturdy
plot and well-rounded characters...moreso than the "road trip" premise
might imply. Though the penchant for drinking and driving is unfortunate
(despite the end disclaimer that such scenes aren't meant to endorse such
behaviour -- if the filmmakers don't mean to endorse it, why include the
scenes in the first place?). Rupert's Land was the name originally for
much of pre-Confederation northern and western Canada -- but you knew that,
right? sc: Graeme Manson. dir: Jonathan Tammuz. 97 min.
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