This Sunday evening, anyone with an interest in Kootenay culture and the strength of will to drag their butts off the couch and down to the Miners' Hall is in for a rare treat. The Rossland Arts Council and FLIKS will be presenting the a new film, torn straight from the mean streets of Creston, BC, called Lovers in a Dangerous Time.
I've seen the film and anyone who tends to despair for the future of narrative film (or just wants an enjoyable night at the movies) needs to see it as well. Where most modern movies lurch along from dull plot point to dull plot point like an undead Willie Loman making his rounds, Lovers in a Dangerous Time finds its centre in the reality of people's feelings and lives and allows story to grow rather than creating it in a test tube. A heresy against Hollywood convention, certainly, but when the result is a charming and heartfelt film like this, who's to complain?
The film is the product of Mark Hug and May Charters, partners in love and art, and the couple will be in attendance at Sunday's screening. Mark grew up in Creston, BC, while May was born in Toronto through no fault of her own. Both are now based in Boswell, BC, and LA.
As Hug notes, “It's a bit of a contradiction!”
The plot of this comedy/drama involves the relationship between two twenty-something childhood friends (played by Hug and Charters) who meet up at their ten year grad reunion in Creston. Todd, a hockey player who never quite made it, and Allison, a children's book illustrator who's somewhat disenchanted with life back east, begin an uneasy dance around memory and dreams; past and present; and friendship and love. To the filmmakers' credit, you don't know how it's going to end...until it ends.
One of the highlights of the film for locals will be the very recognizable scenery and people. Says Hug, “too often Hollywood chews up Canada's scenery but forgets to represent the life of the people that really live there”. That's not a problem in this film; Charters and Hug have made ample use of local non-actors, even going so far as to crash Hug's actual tenth anniversary for a no-retakes possible filming spree involving actors and non-actors.
It's almost shocking, if that's the right word, to see real people and places honestly depicted on screen. If anything, the results ought to make viewers wonder just what the hell is going on in all the other films they see.
The first question that pops into one's mind when considering what Hug and Chambers have wrought is, 'what's it like being linked as romantic partners, writers, actors, producers, and goodness knows what else?' Says Charters, “It’s obviously a private thing to us but we can say that it gets muddy and intertwined. It takes a lot out of us but we also both get to feel the satisfaction and enjoyment together.”
Given all this linkage, how much of the story is based on real life?
“There are elements that are inspired by our own lives,” says Hug. “Write what you know, right? I grew up on the orchard we shot on and a lot of the characters and locations are dear to me. I would tell May a story about something we did in my youth and she would say that has to be part of the story. It became about how to inject the narrative into these old memories. So the story itself is complete fiction. The childhood friend across the orchard is completely made up, as is the conflict with the hockey star brother. We both had a longing for childhood and that was going on at the same time we were making the film. If either of us could have moved back into our childhood homes by ourselves we would have.”
One aspect of the film that's particularly worthy of note is its lovely cinematography, the work of Charters' father and brother, Rodney and Robin. The film also includes contributions on all levels by other friends and relatives of the filmmakers. How was it working with family?
“Interesting to say the least,” says Hug. “We both love our families and they were both hugely supportive and instrumental in the making of this film. We housed crew in my parents' house and above their fruit stand during production. It was intense. When you get in deep with both family and something that is artistic, you get really messed up. By nature, you already want to make your family proud but when you involve them in your process you open a can of worms that is quite overwhelming. I think it made us all understand each other better but there is also a price to pay for that understanding. Is that creatively ambiguous enough?”
Speaking to the ways in which this film deviates from Hollywood norms, Charters offers the following attempt to categorize their work. “We like to call it a Canadian love story, because the Canadian part is what frames it, makes it kind of funny and heart felt at the same time. Conventionally it falls in the Dramatic Comedy category, but simply, it’s a love story. It will hopefully make you laugh because people do silly and foolish things when they are struggling with things they love, be it another person or a memory. In this film, the characters are wrestling with both the love of a memory and another person simultaneously.”
Creating a feature film is a massive undertaking on many, many levels. That a film like this has been created within a hundred or so kilometres of Rossland is cause for celebration. So show up, see the film, and support a truly worthy Kootenay effort.
Lovers in a Dangerous Time will be screening in Castlegar on May 28 at the Castle Theatre and in Rossland on May 30. Tickets are $10. The Rossland screening is co-hosted by FLIKS and the Rossland Arts Council.
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