Starring: Alec Guinness, William Holden, Jack Hawkins, Sessue Hayakawa, and James Donald Review by JR Kuzma
SYNOPSIS:
David Lean’s epic of a captured battalion of British soldiers and their proper colonel who are forced to build a bridge over the Kwai River for Japanese supply trains pass over.
Oscar wins: Best Actor- Alec Guinness, Best Cinematography- Jack Hildyard, Best Director- David Lean, Best Film Editing- Peter Taylor. Best Original Score- Malcolm Arnold, Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay
REVIEW:
The film starts out with two Allied PoWs burying a dead comrade, one of the men being U.S. Navy Commander Shears (William Holden), who, upon finishing up the burial service bribes a Japanese guard to put him and the other prisoner on the sick list to…
THE SAVER, a small budget little gem, based on the novel by Edeet Ravel opens in the small movie Carlton complex in Toronto, but it is a film that delivers big messages. The film works because writer/director von Carolsfeld who directed MARION BRIDGE, loves her subject, the setting of Montreal and all her characters. And it shows in her film.
The film’s protagonist is a teenager. But this teen is not one who can enjoy parties, go to movies, drink and can have fun.
When the film begins, poor (literally poor) 16-year old native Fern (Imajyn Cardinal) loses her mother. Not only is she poor, she is now an orphan and she is afraid of Social Services. She runs away. But Fern is a resourceful teenager. After finding a book entitled “Fifty Ways to Become a Millionaire”, Fern takes the book to heart and decides to save (hence the film title THE SAVER) so she can get rich and live without having, in her own words, to take shit from anyone anymore. But dreams do not always come true. Not even in movies. And the film, which is set in winter – with the scenes of Fern trudging through the snow – emphasizes her hardship.
Von Carolsfeld’s film is a realistic one. She also allows her audience to think and to figure things out without spoon-feeding them. One is the film setting. It is not stated specifically that the city Fern lives in is in Montreal, as she and her mother speak English. But the others and the street and shop signs are in French. A boy that helps her is an ambiguous character. He even offers Fern a gift with the sweet words: “I got something for you. I thought you might like it.” But a twist then shows him taking advantage of her.
Von Caroldfeld’s camera is often very close to the characters. In the first 20 minutes of the film for example, the camera is always next to Fern (showing her top half and head) pulling back to show the background only a few times. One advantage of this tactic is the audience being forced to really connect and feel for Fern, something the Dardenne Brothers also used to do, with the camera at neck level in a similar film ROSETTA.
The cast of unknowns deliver exceptional performances, especially Cardinal as the lead. Veteran Quebec actress Pascale Bussières lends her hand as a fussy tenant who ends up winning both Fern’s and the audience over.
But von Carolsfled’s film is sweet and winning because she infuses quite a number of really sweet scenes which do not seem intrusive. When Fern’s mother passes away for example, a scene shows Fern pulling a white sheet over the mother’s body in the morgue. When Fern misses a day of work, her boss (Mamidou Savadogo) asks: “Were you too busy with the colour scheme of your castle?” It is thus appropriate that the film ends with another suitable sweet segment (that will not be revealed in the review.)
THE SAVER is the story of a nice girl making good under adverse circumstances. The film shows a varied world with good and bad people, in good an bad situations. This is well-made little feel-good film that is surprisingly based on an unfortunate situation.
Also, Free logline submissions. The Writing Festival network averages over 95,000 unique visitors a day.
Great way to get your story out: http://www.wildsound.ca/logline.html
Deadlines to Submit your Screenplay, Novel, Story, or Poem to the festival:http://www.wildsound.ca
This week’s Writing Festival will be showcasing the best of HEROES. We are excited to be performing an original fan fiction screenplay of Star Wars. We are also reading a superhero TV Pilot, plus a drammatic short film.
Here are the details of the screenplays that will be showcased:
The following screenplays will be performed by professional actors, edited, and then posted online a week following. They will be part of the May 2016 screenplay winners.
#1 – Fan Fiction Feature: Star Wars Episode 1: The Redemption of Skywalker, by Brian O’Flaherty
Genre: Sci-Fi, Adventure, Action, Fantasy
Synopsis: Some stories are too important, some stories must be retold. The story of Anakin Skywalker will be molded between the pressure of separate forces vying for his soul, which will determine the fate of the galaxy.
Happy Birthday actor Eric Roberts
LOVELACE
THE DARK KNIGHT RISES
The Expendables
The Immortals
The Cable Guy
Happy Birthday Director/Producer Eli Roth
AFTERSHOCK
Grindhouse
Inglourious Basterds
Happy Birthday actor Maria Bello
Permanent Midnight
Payback
A History of Violence
Grown Ups
Thank You For Smoking
Butterfly on a Wheel
Mummy 3
The Company Men
THE COOLER
ABDUCTION
GROWN UPS 2
WORLD TRADE CENTER
PRISONERS
Happy Birthday actor Rosie Huntingto-Whiteley
TRANSFORMERS 3
Happy Birthday actor David Tennant
FRIGHT NIGHT
THE PIRATES! BAND OF MISFITS 
How to Train Your Dragon
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Happy Birthday actor Alia Shawkat
LIFE AFTER BETH
CEDAR RAPIDS
Whip It
Three Kings
THE ORANGES
The Runaways
THE TO DO LIST
ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT SEASON 4 TV SHOW PILOT
THE BRASS TEAPOT
ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT Season 1
ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT Season 2
ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT Season 3
ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT Best of the Series
THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI, 1957
THE SAVER (Canada 2015) ***1/2
Happy Birthday actor Roddy Piper
Festival Reviews 