Thoughts & Things

Four Weird Canadian Movies

As a Canadian, I feel comfortable saying that Canada has put out some weird shit over the years. Fortunately, I am really fond of weird things, and I am thrilled to share with you a few odd examples from the Canadian film industry. I genuinely like all three films, and would recommend watching any of them if they pique your interest.

Phil the Alien
Phil the Alien is genuinely just one of the weirdest films I have seen in general. I found it at the local video rental place as a kid, and eventually got my own copy. Phil is a literal alien whose spaceship crash lands in Northern Ontario. He becomes an alcoholic to cope with the trauma of this, and ends up spending a couple of days in the town jail after getting into a bar fight. While in jail, Phil is introduced to Christianity, and becomes a rapidly devout convert. After leaving jail, he becomes the singer for a Christian rock band, and begins touring the province with the band. All of this goes on while the ineffectual government operatives attempt to chase Phil down. It has a bizarre premise with bizarre execution, but it all works surprisingly well. I have yet to see anything else like it, and it has been well worth my time to watch.

Fetching Cody
Fetching Cody was one of my earliest forays into unusual movies. I actually somehow managed to catch this one on TV as a kid when I was home sick for a day, and then spent forever trying to hunt up a copy after years of looking for it. It didn't live up to memory, but I still consider it worth a watch. Cody goes into a drug induced coma right at the start of the film. The film centres around her boyfriend Art, a drug dealer, who tries to save her. Art's homeless friend has an arm chair with Christmas lights on it that can travel through space and time. Art uses this chair to travel throughout Cody's past to alter small details in the hopes that he can alter her present. It's a rather sweet love story, but delivered in an irresistibly strange way. As I said, it failed to live up to my early adolescent memories, but I have no regrets at hunting it down.

One Week
One Week is probably the most normal film on the list, but it still has a lot of odd things about it, and stands out from typical mainstream cinema. I first saw this one as a random pick when I went to the movies, but absolutely fell in love with it. It focuses around Ben, newly diagnosed with cancer, who decides to take a road trip across the western half of Canada on a motorcycle. The film features a number of minor Canadian celebrity cameos, an all Canadian soundtrack, many real life Canadian monuments, and a really strange Canadian humour to it. For example, Ben takes the road trip because a Tim Hortons Roll Up The Rim cup tells him "Go west young man."

The Trotsky
The Trotsky stars the same lead as Fetching Cody (Jay Baruchel), and it has an equally odd premise. I found this one at the library (our local library keeps a wide variety of Canadian DVDs), and grabbed it because I enjoy Jay Baruchel. In Montreal, Leon Bronstein, high school student, comes to believe that he is the reincarnation of Leon Trotsky. This leads him to do everything from starting workplace unions to dating an older woman. It basically amounts to slightly unhinged, lighthearted political comedy, and it absolutely works.


(I have committed to blogging daily with Give It 100. This is Day Fourteen.)