Ill Fated

Nearly turned it off a few times but I kept going, I should get a medal. So badly put together and developed, there should be a category for something as bad as this.

Let's see, there's (I think) drama, there's promiscuity with no one ever, ever practicing safe sex, there's incest, there's deaths of inconvenient characters, there's a demented school bus driver, there's the Keystone Cops, and best of all there's a gun fight at the OK Corral - right at the very end.

I had a hard time keeping track of the characters and who fathered who. There's a crackpot old grandfather thrown in for good measure. And on. And they probably got hefty Canadian government grants to make this. My brain is bleeding. Sometimes us Canucks embarrass ourselves SO publicly. Sorry, world.

4 out of 10 for the poor bewildered performance of Paul Campbell. Did anyone ever, ever struggle to rise above his material so desperately? All the points are for you, buddy.

I think "scott_lewis" (other viewer) should take another look at the ending. Not sure what they are referring to... and it wasn't as though the ending was ambiguous. The majority of the characters run off screen, chasing Earl down the hill in what is a terrific finale. All the characters except for Jimmy, Barb and Jennifer... when something horrific happens - but not in the way that the above writer thinks. I won't ruin it because it is a bit of a surprise... although in retrospect, inevitable. It's a hard ending, but necessary. And it really does tie everything together... particularly thematically. One of the main characters runs from the sins of his past (something I think most people can relate to, at least to a certain extent), however, this character experiences the consequences of his actions to an extreme... but this is storytelling... conveying poignant messages but in an exaggerated, dramatic, and, ultimately, entertaining way. By the way, I am a friend of someone who was involved in this film... but truly believe the above to be true.

I can only imagine that the positive comments listed here were left by the directors mother because this movie is something only she would love.

True, the cinematography is well done and the acting is passable for a Canadian feature, but the writing is unbearable. It falls into the trap of many other Canadian features by hiding lack of talent behind a string of unnecessary expletives. There wasn't a single conversation that was believable and the plot unrolled lack a mangled origami project. Add to this a cast of characters that are instantly forgettable and thoroughly unlikeable and you have a movie that you shouldn't have rented.

Ill Fated is a fitting title: Viewer beware.

Immediately reminiscent of Coen brother's "Fargo". Humorous and entertaining in a way that doesn't take the audience to be halfwits. John Parker's role as Grampy was inspired and his "meltdown" was hilarious. My personal favourite character was the sheriff. His constant frustration with the townspeople and his volunteers made for constant laughs. Finally a film that Canadians can be proud to call their own. Mark Lewis has set himself a very high standard. I hope he can continue to bring us great films up to par with his first.

I gave this film a 9... and I've also given a 9 to The Godfather, Dr. Strangelove, Pulp Fiction etc. Ill Fated is not as good as the aforementioned films... however, after seeing the film I felt just as satisfied as after watching the others. I was just so delighted to see a Canadian film so bloody entertaining and simultaneously so very profound. I've never been witness to an audience so moved by a Canadian film in all my life (and I've seen many - too many - Canadian films). This film won't make 100 million at the box office, but like Donnie Darko or Reservoir Dogs, Clerks etc. will inevitably find a huge audience (slowly but surely). I expect big things from the talent behind this one.