The Rainbow Boys

Dave's not here man...

Well it's a movie, a Canadian road adventure movie. Not too sure what else I could say about this movie to to use up all my IMDB characters for a full review.

First off I put it on to see some early film work from SCTV alum Dave Thomas but no matter how hard I looked I couldn't see him in any shot.

We have 3 main leads with 5 other supporting actors, 1-store clerk, 1-accident victim, and 3 native Canadians. I don't even think there was any animals to help bring to life the backgrounds.

It's mainly shot on logging roads, starts with a river shot, a shot on the highway, a sceen in a general store, then back on the road. We get to see inside a home for a bit then we end off at a little shack adjesent to a mine. Really seems like they were all the free spots to film that wouldn't cost them any money or more likely where Canada told them they could film.

But really, where's Dave man??

I was hoping for at least a decent size role which would have made it maybe funny.

Ralph Logan (Donald Pleasence) is a small time gold paner. Gladys (Kate Reid) is his reluctant friend. Mazella (Don Calfa) has a book of lost mines. Logan claims that he inherited a lost gold mine from his father. The trio sets off to find the remote mine.

This is a little Canadian indie with some government help. The three leads are very interesting veteran actors. Every horror fans know Donald Pleasence. It's interesting just for these performers. This seems to be trying for quirky comedy although it's hit and miss. Logan and Mazella can be annoying until you get used to them. This just doesn't have enough meat on the bone. The story is thin and there aren't many actual jokes. The 70's had a lot of rambling experimental flicks. They do have a righteous trike.

Beautiful photography complements this film about 3 people searching for a lost mine. The 3 leads are technically the principle cast, and do a good job with what they have to work with. Donald Pleasance is as eccentric as ever in the role of Logan, the man the mine was left to by his father. Kate Reid is a friend of Logan's, and Don Calfa plays Mazzella, a guy from Brooklyn NY, traipsing across the Canadian Countryside. I enjoyed Calfas performance, it reminded me somewhat of his role as the crazy mobster in "Weekend At Bernies" On the whole I would recommend this film to people who like independent cinema, and film with beautiful scenery of the great outdoors.

It is my own but very devoted intention to watch every single movie Donald Pleasance ever starred in. He's not just a personal favorite actor mine, he truly was one of the greatest and most versatile actors who ever lived. And he definitely was one of the hardest-working men in show business, because with more than 250 titles on his repertoire - some of which nearly untraceable - is this little mission of mine practically impossible.

With a career as Pleasance's, you secretly hope to occasionally stumble upon a largely undiscovered but awesome gem, like "Wake in Fright" or "The Race for Yankee Zephyr". I strongly hoped for this to be the case with "Logan", but alas, it's tremendously obscure for a good reason. In this early 70s comedy/adventure about a trio of vagrants in search of an inherited but hidden gold mine, only Pleasance's performance and the astounding British-Columbia filming locations are worth mentioning.

"Logan" (official title: "The Rainbow Boys") is too talkative, not very funny when it tries to be, and the slapstick-like soundtrack is incredibly annoying. Even a terrific Donald Pleasance cannot compensate for the subpar performances of his two fellow leads, and even the breath-taking scenery of the great outdoors eventually doesn't suffice, neither.

Some comments on this movie are unfair, I think. It's just a goofy little comedy, nothing more. Is it perfect? Nope. But there are many moments of pleasure, one being Donald Pleasence's eccentric performance. "Bastards!" I remember seeing this on TV many times as a kid, so that's probably why I have a fondness for this. I was lucky enough to find a VHS copy on Ebay. Too bad it's not on DVD, even a cheap two-for edition.

Also good is Don Calfa, as a really out of it, seriously goofy New Yorker who is lured to British Columbia on vague dreams of striking it rich. Kate Reid holds it together as a grumpy though sane woman, in stark contrast to Donald Pleasence's barely in control character and Don Calfa's airhead one.

All in all, I'd recommend it if you can find a cheap copy on video, or if it's on TV one late night...