Whole New Thing

source: Whole New Thing

Moviecut—Whole New Thing

I saw this movie without a clue what it was about. I had just been given the cover and glanced at the front, believing it to be a comedy in the likes of American Pie and such. Well, after getting over the initial surprise about what this movie was actually about, I found it to be nice anyway. It tells a good story and you can easily follow the characters and understand their personalities. The cast was good and it had some nice supporting roles as well. Especially the parents, they were well cast and did a great job bringing their roles to life. The movie is uplifting and have fun moments, but I don't believe it is the type of movie that you will watch more than once.

While this movie has comedic elements, it's the sort of thoughtful, high-class Canadian art-movie drama that you'd expect Daniel MacIvor to be involved with. Despite the somewhat fey cover art on the 2 different versions of the DVD that I've seen (I bought the somewhat less fey and definitely less expensive version I found at amazon.ca), the movie is not a winsome comedy, nor is it especially light. This movie is not "Election" and it is not the revenge comedy that you might be led to expect. It's basically a realistic tale of pain and emotional growth on the parts of everyone involved, whether they're confused, arty, and ignorant kids, or whether they're confused adults still seeking to connect. Fortunately, the movie ends with signs of hope for everyone. You shouldn't miss this, because the human observations and characterizations are so true.

Wow, this is a really thoughtful, well-made coming-of-age film. With a sea of dreck in this genre flooding the market, it is refreshing to see such a well written, sincerely performed narrative that feels so real and personal. Set in snowy Nova Scotia, the story of a bookish 13 year old named Emerson falling in love with his male school teacher (who is gay), might easily veer toward the distasteful, but this film never does. The performances are honest and heartfelt and the storyline goes to some unexpected places, contributing nicely to it's indy feel. There are a few moments that might have been more thoroughly explored (Emerson's relationship with an geeky school friend, the obvious direction of his awakening sexuality, is given short shrift.) But overall, this was an intelligently made, sweet and sincere film about human relationships - something that we can never have enough of.

I don't remember why I ordered this movie from Netflix, but it turned out to be on a whole other level from what I expected. And this surprise is what several reviewers have already mentioned. My neighbor and I watched it together and found our views very similar. I don't need to go into the plot as it was well covered in other reviews, but I wanted to add these particular notes. (1) I was at first concerned that the film would have the teacher-pupil relationship become sticky. I suppose I wouldn't have minded, but the story has been done so many times. It was delightfully refreshing to have the teacher act like a real teacher would with Emerson. (2) The movie was easy to understand, and identify with, showing parallel stories of everyone going through their own sea-churning bouts of relationship trips. This was handled so well. What we particularly liked was that the writers/director felt no need to over indulge their scenarios with dialogue that the viewers already knew. An example of this feature was when the police came after one of the characters and this was explained simply by showing lights flashing through a door. (3) In this vein, therefore, it was truly delightful to get to the end of the movie and to have all the loose ends tied up in one scene! We loved that particularly. Instead of going through all the repetitive scenes of how Aaron deals with his parents or his crush, he is depicted in a scene which shows us that he is coping with the normal ebbs and flows of growing up. And then, through one smile about tea bags, another relationship is redefined. Perfect. Needless to say, we loved everyone in the cast, but Aaron did stand out. We hope he continues to bring his boyish maturity to the new roles he will doubtless be offered.

What happens to people who are raised without conventional social boundaries? Emerson Thorsen (Aaron Webber) is a thirteen-year-old boy living with his aging hippie parents in rural Nova Scotia. Even though they clearly love their son, Roj (Robert Joy) and Kaya (Rebecca Jenkins) often act more like Emerson's pals than his parents (they have the annoying habit of querying him about his burgeoning sexuality). After years of home schooling, the sensitive, highly gifted Emerson is enrolled in the local middle school where he immediately stands out from the more conventional members of the student body who have no interest in discussing poetry or reading Shakespeare. Emerson not only has problems relating to the other pupils, but he develops a crush of sorts on his English teacher (Daniel MacIvor, who co-wrote the screenplay), a common enough occurrence, except that Emerson, so long shielded from the societal norms of the outside world, feels no compunction not to act on his feelings, creating complications for everyone involved. Alternately touching and queasy, "Whole New Thing" is a generally sensitive coming-of-age tale that distinguishes itself with its novel setting and its unusual set of characters. The movie doesn't always feel like it knows where it's going, but that can be as much a recommendation for the film as a criticism of it. There are times when it seems as if it is going to go completely off the rails - particularly in the marital travails of Roj and Kaya - but it always manages to somehow right itself at the last minute. Only at the VERY last minute does it fail to do so, succumbing to an ending that is far too abrupt, upbeat and amicable for what has gone before. The acting is strong, and there is just enough complexity in the characters and storytelling to make us suspect that MacIvor (who has directed a number of films of his own) and writer/director Amnon Buchbinder, should they choose to collaborate again, will do even more sophisticated work in the future. As it stands, this is a promising early effort for the filmmakers.

The best thing about this film is Aaron Webber's portrayal of 13-year-old Emerson. I'd recommend keeping an eye on his career in the future. I found it preposterous that a lad of 13 would desire his teacher. Could someone please explain to me what is appealing about this older man - as far as I can tell, nothing. If the teacher were younger and better looking and the student 16 instead of 13, this movie might be believable. It is hard to get into a movie that is implausible out of the starting gate. Canadians take pride in their movies because they are often freer and more daring than films made in the U.S.A. But one can be simply sordid and pointless instead of courageous and honest. The film-maker should do something with this greater freedom - not proclaim it for its own sake. For all its supposed bravery, this movie is surprisingly conventional with regard to its depiction of the human body: The female lead is shown fully and plainly *, whereas the father and the son are ever so carefully posed to avoid equivalent frankness. How traditionally sexist. In "Whole New Thing," the viewer is presumably "liberated" from hackneyed, conservative American stereotypes. But let's take a closer look at the characters here: In place of sexually crimped, over-zealously religious parents trying to retard the sensuality of their teenage children we get a careworn, pot-smoking couple - a withdrawn, tepid man and his sad, adulterous wife; in place of a restless, dutiful youth shackled by legalistic restrictions on his behavior we get a kid who has no trouble lying about his intentions because he believes the lie will help him manipulate a much older man into having sex with him; and instead of an uninspired teacher limited by narrow, parochial thinking we get a guy who thinks it's perfectly acceptable to cruise for casual sex at a rest stop. Are any of these free-wheeling replacements an improvement over their safer, more traditionally drawn counterparts? Is the indignant radical's cry really, "Liberate me so I can be sordid and miserable!"? There are seeds of a high-quality, courageous film in "Whole New Thing," but they are never watered or cultivated. For example, there is a passably good-looking kid who harasses Emerson verbally and physically at school. At one point, Emerson asks him, "What is it you want?" But what if the film-makers with their Canadian courage explored the psychology of the bullying? What if Emerson punched back with gusto, held his own in a fistfight and then asked the question: "What is it you want?" What if the bully desired Emerson? (This is certainly more plausible - not to mention more innocent and age appropriate - than Emerson desiring his teacher.) How would such a relationship develop? Would they try to date? Would they meet secretly? How would the relationship affect the other kids in the school? The film might even flash forward to a committed, long-term relationship when the boys are older. Surely this would have been more interesting and daring than the somber radicals we're presented with in this movie.

I loved this movie - it's a good, simple, both touching and amusing story - very Canadian (that's a good thing in my book, even though I'm a separatist!). It's also great to see plots taking place outside of the usual larger cities. Cudos to all involved. But... once more, it makes me think of how frustrating it is that Canadian movies almost never make it to Québec's movie screens (I'm writing from Montréal). I once complained about this in writing to our former Ministre du Patrimoine Sheila Copps - after watching the Genies one night, not having seen any of the Canadian films in competition, as they hadn't been distributed in Québec yet! One would think that the federal government, always out to promote Canadian culture and unity, might want to do something about this! We, in Québec, are so proud of our cinema and often look down upon the R.O.C.'s production - but that's so wrong! Canada has great movie makers - but poor distribution and promotion methods and means, sadly!

WHOLE NEW THING is another fine little film from Canada, utilizing an excellent cast of Canadian actors to present a modern day conundrum about identity in a manner more sensitive than most other films addressing the subject. Director/writer (with actor Daniel MacIvor) Amnon Buchbinder has created a series of characters, seemingly disparate in age and outlook, who each has a problem coping with who they actually are, and with great skill this story interweaves these fascinating people, isolated by the frigid planes of Nova Scotia into a complex puzzle that answers far more questions about identity than is at first apparent. Emerson (a strong debut for Aaron Webber) is the thirteen-year-old son of environmentalist/post-hippie parents Kaya (Rebecca Jenkins) and Rog (Robert Joy) whose creative look at life has provided home schooling for Emerson, encouraged his gift for writing, but now find that there are gaps in Emerson's education that suggest enrolling him in the local Middle School might mend. Kaya and Rog are in a stale marriage: each has needs the other can't appreciate. Emerson enjoys his isolation and is not eager to move into the 'mainstream' by attending school. Kaya visits the middle school and meets teacher Don Grant (Daniel MacIvor) whom she invites to her home to meet and impress Emerson. Don is a bright, lovable teacher who has failed in gay relationships, relegating his needs to visits to park restrooms. When Don comes to dinner, Emerson is impressed with Don's acceptance of Emerson's outlook and decides to give the school a chance. Emerson, long-haired and androgynous in appearance, suffers ridicule at school but finds considerable solace in the classroom atmosphere Don Grant adapts to suit Emerson's intelligent needs. Don is 42 and Emerson is 13 and while they become friends, Emerson develops his first 'crush' on Don. And while this is happening Kaya meets young stud Denny (the always excellent Callum Keith Rennie) and begins an affair. Many moments of electric snaps occur among all of the characters (a matter of whose crisis is more threatening!) and the manner in which each of the confrontations with each character and conjoined demons occur begin to resolve the seemingly improbable results that alter the growth of each. Part of the success of a film dealing with such subject matter is the manner in which each of the stories is told. There is no crude acting out, no pat answers, and no unnecessary 'drama' for drama's sake. This is a very honest little film that deserves the attention of a wide audience eager to understand the varying motivations of other people. Grady Harp