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::FILM NEWS::
LE Newsletter - March 18, 2010
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Toronto Filmmaker Takes A Shot At Capturing Shinny Mania
Source:
www.thestar.com - Bruce DeMara
(March 12, 2010) A movie musical about hockey? How Canadian, eh?
So Canadian in fact that a host of homegrown hosers are lining
up to be part of
Score: A Hockey Musical,
written and directed by filmmaker Michael McGowan.
McGowan said when he first proposed combining the disparate
elements of hockey and music, "I got a laugh from people. I was
sort of surprised it hadn't been done in film before. If you get
lucky enough and get one of those `why hadn't I thought of that
earlier?,' you sort of run with it," McGowan said.
The latest to join the cast is high-brow author Margaret Atwood,
who – get this – plays herself and sings.
Nelly Furtado, playing a rabid hockey fan, is also on board,
along with ex-NHLers Eddie Shack, Theo Fleury, hockey dad Walter
Gretzky, CBC'ers George Stroumbouloupolous and Evan Solomon and
musicians Hawksley Workman andDave Bidini.
Marc Jordan and Aussie songbird Olivia Newton-John play the
granola-munching parents of the film's protagonist, Farley
Jordan, a home-schooled shinny player who has never played a
league game but may be hockey's next great "phenom."
It also features some familiar Toronto locations, including the
rink at City Hall, the Art Gallery of Ontario and the venerable
Weston Arena, with its wooden rafters and catacomb-like hallways
and dressing rooms.
Actor Stephen McHattie gets a chance to renew his comedy chops –
remember him as Elaine's Svengali-like shrink on Seinfeld? – as
the owner of the battling Blades who sees Farley as the team's
best hope for victory.
"What attracted me to the role is when they first told me the
title. It kind of sounded perfect," McHattie said.
McHattie, who gets the chance to perform in a couple of duets,
said moviegoers can expect to see players singing and dancing on
ice and pumping their sticks like majorettes' batons.
"It was great fun. With one team against another, it was kind of
like two gangs, like West Side Story. And I thought the
songs were terrific," McHattie said.
McGowan wrote the lyrics – which he promises actually advance
the plot – calling upon Workman, Jordan and the Barenaked Ladies
to help out with the music.
Noah Reid, who plays the lead role of Farley, has been acting
since he was 8, including a role in the 1983 Terry Fox Story.
After graduating from Montreal's National Theatre School, the
role is his first in a feature film.
"It's all the things I can do in life: singing, acting and
hockey. I thought, `if I can't get this one, well ...'" Reid
said.
"I did manage to get my accordion into the movie. We'll see if
it makes the final cut," he added, with a laugh.
Because of the way he was raised by flower-children parents,
Farley can play the game but can't bring himself to drop the
gloves and brawl on ice, Reid said.
"That doesn't go over so well in the world of hockey," he noted
wryly.
Despite the overall silliness, Reid said the film does have
substance at its core.
"There is a lot of darkness and a peek into the ugly side of
hockey and the fact that it has the potential to reel you in to
a place where you don't necessarily want to be. I think there's
real depth in this story in addition to the fun, fluffy stuff."
McGowan said one of the highlights of filming earlier this month
was working with Newton-John, who was given the script by
"friends of friends" of one of the film's executive producers.
"She (Newton-John) is one of the nicest people I've ever worked
with. She was so generous on set and so much fun. She was
singing on set between takes. She just made it so much of a
pleasure to work with her."
"I'd never really worked with a huge star like her before and
it's so nice when somebody comes in and just wants to be a part
of things and brings her own kind of joie de vivre. She was just
fabulous," Reid added.
McGowan said the success of previous works, including One
Week and St. Ralph, gave him the credibility to get
the film financed – always a challenge in this country – with
support from Telefilm Canada, the Ontario Media Development
Corp. and others.
"I certainly feel lucky that I'm able to make films in this
country and they're finding audiences. And for sure, this is
unabashedly a Canadian film."
The film is slated for release on Oct. 22 and will be submitted
for consideration to screen at the Toronto International Film
Festival in September. |
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::LANGFIELD
ENTERTAINMENT:: ENTERTAINMENT NEWS WITH A CANADIAN TWIST::
