The Uncles

This is a well-crafted small Canadian film about a restaurant manager trying to juggle work, family and love, though the three are all unfortunate in one way or another. Chris Owens (yup, Agent Spender) is very good in the central role and manages to hold things together with his solid, careful performance. He obviously had his heart in this script and film. He took a good role in a small film.

Digital Video quality is not great, but the direction is efficient and understated. The script is good and manages to pinpoint the truth in its characters. The sound quality is also good (see Chutney Popcorn to hear how bad sound quality is worse than bad visual quality). What's best of all in the film is its eveness of tone and its recognition of limitations, in that it keeps the course without faltering from trying too hard. Sure, it won't change your life, but it is worthwhile. And no shaky-cam!

Two cheers to James Allodi for seeing his project through. It ain't Rohmer or Pasolini (silly comparisons) but it's honest and shows promise. Someone should give this guy a chance to make a film with a bigger budget for he has the tools and will impress. I kept on thinking how much more I would enjoy it on proper film.