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Curtis's Charm
Canada 1995
produced by Sandra Cunningham, Wayne A. Powell, Atom Egoyan (executive), Patricia Rozema (executive) for Alliance Independent Films, Rabid Dog Films
directed by John L'Ecuyer
starring Maurice Dean Wint, Callum Keith Rennie, Rachael Crawford, Barbara Barnes-Hopkins, Aron Tager, Hugh Dillon, Trent Carr, Dale Harrison, Brian Clancy, John Dondertman, Bruce McDonald, Bruno Bryniarski, Mary Sylwester
screenplay by John L'Ecuyer, based on a story by Jim Carroll, music by Mark Korven
review by Mike Haberfelner
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Strung out on drugs Curtis (Maurice Dean Wint) thinks his wife Cookie
(Rachael Crawford) and/or her mother (Barbara Barnes-Hopkins) have hexed
him with some voodoo spell, are able to turn themselves into animals, and
watch over him all the time. Of course, that's nothing but drug-induced
paranoia, yet somehow he manages to almost convince his friend Jim (Callum
Keith Rennie) who has been clean for the past two years that he is
actually telling the truth, so much so that Jim makes Curtis a charm to
fend off voodoo magic. Days later, Jim meets Cookie, and the two worry
about Curtis, who has disappeared - but his disappearance has nothing to
do with some voodoo mumbojumbo, he just got stabbed in a dark alleyway. A
low budget movie that doesn't really know where to go and that has a very
unsatisfying ending, yet it's somehow held together by its restless
camerawork that somehow reflects the inner torment of its lead character,
and more than that of course by a flawless performance by Maurice Dean
Wint, who really brings this character to life in all his paranoia,
inconsistency and delusional state of mind. And he does make this film watchable after all.
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