So the Film Festival isn't just here to take the audience on
a journey around the world. It also gives a showcase to some fantastic
storytelling from here in Scotland which might not get seen by as many people
as it deserves. Oh and it should be very clearly stated, A Practical Guide to a
Spectacular Suicide deserves to be seen by a lot more people than will have
made it to the screenings here. Hopefully the Festival can be a stepping stone
towards that. I don’t know what the budget was, but this was probably the
lowest budget film I've seen at the Festival since The Puffy Chair a few years
back, and it was just as enjoyable experience.
From what I could tell from the Q&A, the director, lead
actor and their co-writer are not full time professionals, instead fitting this
round full-time jobs and persuading professional involvement on the basis of
their rather wonderful script and managed to pull everyone together for 12 days
to shoot it. Having had the film picked
up for a couple of other festivals, they took a punt on risking some money on
the submission fee for EIFF on a “what’s the worst that can happen” whim. The film makers would modestly give you the
impression they somehow beat the odds – as if they were given the place at
random. I suspect it was more that the programmers
enjoyed the film as thoroughly as the audience at my screening. I've included all this as background for two
reasons. Firstly to show that the understandable
minor flaws with the film are more than dwarfed by the achievement of making
such an enjoyable film on such a low budget and without the time and resources of
full time filmmakers. And also because the film makers all look about 20 years
old and I’m in awe.
Let’s get the minor flaws out of the way so that I can get
on with singing the praises of how funny this was. The tight shooting time
probably mean that not every scene could have as many takes as the director
would have wanted and there was the odd line that didn't quite land or quite
have the power it should have. However, although
I remembered that happening a few times, I couldn't remember which scenes or
lines this was as there was usually a cracker a few seconds later, so I really
feel like I’m quibbling. And while lead
actor Graeme McGeagh, playing protagonist Tom Collins, is not likely to be
challenging Daniel Day-Lewis for any awards, he makes up for some occasionally
self-conscious acting with phenomenal comic timing and a lot of screen
charm. The surrounding cast around him
are strong enough anyway that it didn't detract from my enjoyment or
appreciation of the film. And in this
type of film, comic timing is always going to be what makes or breaks the feel
of the film and he nailed it in this respect. For some people, these flaws may be too distracting, but I really do think it was a funny and life-affirming enough film to more than overcome then.
Huge praise has to go the script. It is consistently witty but capable of
throwing in scenes with a real emotional punch to give the film depth as well
and make sure it doesn't have feel trivial, important given the subject matter. It’s not always that common for the comedy in
a film or TV show to consistently come from the spot-on banter between the
characters – you know, actual funny things that actual funny people would say
to each other- but for the non-set piece scenes, that’s where the humour comes
from and they hit it spot on. It feels natural and not forced. Interspersed between these scenes are more fantastical
and equally funny ones – the Practical Guide of the title. Particularly towards the beginning, it
reminded me of Channel 4’s “A Young Person’s Guide to Becoming a Rock Star”
(which can only be a good thing if you’re me). The low budget means there is a sort of “throw
the kitchen sink” in approach to storytelling, an inventive way of keeping it
fresh, meaning we have direct to camera web posts, a live stop-motion fantasy
scene, theatrical re-enactment and animation. All are handled with a sense of imaginative
fun.
The witty script is complemented by a set of well-drawn
characters. I’m not sure Dr Watson is
going to be anyone’s idea of a model psychologist, but Patrick O’Brien is a
riot in the part and the character is a perfect comedy antagonist for Tom.
Annabel Logan doesn't make quirky in a fault (another performer might have
dragged Eve dangerously into Manic Pixie Dream Girl territory), but finds
someone who takes the world in her own terms, determined to have fun with it,
but also bringing back both characters to reality when needed. And Ray Crofter
brings a wry world-weariness along with being the emotional anchor for the
film.
The film deals with a topic that can’t be laughed at in of
itself, another reason why it is important that they made sure the comedy comes from the banter or
occasional absurdity of Tom and his quest rather than making “suicide jokes” as
such, or too much from comedy situations. This film is one with a real love for
life and a belief that everyone has something to live for but also one that
finds a way to acknowledge the reality of what suicide would actually mean. It
certainly doesn't do what it says on the tin. By ensuring that their lead
character is such an engaging and likable person, and a character they clearly
have a lot of affection for, they can get away with going places that a more
serious film or one with a more standoffish persona would not feel
comfortable. They also have the skill to
bring in a few real emotional punches in between – this is not a comedy that
forgets the real world and real consequences.
All in all, this was a lovely low-budget treat, a film made
by people who clearly have a passion for film making, comedy and storytelling
without cynicism or self-indulgence.
Hopefully, in writing at least, this is the start of a long line of
success for the people behind it.
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