Standing in line we were approached by an older man who asked if we were there to see The Revenant. We all nodded in the affirmative. He asked us then what we expected. Many of us looked at each other blankly because, to be honest, we didn’t really know what to expect. Part buddy comedy, part Tarantino-esque rampages, part superhero movie, The Revenant seemed a little difficult to get a fix on. Revealing himself to be the filmmaker’s father, the man said that when his son told him what kind of movie he was making, he really had no idea what to expect either. After seeing it at CineVegas, he still didn’t quite know what to make of it, but he sure did like it. It’s true. The Revenant isn’t quite what you expect, it’s just an awesome movie about an undead guy trying to make his way in the world.
The movie opens at Bart’s funeral. Obviously a serviceman who died in the line of duty, we come to find his girlfriend, Janet, crying over his body trying to put a note into his hands. Next we move to the bar where Janet has been joined by Bart’s best friend Joey and their mutual friend Mathilda in a kind of wake that includes Janet weeping over the fact that Bart never asked her to marry him and Joey stringing her along by telling her Bart had him looking at rings. All three of them return home to continue their lives and find their way through the mourning, but Joey gets a special surprise. Three days after his own burial Bart knocks on the door. After getting over his initial shock Joey and Bart try to figure out what’s happening to him, including hilarious trips to the hospital, bouts of violent vomiting and a very bad smell. Finally Joey discovers a definition, not a zombie and not a vampire, Bart is actually a revenant – basically a create that’s got some left over life, but not enough to actually be alive. There are a few problems with Bart’s continuing existence, however. Bart returns to his “dead” state during daylight hours and, more inconveniently, he needs human blood in order to prevent continuing decomposition. As they attempt to solve the human blood problem they discover a new vocation in crime fighting, sort of.
The Revenant is a great movie. It is. It was a shame that it had been sold to me as a “Judd Apatow style buddy comedy mixed with an Edgar Wright movie” before the screening because I wasn’t sure how those two things went together. In fact, they don’t. This movie is smart and has the makings of a classic, but it’s most certainly not a Judd Apatow style buddy comedy with zombies and it bears little resemblance to anything Edgar Wright has ever made. What it is is a damn good story about two long-time friends who come upon a situation that no rational human would ever expect a normal friendship to go. It has some comedic moments for sure but it is actually the story of two people and how a crazy situation changes them. Character development and metamorphosis is actually one of this movie’s strongest attributes. It happens slowly and subtly over the films 110 minutes, but the change in Bart and Joey is there – and it’s powerful.
To be sure the film is a romp, but it gets its heart from two very talented actors who do not only a great job of portraying their individual characters but also of showing of some genuine caring and camaraderie. Chris Wylde who plays Joey and David Anders who plays Bart have a chemistry that most rom-coms who die for but in platonic buddy form. Despite the fact that little of it is shown in the movie the audience can easily see that these two people have been friends for many, many years and have developed the kind of short-hand and bickering style generally reserved for old married couples. It was genuinely the heart of the film and it made all their subsequent actions make so much more sense because without such powerful performances the film would have likely felt hollow.
It should go without saying that the film has brilliant special effects because writer-director D. Kerry Prior has his roots firmly planted in the special effects world, having worked on the Phantasm series, The Abyss, The Lost Boys and the Nightmare on Elm Street series, only to name a few. This was also a big help since some pretty crazy things happen in this movie, many of which rely heavily on the need for a good effect in order for the audience to buy it – and they do.
The Revenant is a very strong showing for Prior whose last directorial effort was in 1996. Whatever he was doing in the time in between was clearly exactly what he needed for this film as it is a great watch with lots of laughs as well as heartfelt friendship. Try not to focus to much on the fact that Bart is likely a zombie-style create and more that he was once human (maybe still is). It’s a satisfying film to spend an evening on. Hopefully your buddies are alive when they watch it, though.
Oh, and Papa Prior should be proud. His son made an awesome movie.
Toronto After Dark runs from August 14 to 21, 2009 at the Bloor Cinema in Toronto. Click here for our coverage.
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