Metro Cinema Society: Monkey Warfare

Monkey Warfare

Canada 2006, 75 min, 35mm, Dir: Reginald Harkema

Director Reginald Harkema takes us to a ramshackle house in Toronto, where bohemians Dan (Don McKellar) and Linda (Tracy Wright) eke out an existence scavenging in garbage dumps and rummaging through yard sales. Their evenings are spent getting listlessly baked and staring silently into space. But as the film opens, tragedy strikes: their dealer has been busted. Enter the enigmatic young Susan (Nadia Litz), a winsome hipster who rescues Dan from the perils of sobriety by offering him organically-grown BC bud. Her arrival re-invigorates Dan, and he clumsily tries to seduce her with counterculture memorabilia, though there's an air of mystery about her... Monkey Warfare is driven by a sly comic take on bohemia, counterculture politics, and disillusionment. Equal parts political comedy, elegy, and domestic drama, Monkey Warfare exudes considerable scruffy charm, much of it due to the performers' evident glee. Co-hosted by Edmonton Bicycle Commuters Society. Preceded by All Canadian!