Saturday - Review

Laetitia (Laetitia Villetorte) and Miguel (Carlos Diaz) argue about whether the baby will be delivered in the cab in Alan Powell's Saturday.

Photo: 

Scott Gorman

Saturday starts off as a typical shift in the life of cabbie Miguel but the people he connects with this time turn this into one long night of self-discovery. Who would have thought a working class taxi driver’s life could be so intriguing? It is.

The film itself is only 65 minutes long. Actually make that 65 minutes short because you really don’t want it to end. We meet quirky people whose lives all interconnect in dramatic situations throughout one night.

Our protagonist Miguel is first seen driving through the streets of nighttime Toronto (and yes, it really is Toronto) avoiding phone calls from his Mother (Maria Vacratsis) “Miguel, your mother called again,” says the dispatcher. “You know I don’t take personal calls.” Yah, yah, says Miguel, I’ll call her. And then doesn’t.

He soon picks up stressed lawyer Chris (Chris Owens) who is obviously dressing to impress – although we don’t know for whom. (But we will. Oh boy, will we ever!)

Miguel’s next fare is a very pregnant Spanish-speaking woman, who, it turns out, comes from the town right next to his in their homeland of Chile. She is also planning to be a single mother and Miguel soon finds himself rushing her to the hospital when her water suddenly breaks.

In between, we see Miguel stopping at his own home and realize there is some sort of tension between his father (who we discover is dying) that explains the frantic calls from his mother.

Then there is the Rev. Shurman (Andrew Moodie) who books a ride back to the address of the lawyer who Miguel picked up at the very first; it seems the lawyer and his young fiancé are preparing to get married in a very small civil ceremony.

And round and round it goes.

Writer/director Alan Powell has created quite an intriguing tale of connecting lives and lifestyles with realistic dialogue and believable characters. Nothing is easy or explained. There are no good guys or bad guys. Just people living their lives.

Mr. Powell doesn’t pander to his audience. You never know what problems Miguel had with his father – real or imagined – but it doesn’t matter. The point is they exist for Miguel.

In Mr. Powell’s world, nothing is as it seems and you shouldn’t take anything at face value. There are no easy answers or conclusions in Saturday. Problems exist and nothing is actually resolved. We don’t know if people live happily ever after but we do know that life goes on regardless.

It is actually refreshing to find a writing talent who is prepared to challenge the audience and present real characters in all their shades of gray.

A perfect example of this is Chris Owens’ lawyer (a divorce lawyer, by the way) meeting a woman in one of the city’s finer restaurants. The audience only slowly realizes there is some tension between the two that quickly escalates. They obviously have never met but seem to know about each other. They are around the same age and they are talking about a Mandy, another woman they seem to have in common.

Eventually Sonia (Gina Clayton) asks, “So how long have you been practicing law?” and Chris replies “Twenty three years”.

“Oh, the same age as Mandy”.

Uh oh. The viewer starts to clue in.

Yup, this is Mandy’s mom and they are meeting for the first time. And it is not going well.

This too is not as simple as it seems – an older guy marrying a younger woman. But no. Our lawyer is not a Casanova or looking for a trophy wife. The real stress is between mother and daughter while the lawyer in Chris spends much of the time acting as a referee.

The acting is uniformly excellent and the characters are enjoyable to watch as they bounce off each other; Miguel and his brother Luis (Tony Nappo); Mandy (Renessa Blitz) and her mom Sonia (Gina Clayton) and back to Miguel and the very pregnant Laetitia.

Carlos Diaz bring a quiet dignity and internal conflict to cabbie Miguel while Chris Owens creates a sympathetic romantic soul hiding beneath the three-piece, pin-stripe suit of a button down divorce lawyer. Just wait until you see Gina Clayton freeze the screen as the embittered mother going to battle against her strong willed daughter.

And for anyone who is looking to get married or buried, call actor Andrew Moodie and hire him to appear in the guise of the Rev. Shurman.

This is the guy you want officiating at any ceremony. Mr. Moodie’s reverend is a down-to-earth, practical holy man who you could either confess to or drink with at the local bar. The guy is a delight.

Alan Powell is a self-taught writer and filmmaker who has directed several short films including Urban Legends (a half hour TV series for Discovery Channel) and the animated Z-Squad for Nevana Ltd.

His short film Across the Hall (funded by the NFB and Ontario Arts Council) has won several awards at international festivals. Prior to making films, he owned and operated PNAgency for 10 years where he produced and directed numerous audio productions for clients throughout North America.

By the numbers, according to Mr. Powell, Saturday is a “feature film shot in approximately 45 hours with five crewmembers in seven locations over nine nights with 10 actors.” Whew. All those elements have merged to create “Saturday” - a thoughtful portrait of a city and the people in it.

Hopefully the project will receive wide release so that more people can take a ride in Miguel’s cab.

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With:
Miguel – Carlos Diaz
Chris – Chris Owens
Laetitia – Laetitia Villetorte
Sonia – Gina Clayton
Mandy – Renessa Blitz
Luis – Tony Nappo
Maria – Maria Vacratsis
Rev. Shurman – Andrew Moodie
Waitress – Alessandra Cannito
Nurse – Alison Wilson-Forbes

Written & Directed by: Alan Powell
Director of Photography: Chris Kelly

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