Born to Lose (1999)

Director:

Doug Cawker

Writers:

Doug Cawker (writer)
Howard Roth (writer)

Release Date:

16 February 1999 (Canada)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Music

Plot:

Born to Lose is a shoestring film that takes a pseudo-documentary glipmse into the punk periphery of the Los Angeles music scene and lead singer, Stevie Monroe's odyssey of nihilism. |

Plot Keywords:

Rock Music | Reservoir Dogs | Ramones | Punk Rock | New York Dolls

Cast

Joseph Rye	...	Stevie
Francis Fallon	...	Johnny
Elyse Ashton	...	Lisa
David Goldman	...	Bob
Alex Lange	...	Walter
Wendy Latta	...	Janie
Mo Gallini	...	Bartender (as Matt Gallini)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Laura Niemi	...	Beth Anderson
Mary Ann Schmidt	...	Blonde Groupie

Directed by
Doug Cawker

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Doug Cawker		writer
Howard Roth		writer

Produced by
Doug Cawker	....	producer
John Rhode	....	co-producer
Howard Roth	....	producer

Original Music by
Greg Kuehn

Cinematography by
John Rhode

Film Editing by
Jennifer Calbi
Lawrence A. Maddox

Casting by
Liz Braunstein

Art Direction by
Jennifer Calbi

Makeup Department
Monica Kubina	....	key makeup artist

Sound Department
Rob Disner	....	boom operator

Stunts
Hubie Kerns Jr.	....	stunt coordinator

Camera and Electrical Department
Mike Longo	....	assistant camera
Patrick Murphy	....	assistant camera
Patrick Murphy	....	gaffer

Production Companies

• Astor Place Films

Distributors

• Provisional (1999-2002) (USA)
• Vanguard Cinema (2002-) (USA)
• Asylum, The (Canada)

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Company:

Astor Place Films

Soundtrack:

Criminals

For people who don't like to shop.

A film for punks and would be punks, a story for pukes, assholes and people who think they are neither. It's characters are for people a little tired of the "world mall" we are all forced to live in. It is not a film for people with a "ma and pa" rosey world view . It is not for the puking punks with an "ain't music fun" as they react to their ma and pa's rosey world for the weekend. Back to their real life; Monday at 8:00 am.

This film is for people who believe in something and are struck by the pain of not being able to reach it because they know they are the hurdle that must be over come. This film will dig at a hidden part of any human heart.

This film came from an honest place. Yes, at times, it was very rough in it's presentation (a great tip-off that it wasn't made by some unexamined film school, suburban cog or a son of a big wheel that really should really be a butcher, a baker or a candlestick maker). This film didn't posed (even though some of its characters did.) There was a inner hardness in some of the characters that was presented in a plain manner. Not everyone will like this style.

The events and images are not bright and happy (or even unnecessarily dark) but it has a respect for its subject. This is not another outsiders view of a world that is "cool". This is not another fake mockumentary made with a mind fueled by a Big Gulp diet.

There is no risk in laughing at someone you don't really know.

This film mocks itself. Born to Lose is fuelled by all that can be destructive about booze, drugs and human beings.

It is also not a glorification of a musical rant or a ranting personality. It's the blah, blah, blah of music and one ordinary guy.

Yes, some of the support acting seemed a lot like trying hard to act but somehow that didn't matter to the story or even the characters. There was always this sense of tumbling and falling with the events. It's as if the characters had seen their end - our end - and said screw it, "it just doesn't matter what I think or what I do". A viewer doesn't have to agree or disagree with this P.O.V. because the characters don't care if they do or don't or die.

"Born to Lose" shows you the dog s**t in the middle of the sidewalk and allows you to step around the s**t or jump on it and track it around your own 'hood.

I give it an 8 out of 10 (if this was baseball that would be a batting average of ......? Note: If you can answer a baseball trivia question you should skip this movie and go to the mall - shop or hang-out or shoot a mockumentary, it just doesn't matter.