I came to this movie with no expectations, no preconceptions. It was a shot in the dark and I had no idea what the movie was about . . . not even a description on a DVD box as it was a mail rental.
It started out rather slowly and had the predictable "low-budget Canadian film" look to it. I was not sure I was going to watch it through to the end. But it gradually became clear that it was a story of a post-adolescent's downward spiral into schizophrenia and became more gripping as the movie progressed.
I worked with a man who developed this disease later in life than usual and some of the movie rang very true to my memories of the unhappy events that befell my colleague. The bizarre behaviour, paranoid delusions, the denial that anything is wrong and a refusal to accept treatment are facets of schizophrenia that I witnessed. They are all in this movie.
In the end I was glad I watched the movie and was thoroughly absorbed with the characters.
I was left with a feeling of profound pity for the people suffering from this disease.
Drummer Boy will never have the exposure and laurels of A Beautiful Mind but it seems to me a worthy and realistic effort to bring the pain and fear of schizophrenia to the screen. For that I would give it a ten. For "entertainment" value it must be rated lower.
It started out rather slowly and had the predictable "low-budget Canadian film" look to it. I was not sure I was going to watch it through to the end. But it gradually became clear that it was a story of a post-adolescent's downward spiral into schizophrenia and became more gripping as the movie progressed.
I worked with a man who developed this disease later in life than usual and some of the movie rang very true to my memories of the unhappy events that befell my colleague. The bizarre behaviour, paranoid delusions, the denial that anything is wrong and a refusal to accept treatment are facets of schizophrenia that I witnessed. They are all in this movie.
In the end I was glad I watched the movie and was thoroughly absorbed with the characters.
I was left with a feeling of profound pity for the people suffering from this disease.
Drummer Boy will never have the exposure and laurels of A Beautiful Mind but it seems to me a worthy and realistic effort to bring the pain and fear of schizophrenia to the screen. For that I would give it a ten. For "entertainment" value it must be rated lower.
