Hey, Happy!

I can't express into words how much I love this unique piece of gay film making. It's the kind of film that makes me smile through every line and every action. A handsome cast and a romantic story. There is one bit of shock cinema, but it doesn't take away from the experience for myself. I know others will gasp.

I saw this film the summer of 2001 and I just got it on DVD...It's even better the second time, only because it's filled with creative eye candy and suberb shooting...Did I mention I loved this film?

what utter and complete garbage this hideous film was. i don't know when "subversive" officially became synonymous with "aimlessly ambling, pointless mess which attempts to shock in the most embarrassing and obvious ways," but if it has, then call this subversive, i guess. watching the director's pathetic attempts to provoke the audience - using no more sophisticated tactics than your average episode of 'jackass' - was truly painful. nice cinematography, though.

As I watched this movie, it seemed to me like it was almost an alternate version of a mythological or biblical tale, although a specific tale does not come to mind. Set in empty junkyards of Winnipeg, Sabu works in a pornography store and we view him as he approaches the end of his quest to sleep with 2000 men (which is eased by the fact that he works at a porno store). For his final conquest, he desires someone special and has chosen the eccentric character Happy to be his 2000th lover. Throughout out all of this, the town in impending doom as a flood of biblical proportions approaches.

Noam Gonick seems to be quite influenced by the works of John Waters for this film as we are introduced to many Waters-like characters, such as the villain Spanky (Godson delivers a great performance), a mentally unstable man who only wants affection. Moreover, the atmosphere that Gonick creates is mystical and natural. The scenes are all set outdoors including the porno shop, the hair saloon, and the ravers club.

One of the most noteworthy aspects of the film is the cinematography. The shots are all well established and done in a tasteful manner. As the flood gets closer and closer, the mood of the film is changed through different camera shots and lighting. On another note, the soundtrack of the movie is worth mentioning as it helps set the tone and mood of the movie, yet is enjoyable to listen to as well.

Story is about the least important thing going on in the movie. Gonick does take this movie as more of a chance to show his crazy friends, drug addicts, transsexuals, and homosexuals, as it is to tell a story. While Gonick does this tastefully, he occasionally tests the patience of his viewer by making several scenes longer than they should be. Moreover, while the movie is eccentric, certain scenes go too far and leave the viewer wondering what is actually happening.

All and all, `Hey! Happy' is an enjoyable film to watch, and will leave the viewer feeling good at the end.

There may be a basis for the common opinion that Canadian movies are dark, dreary and slow-moving, but Hey Happy! leaves at least the last two behind in the prairie dust. Even the movie's darkness is the kind that only underlines the mad joy, the elated wild abandon that fuels this surreal tale of sex, drugs and electronic music on the eve of Winnipeg's apocalypse. The sheer power of the film's hope-through-hedonism ethic lifts a gay rave frolic into one of the most subversive, and therefore one of the most important, movies I have ever seen.

I was made giddy watching this film, and I think the more tuned into this specific type of camp you are the more you'll enjoy it. The movie is certainly not for everyone, and like an early John Waters movie it relies quite heavily on gross-outs -- like intestine-eating and rape with a dildo -- for its effect. A lot of the acting teeters on the edge of self-mockery. (Though I think the main over-the-top performance of the Spanky O'Niel character, reminiscent of Cathy Moriarty in "Casper," is deliciously psychotic.) However, unlike a Waters movie there isn't a lot of political subversion in the film -- unless a character who wants to sleep with 2,000 men is meant to be taken as a jab at gay promiscuity. The soundtrack is pretty entertaining, some of the cinematography is quite striking, and I liked the way it incorporated the Great Flood of Winnipeg into its storyline. 7/10