ScreenFish

where faith and film are intertwined

Domestic Violence

Custody – A Child’s Pain in Divorce

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Custody is a moving look at the pain that can come from a family disintegration—especially as that pain manifests in a child. Mariam (Léa Drucker) and Antoine (Denis Ménochet) are divorcing. The key issue to be decided is the custody arrangement for their son Julien (Thomas Gioria). Antoine has changed jobs to be close to Julien and be a part of his life. (A daughter, who is about to turn 18 and gain adulthood, is not included in the arrangements.) Mariam would just as soon have Antoine far away from her family. While the specter of physical abuse is alluded to, there is not compelling evidence to substantiate it. When the judge determines that she can’t tell “which of you is the bigger liar”, she grants joint custody with Antoine getting weekend visits.

Julien wants nothing to do with his father. When he is forced to go with him for a weekend, he is sullen and silent. Antoine may understand that it will take time to rebuild a relationship with his son, but he quickly becomes impatient and vindictive. This pushes Julien into a deeper sullenness. Mariam does what she can to try to protect Julien, but soon the relationships deteriorate. The film does a good job of letting our discomfort grow as things edge slowly to a violent climax.

To what extent to we consider the parent-child relationship sacrosanct? In the opening courtroom scene, as the judge listens to Antoine, Mariam, and their attorneys, Antoine’s case is that he desires to be a part of his son’s life and provide a fatherly role. It sounds good, but there are clouds even at this stage of the story that make us wonder if it is appropriate. One of those hints is the written statement by Julien in which he says he wants nothing to do with his father. After the judge reads the statement, it is essentially ignored—as children often are in society.

This film also brings forward the issue of domestic violence and the damage it does to families, especially when it remains hidden.

Photos courtesy of Kino Lorber

Taking Off the Mask: An Interview with Brett Granstaff

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The Masked Saint, Brett GranstaffBrett Granstaff is no stranger to the silver screen. He’s acted and produced alongside some of Hollywood’s best in films like Vice and Black Mass.  In his latest project, The Masked Saint, Granstaff plays Chris Samuel, a pastor who lives a double life of a professional wrestler.  I recently had the opportunity to talk with him about the film and the lessons one can expect to get out of it.

Granstaff was motivated to take the lead role in The Masked Saint after reading Chris Whaley’s book of the same name, where the pastor detailed his adventures and lessons of preaching by day and wrestling by night. His first reaction was, “A pastor that doesn’t turn the other cheek?  Wait.  Is this real?”  People tend to put pastors on pedestals, and the book reminded him they’re people like everyone else. In addition, it immediately made the kid in him come out—you know, the kid who watched WWF (now WWE) and NWA matches on Saturday mornings and perhaps went to see Hulk Hogan or Ric Flair in person. To make it more authentic, Granstaff did his own stunts for the film, so you’ll see him actually wrestling as he plays the role of The Saint.

One unique aspect of The Masked Saint involves the film’s casting—specifically ‘Rowdy’ Roddy Piper, who plays the role of Nicky, a wrestling promoter. Sadly, Piper passed away before the movie came out, but Granstaff noted that he was a fantastic actor and impressed everyone with his graciousness and humility. Piper made time to talk to everyone while on set—even fans who showed up on occasion to see the famous wrestler.

Recently, series such as Daredevil have featured protagonists who live double lives with their nighttime persona being a hero who helps others in their times of need.  Grandstaff’s character in The Masked Saint is similar, prompting me to ask him if he thought the movie was in the same vein as these series. People have noticed a similarity, but he notes the film was never conceived in that manner. Instead, he likened it to a battle of David versus Goliath, specifically with the contrasts of light/dark, various physical sizes of the wrestlers and other actors, and one person confronting and taking down an unstoppable force.

I asked Granstaff about a common issue that tends to plague faith-based films: showing/telling too much and not allowing the audience to think. At this point, he shared that in most films of this nature, the director and writers (of which he is one) often preach to the choir and beat people over the head with specific points. His goal was to provide multiple themes that are more subtle in nature (he gave the topics of bullying, domestic violence, faith, and judgmental attitudes as examples), allowing everyone to take something away from the film. “A good movie can reach all kinds of people,” he added. Two ways this was accomplished in The Masked Saint involved higher production values and authentic situations—including scenes in the locker room—that offered a more realistic feeling.

In the end, the test will be whether audiences come out to support the film and recommend it to their friends and family. By offering a non-syrupy movie that shows both sides of situations in day-to-day life, Granstaff hopes The Masked Saint will accomplish just that.

The film opens in theaters starting January 8th, 2016.