Director: Robert Cuffley (Turning Paige)
Screenplay: Robert Cuffley, Jason Long
Producers: Carolyn McMaster
Starring: Leelee Sobieski, Tricia Helfer, Lothaire Bluteau, Jacob Tierney, Michael Adamthwaite, Michael Eklund, Ross McMillan
MPAA Rating: 14A
Running time: 98 min.

Stories of women getting out of small town life are nothing new but it’s quite possible that we’ve never seen one quite like this.

To some success, Walk All Over Me takes the traditional “young woman moves to the big city and ‘makes it’” story and attempts to turn it on its ear by adding a few unexpected twists. Directed by Robert Cuffley, the film starts Leelee Sobieski as Alberta, a young woman who, from the opening scene, always seems to be in some kind of trouble. She narrowly escapes a beating and randomly ends up on a bus which is headed to Vancouver. She pleads for mercy and the driver allows her to hitch a ride. Surprisingly, it happens that Alberta has a friend who lives in Vancouver, a woman who appears to be fairly well settled. Said woman is none other than Tricia Helfer in the role of Celine and immediately, we know there’s something not quite typical about her and I don’t just mean her amazing good looks. Again, rather quickly, we realize that Celine is a dominatrix and Alberta appears to be an un-welcomed guest. At this point we are barely into the film and we already know something bad is going to happen. What we are not yet aware of is just how funny that something is going to be but I’ll give you a hint: it includes costumes, whips, funny looking contraptions, duct tape and money. Lots of money.

It’s clear early on that Robert Cuffley and Jason Long’s script is pretty smart. Twenty minutes into the film they have clearly introduced all of the key players, established a large portion of the plot and still managed to infuse the story with some fairly oddball but funny moments. Though the inclusion of S&M is contrived to provide an avenue for comedic relief, it manages to work because it also moves the story along while providing an innovative take on the typical crime drama. Unfortunately, the last half of the film goes hyperactive and the oddball turns into weird and it’s at this point where I started to lose interest. Strangely, at the point where the story starts to go south, the performances really start to kick in.

What impressed me most about the film is the amount of talent on screen. Tricia Helfer is used to playing the dominating woman and she’s wonderfully tough and appropriately soft as Celia. Leelee Sobieski does a great job of playing the young, unsure and naïve Alberta but I must admit that she didn’t impress me much with her performance. The supporting cast is what really makes the film worth watching. From Lothaire Bluteau (who I – to my own surprise - recognized as Daniel from Jésus de Montréal) playing the wronged mobster Rene, his two henchmen, played by Michael Eklund and Michael Adamthwaite, bring a great deal of comedy to every scene they’re in (though Adamthwaite lays on the bad guy bit pretty strongly and he certainly looks the part). Most notable mention to Ross McMillan as Spencer, the strange man who appears at the most inopportune times and in the most inappropriate attire.

Walk All Over Me isn’t just a fun movie to watch, it’s also one that is well put together. Cuffley’s second feature film shows great promise and talent. The director has a keen eye for capturing action but most impressive is his interesting use of the camera. Though occasionally showy for the material at hand, Cuffley shows that he’s not afraid to play with unconventional techniques while at the same time, proving that he is quite capable of putting together wonderful scenes. One which is most memorable is a simple overhead shot of a fight that spills from inside of a house into the small front yard. Though it doesn’t bring attention to itself, that scene couldn’t not have been easy to shoot but Cuffley makes it look easy.

Although Walk All Over Me flounders a little in the second half, it still manages to be a pretty funny, if unconventional film. Part crime drama, part comedy and all Canadian, it’s one well worth a re-visit on DVD.

Links:
IMDb profile - full cast and crew
Official Site
Flixster Profile for ATONEMENT