Squeezynz's SDG Insights from the New Zealand Film Festival

When and where did you see theSasquatch Dumpling Gang?
The film was showing as part of the Telecom Wellington Film Festival, under the heading of the "That's Incredible" listing of movies. It was only scheduled to play twice during the festival, once at night, and once during the day. I opted for the daytime session because of the distance needed to travel (an hour each way)and working it around my kids. Also I was hoping the session time (4pm) would mean that only those who 'really' wanted to see the movie would turn up, which as it turned out, was pretty much on the money.

What was it like seeing Jeremy on the big screen again, and how different was this role in comparison to his last feature film role of Peter Pan?
Having not seen Jeremy in anything new on the big screen, or even the small screen (other than watching the snippet's I'd taped off Entertainment shows, or seen shared by other fans etc) since PP, I was pretty excited to see how he'd matured, both physically and as an actor. His role in the film was, strangely enough, not that dissimilar from his role in PP. He plays a young teen, Gavin Gore, still caught up in a fantasy world of role playing where he gets to be a knight in shining armour and battle for his honour. A lot of that spills over into his 'real' life as well, seen when he stands up for his oddball friends and his new friend, a girl who works at the local video shop, Gavin being a regular there. When the girl joins his group, he is forced to defend them and himself from local bullies and dumbass neighbors, both of which knock him down for standing up for himself. That innate sense of loyalty is very strong in his character and you forgive him his conceit and bravado because you know down deep he's really a champion of the weak, only needing a real suit of armour to complete the image.

Describe a favorite scene or moment from SDG.
Goodness there were many great scenes. One of my favourites was when he's trying to teach the new addition to his group how to 'play fight'. He's so PP in that scene, but also he's endearingly such a guy, not letting the girl win, although in fact she gets him good, ("Ouch, my adam's apple!) but he just brushes it off as the luck of a newbie and fights back without giving an inch!!. Then there's the scene in the diner when he's having a kinda first date. The girl has just had her jaw wired shut to help her lose weight (which she didn't need to), and Hobie, starting to get jealous of this budding romance, tags along. You see Gavin feeding her what looks like a fruit smoothy with a teaspoon. He's doing it so matter of fact, despite her getting a thumping great piece of fruit stuck in her braces, and he carries on, not making fun or awkward or anything........(sigh) it was so sweet, even more so because he's so oblivious to Hobie sitting behind him and glowering *LOL*

Do you think SDG was a wise career move for Jeremy, or do you think he should be concentrating on more serious film roles to further his career?
I think this movie was a great vehicle for Jeremy. Despite the dialogue glitches, it showed him to be an actor with a future career on the screen, as in "the big time" eventually. It was a purpose made role for him and played to his strengths, which are looking fantabulous, expressing a range of emotions without appearing to be forced, or false, and able to do the physical acting while looking relaxed and natural. Yes, I would like to see him in more serious roles, but at the moment, he is fresh and beautiful and I wouldn't want him to get hard, or brittle just to further his film career. Maturity will come with age and experience soon enough. He can do serious, Local Boys proved that, as did PP, so he doesn't have to prove anything. Despite the rather horrible subject of his next movie and his character Coy Hubbard, I think Jeremy will give it the same level of intensity as he does all his roles. He's a natural.

Having not seen Napoleon Dynamite (but knowing ND and SDG were similar in tone and humor), did this film surprise you in any way?
Frankly, I thought the film premise and style rather silly. But that said, it had a certain charm of it's own, and maybe because it was so artless and silly, it made you work more as an audience to let go of my usual cynical attitude and just embrace the humour and the quirky characters. Some could dismiss this movie as a bunch of jerky kids and air-head characters running around and being stupid, and they would be right. But when you got into the movie and looked past the nitwit neighbours, boorish bullies and airhead adults, there were several issues being addressed and messages being delivered that redeemed all the sillyness, at least in my eyes. All the interactions between Gavin and his circle of friends are honest and endearing, his new relationship with his wannabe girlfriend are sweet and supportive and you just want to hug him when he defends her against all comers. If you leave aside the machinations of the adults, the kids are interacting just as you expect kids of that age to, with all the awkwardness and sometimes pettiness of teens working their way through life's lessons. Sometimes you found yourself laughing, not because a scene was particularly funny, but because you could see yourself as that 'haven't-got-a-clue' teenager, or because you've been in that situation yourself and understand and sympathise

Who was your favorite character in the movie, and why?
Need you ask??? To be brutally honest, there was only one reason I went to see this movie.......Jeremy. And I'm very glad I did. The camera just loves him, and you find yourself watching him in every scene just for the sake of watching his expressions and mannerisms. I suppose that sounds kind of obsessed (cringes) but when all said and done, he made this movie. The other characters were so extreme in their motivations and reactions, that you needed the more natural and down to earth characters of Gavin and his friends to give the movie some heart and emotion. And Jeremy really does look good in this film.
I even forgive him for leaving his mouth open half the time *LOL*.

Judging by the audience reaction at your screening, and your own feelings towards the movie, what do you think is SDG's potential at the box office? Will it be a success? SHOULD it be a success?
I think that it should be put on general release, as long as the critics leave their cynicism at the door and view the film with fresh eyes. Yes it is silly, and yes the acting is over the top in places, but it has a message for both adults and kids and it certainly worthy of a wider audience. No I wouldn't take my mother to see it, she'd have walked out within the first fifteen minutes, but I would take my girls to see it, and I think they would thoroughly enjoy it. It's a movie I'd class as a sleeper hit, not a blockbuster, but certainly worth seeing more than once. It's not a sophisticated film, and not a terribly clever film....but in this day and age of horror and so-called sophistication (read sex, drugs and betrayal of love and loyalty) I would say it has a place and should be available to a wider audience to appreciate. Its a keeper.

Name one thing that you felt the film could have improved upon.
Oh dear. Okay......well......dialogue and delivery. As I've mentioned in my other reviews, Jeremy doesn't deliver his lines very clearly. Most of his lines are okay and you can understand him, but some of them are just plain garbled. He's not alone in this. The character Shirts has the strangest accent and his delivery is dead-pan. Funny, sure, when you first hear it, even though you have no idea what he's saying...but then it starts to get annoying, as affected voices do. I'm sure there were many funny throw away lines in this movie that were just missed because they were simply unintelligible. Fortunately, this is not a particularly clever film, so not hearing all the dialogue is not very important. When you need to hear what the characters are saying, you can. When you can't, it's usually not crucial to the plot.

If /when SDG is released in theaters in New Zealand, are you planning on seeing the movie again?
Yes sirreee......I'll be first in the queue. (I was second in the door for the festival screening) My girls will be there too, just a little further down the queue so as not to be embarrassed by their obsessed mother hopping up and down and waving her ticket in the air!!! *LOL*

There's been some debate as to who the main character(s) are in the movie. How pivotal is Jeremy's role in the film, and what is his place in the storyline?
The story is largely told in flashback from different characters points of view. This means that some of the scenes are repeated, just from different angles or perspectives. Because Jeremy's characters is the most natural, and there by underplayed of all them, it doesn't seem as if he's the main player in the story, but in fact, he's on screen for nearly 75% of the time. Sure the other characters are louder, more zany and in-your-face, but it is Jeremy's character that is the common thread between them all, which in my book makes him the Main Character.
It is exactly because he is the least CRAZY of all the characters that makes him stand out and so watchable. He's just plain ADORABLE, and you so want to squish him for being so nice and supportive of his friends when he defends them against the bullies.

Why should people, Jeremy fans and non-Jeremy fans alike, go see this movie?
Because it is different, it is fresh and naive and a change from the usual run-of-the-mill movies about teens and growing up. It is funny, and you find yourself laughing in spite of yourself. It touches something innocent so that you forgive the film it's silliness and just enjoy seeing the bully's routed, the daft adults not diminished in their own, or their peers eyes, the development of a first-love/crush relationship to a very satisfying conclusion, and most of all, a genuine Happy Ending all round.

Best of all, you leave the theatre with a smile on your face. Can't ask for better than that.