Quarter 2 Reviews- 006 Contemporary Drama - Old

006 Contemporary Drama – Old 

I am way, way, way behind, but better late than never.  

Someone, Somewhere from 2001 by Pat Davis, directed by Toby Swift, was a beautiful and moving piece in that fuzzy area between drama and feature documentary.  It was the true story of Jessie Earl, a bright, self-aware college student who suddenly went missing in 1980.  The story is told via actuality interviews with her articulate parents, John and Valerie Earl, and through dramatized readings from Jessie’s journal and writings, along with evocative music and sound.  Jessie was missing for nine years before a skeleton was discovered which was eventually found to belong to her.  Her parents speak with remarkable calm about the fact it is likely Jessie was murdered (and her murderer may never be brought to justice).  Indeed, you do believe them when they say that the not knowing what happened to her was the worst part.

I enjoyed Cherry Blossom Whisky Company by Iain Finlay MacLeod.  Naoko Mori (who always seems to be on hand to play Japanese characters; would be nice to see her cast in something as an ethnicity-blind character) was delightful as Sakura, who is visiting the boutique whiskey distillery on Islay, owned by McTaggart (Andy Clark) and his estranged wife Maeve (Leslie Harte).  Sakura has a link to Islay:  her grandmother crofted there before she married a Japanese visitor who learned how to run a whiskey distillery, taking both the methods and his Scottish wife back to Japan.  The family distillery was still going strong until the tsunami of 2011 destroyed everything.  Completely adrift, Sakura has been searching for a home and a new purpose in life.  She never had time for kids or even pets while she was a cutthroat businesswoman; something about Islay makes her think she can stay there.  She has an intriguing relationship with whiskey connoisseur McTaggart and makes a fast friend of local resident Jean (Anne Lacey). And James (Tony Kierney), who runs the bar/restaurant at another distillery, is there to provide the music for the ceilidh (writing “Sakura’s Tune”).  It’s a warm and interesting story of starting over.  Originally from 2014, it was directed by Kirsteen Cameron.