WATCH THE TRAILER BELOW
First, the Recap:
Human error. It’s pretty much a guarantee that ALL of us will have more than our fair share of this over the course of our lives. As they often say, “To err IS human”. However, the degree that said mishaps or poor choices impact US may pale when compared to a mistake that cost OTHERS as well. Then it becomes a question about how we find a way to move forward and hope time will indeed heal all wounds–maybe. For air traffic controller (and established club singer) Kim (Stacie Mistysyn), it will only take ONE series of instances while on the job to alter her mindset forever. Striving to get over the circumstances and experience inner peace away from the crushing guilt she’s clinging to, further upheaval in her life threatens to unwind everything good she might have left–unless events can be turned for the betterment of not only her, but those she truly cares for.
Next, my Mind:
Unforeseen, drastic, and sobering realities clash with the perceived and deeply sought after expectations for a better life as well as the burdens of accountability and managing a self-critical headspace through this newly completed indie feature film from writer/director/producer Simon Boisvert who’s previously given us a well-grounded drama about love’s perils and victories in 2016’s “Love or Lust” and a personal viewpoint of the challenging truths about indie filmmaking via his 2019 documentary “Bold & Brash: Filmmaking Boisvert Style“. Now, the filmmaker returns with a straight-up dramatic effort that immerses us in the tangled web of upended responsibility and the cost of believing that “all will be well” when continued involvement in bad deeds is in play and the realizations of what SHOULD be happening finally gets acknowledged and acted upon with the outcomes never clearly known or anticipated.
The narrative that sees these elements focused on in the context of one woman’s tumultuous journey through it all and her ideal yearning for everything to end up working out to her benefit, the film is executed with very purposeful pacing, timing in at a very reasonable, concise, and intelligently laid out 98-minute runtime that keeps the story moving ahead without stalling out with any unnecessary “fluff” or overtly grandiose plot twists to muddle thing up. Rather, we’re propelled through the narrative in a manner that easily manages to cover all its intended thematic intents and moral lessons fluidly and impactfully with a combination of mild edginess, minor comedic flourishes, and nicely presented emotional quotients that leave you fulfilled as a viewer while taking in a seriously cautionary tale that unequivocally treats its foundational topics with compelling and entertainingly engaging flair.
Shady business dealings, broken marriages, manipulative personal relationships, unfulfilled dreams, the price paid for lies and deception, the redemption or damaging actualities associated with choices made, seeking help vs. pushing people away, and ultimately the seeking of total absolution and tangible, REAL happiness all take their place amidst the story here, explored realistically and with solidly written aim, prompting us to very much consider the enlightening truths and conspicuous warnings it all conveys, leading up to a finale that puts a highly emphatic exclamation point on events we’ve witnessed and most definitely leaves a lasting impression on you. Visually the film is well done, I felt even more professional looking overall than Boisvert’s previous efforts I’ve seen (which weren’t at ALL bad, mind you), and the camera wonderfully embraces the characters throughout with smoothly shot, steady, clearly astute work.
Even though this wasn’t my first rodeo with Boisvert, it was my introduction to lead actress Mistysyn who more than provides a wholly credible, energetic, and fully adept performance as Kim, a flight controller haunted by a major mistake she made when on the job and is now spending time both being weighed down by culpability in the matter while simply wishing to move forward and get the rest of her stormy life in order. Yet, even as she gains an inkling this MIGHT be coming around, a revelation about the man she’s involved with and his business dealings causes her to be ensnared in even more trouble that she now must make decisions that will impact her entire future and hopes for solace again. What I appreciate is that there was plenty of room in the narrative for Mistysyn to have potentially exuded too much emotional attitude that would have then caused melodramatic delivery and made the character of Kim a tad overblown.
Instead, the actress maintains an excellent magnitude of control over her presentation and the character’s demeanor so that all the fluctuating volatility Kim faces is actually feasible and believable to witness, lending the viewer to both root FOR and even sometimes AGAINST the character as the plethora of choices she makes span a wide range of logical and panicked situationally-driven facets. This critic enjoyed this first time watching Mistysyn and her acting talents on screen. Likewise, I have to say the same thing about David La Haye as Charlie, a dubious and shady man who’s involved with Kim and whose work arrangements are beyond questionable when someone digs into it all. Trying his best to be “the man” for Kim and the solution to all of HER problems AND dreams of an advancing future, Charlie’s cockiness could end up being his downfall, exposing truths that would especially put people’s financial stability in complete and total jeopardy.
The beauty OF this style of character is in how La Haye plays him, infusing Charlie with such a blatantly weaselly nature that he attempts to hide beyond equally severe self-promotion self-serving, and “I’m a female magnet” confidence plus demonstrating he’s supposedly some kind of invincible financial wizard which all belies what are most likely the shortcomings as a human being that he possesses. La Haye embodies Charlie with full-out, entertaining, and purposefully over-the-top bravado that completely and smartly befits the character. It’s one of those “love/hate” relationships with a character, and speaks a lot to La Haye’s skills. Primary supporting turns begin with Bruce Dinsmore as Jeff, a local cop and someone who’s directly involved with Kim as well–much to both her and Charlie’s initial frustration and growing impatience with. Dinsmore’s “everyman” performance is perfection for the narrative and its directions taken, on top of being straightforward and grounded.
Diana Lewis is Tonya, one–eccentric–individual and a woman whose connection with Charlie is both seemingly intimate and a bit creepy but also holds a deeper truth that is to be unearthed as the story progresses. Lewis is a mix of sass, silliness, and simmering focus that plays out to great effect here. Additional key supporting roles arrive from Marcel Jeannin as Bob, Kim’s boss who tries his level best to aid Kim through the tumult she’s facing after the incident at work occurs, Genevieve StLouis is Wanda, Charlie’s actual better half who we’re not always sure realizes to the fullest extent what kind of man Charlie is (OR maybe she DOES!), Peter Miller as Andy, a veteran detective at Jeff’s station who ends up embroiled in a building circumstance his services will be required for, Kayleigh Choiniere and Dario Gasbarro are Theresa and Barry, investigators looking into the incident Kim was a part of at work, and Vitali Makarov as Roger, a desperate man whose tie to events gets shown in a key and shocking moment.
Multiple supporting appearances are also made by James Gallanders, James Rae, Charles Bender, Doug Price, Fariba Bonakdar, Roxane Tremblay-Marcotte, Fred Eric Salvail, Methushaleme Dary, Christian Paul, Anana Rydvald, and Hayley Ezber. So, in total, “Charlie Tango”, with its title referencing both aviation designations AND (maybe?) a playful poke at the “dance” that is occurring in the narrative, is another proficiently achieved piece of indie filmmaking that does what it should do to magnificent effect–entertain while providing legitimately plausible lessons to take away from it and ponder, more so in the aspect it showcases that even when bad choices are made that we end up unduly blaming ourselves for and can find amnesty from might not always mean that everything will be better in the end.
STAR RATING (out of 5):
As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
