THE LIMB SALESMAN

I saw The Limb Salesman on Tuesday September 14th at 9 am at the Royal Ontario Museum. I was also the first person in line. I should have known that this was a bad sign. Unfortunately, this was one overly-long, boring movie shot in the outskirts of Guelph in the middle of the winter. It began to feel like the winter (and the movie) would never end.

There was conflict in the characters - and by the end of the movie, I didn't even care! The family patriarch has a little too much interest in his adopted daughter, his biological son fights with him to bring more humane conditions to the mine that is owned by the family, the doctor who arrives to provide limbs is missing his own heart, and a nasty love triangle develops.

By the way, I've made this sound more exciting than it really is. This movie has the feel of a "CBC Sunday night movie" production, complete with uninspired, tinny music (probably stolen from 'The Road to Avonlea'); characters that you really don't end up caring about, and a pretty amatuer set-design and costuming effort. The saving grace is the acting of Jackie Burroughs (famous as "Aunt Hetty" from 'Road to Avonlea') as the semi-crazy aunt who helps Clara (the recipient of the limbs) escape to the doctor (a.k.a. "Limb Salesman"). Jackie Burroughs plays the part of a woman who refuses to accept the desolation of the house she lives in, and makes the most of the life that she has left.

All in all, I will be surprised if this movie makes it into wide-release... it really sucks!!!