How To Make Money Selling Drugs Reviewed by Tim Grierson


Presented as a slick, satiric instructional film about the ben- efits of getting into the drugs game, the documentary How To Make Money Selling Drugs turns out to be a far more sobering and substantial piece of work than one might expect. As a companion piece of sorts to Eugene Jarecki’s forthcoming doc The House I Live In, which also criticises the US’s failed war on drugs, writer-director Matthew Cooke’s film is strikingly clear-eyed about the allure of drug dealing, the rampant demand for illegal substances, the horrors of addiction and the hypocrisy of government drug policy. Screening in the TIFF Docs section, How To Make Money


will appeal to arthouses and especially to those fighting to change drug criminalisation laws. Celebrity talking heads including Susan Sarandon, Eminem and 50 Cent could see the film attract some mainstream attention as well. As the film opens, Cooke provides a narration asking the


Quartet Reviewed by Mark Adams


Dustin Hoffman’s directorial debut is an affectionate, mov- ing and charming film that offers a series of wonderful roles for a distinguished cast of veteran UK performers as it dwells on ageing set against the backdrop of a home for retired musical performers. The sheer quality of the cast should secure strong releases and respectful critical atten- tion, with awards nominations a very real possibility. Scripted by Ronald Harwood, and based on his stage play,


Quartet offers standout roles for Maggie Smith, Billy Con- nolly, Tom Courtenay and Pauline Collins (as well as a pleth- ora of other tasty supporting parts) and while Hoffman is clearly comfortable with the tale of old musical performers coming towards the end of the years, he smartly restrains from showy directorial flourishes, instead setting up some beautifully composed shots (working with cinematographer John de Borman) and letting his actors do what they do best. Hoffman does, though, seem to relish shooting the ele-


gant and beautiful UK locations — residents live in an opu- lent retirement home with lush grounds, and some of his set-ups outside the manor house are lovingly staged. It is intriguing he chose such a British story — and associated bouts of localised humour — but he makes a fine debut. Retired opera singers and lifelong friends Reggie (Courte-


nay), Cissy (Collins) and Wilf (Connolly) live in the home with other old folks, all of whom once worked in the music world. There is plenty of singing, instrument playing and banter (rather like scenes from Fame, but for the elderly), with former stage director Cedric Livingston (played with relish by Michael Gambon) planning an annual Verdi con- cert that will raise much-needed funds for the home. But life is thrown into mild disarray — for Cissy, Reggie


and Wilf at least — with the arrival of Jean Horton (Smith), the fourth singer in their original quartet, who was once married to Reggie… for a few hours. Subsequent comedy and drama revolve around whether


Jean and Reggie can resolve their old differences, whether Jean can be convinced to sing in the Verdi concert, and whether Jean can adjust to life in the home. It comes as no surprise that Smith is at her withering best


delivering barbed comments to those around her, while Courtenay is intelligent and dignified as a man still in love with her. Collins delivers heart and warmth — which is a nice balance to the plethora of engagingly eccentric elderly performers around her — though perhaps best of all is Con- nolly as a wise-cracking, fruity charmer whose performance gives the film its energy and fresh humour.


n 12 Screen International at Toronto September 10, 2012


SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS


UK. 2012. 97mins Director Dustin Hoffman Production companies BBCFilms, DCM Productions, Headline Pictures,Finola Dwyer Productions, Decca International sales HanWayFilms, www.hanwayfilms.com ProducersFinola Dwyer, Stewart Mackinnon Executive producers JamieLaurenson, Dario Suter, Christoph Daniel, Marc Schmidheiny, Dickon Stainer, Thorsten Schumacher, Xavier Marchand, Dustin Hoffman Screenplay Ronald Harwood, based on his play Cinematography John de Borman Editor Barney Pilling Production designer Andrew McAlpine Music Dario Marianelli Main cast Maggie Smith, Tom Courtenay, Billy Connolly, Pauline Collins, Michael Gambon, Sheridan Smith, Andrew Sachs, Gwyneth Jones


viewer if he or she wants a lucrative job without much expe- rience or education. From there, How To Make Money offers a step-by-step process detailing how anyone can eventually become a drug lord. Each step features interviews with experts (including former drug dealers and law enforcement officers) so the viewer can avoid possible pitfalls (such as incarceration or death) and become successful. At first, How To Make Money’s structure seems little more


than a gimmick. But as the film rolls along, it becomes obvi- ous Cooke is utilising the flashy graphics to lull the viewer into buying the movie’s get-rich-quick premise. And he has gathered some colourful former dealers to tell their stories, which demonstrate just how inviting and, frankly, logical drug trafficking can seem for those who are determined, crafty and desperate enough to make a quick fortune. There is an argument to be made that How To Make Mon-


ey’s slick exterior undermines the seriousness of its subject matter, but Cooke’s deceptively entertaining packaging is skilfully handled, moving from satire to empathy and anger for the lives destroyed in the drug wars. And while Cooke clearly favours decriminalisation, he does


not shy away from the devastation addiction can bring (sev- eral of the film’s former dealers speak eloquently about the years they lost to addiction, and Eminem is particularly mov- ing when describing his struggles). There may not be much new information about the idiocy of the war on drugs in How To Make Money, but with its calm focus and emotional wal- lop, its argument has rarely been so effectively rendered.


TIFF DOCS


US. 2012. 95mins Director/screenplay/ cinematography Matthew Cooke Production companies Bert Marcus Productions, Reckless Productions International sales ICM Partners, www. icmtalent.com Producers Bert Marcus, Adrian Grenier Editors Matthew Cooke, Jeff Cowan Music Spencer Nezey With 50 Cent, ‘Freeway’ Rick Ross, David Simon, Russell Simmons, Eminem, Susan Sarandon, Woody Harrelson


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