''A Problem with Fear, or Laurie's Anxiety Confronting the Escalator'' is a 2003
absurdist comedy film by Canadian film-maker
Gary Burns.
Plot
Laurie Harding (
Paulo Costanzo) is a small shop clerk in the local
Calgary
Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...
mall. His world is full of tragic accidents - crosswalks, elevators, escalators and virtually anything associated with
commercialism
Commercialism is the application of both manufacturing and consumption towards personal usage, or the practices, methods, aims, and distribution of products in a free market geared toward generating a profit. Commercialism can also refer, positivel ...
or technology is parodied as objects of fear and tragedy.
An elevator plunges 30 stories. A woman's scarf is caught in an escalator, strangling her to death. A man is struck by a car, right before Laurie had the premonition to not cross.
His own world is full of fear of these very events, his predictions of them, and his dependence on his less-than-sympathetic sister, Michelle (
Camille Sullivan).
Michelle heads product development at the company Global Safety Inc., whose mission is to provide products to combat the "Fear Storm" which assails the city. With their "Early Warning 2 Safe System tm", the PDA-like device warns you of danger ahead of time and the "Safe Bracelet tm" senses your fear and allows you to beep for help.
Along with Laurie's prophetic powers, and the endless onslaught of accidents, the movie is full of absurd events: a mall announcer who continually requests a speaker of x foreign language - without any apparent reason; the same mall's population which slowly dwindles, being virtually empty by the film's end; an entire classroom population which is accosted simultaneously by hiccups;
Some of these are more apparently
satirical
Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming or e ...
of
pop culture
Pop or POP may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Music
* Pop music, a musical genre Artists
* POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade
* Pop!, a UK pop group
* Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band
Albums
* Pop (Gas al ...
: to comfort himself, Laurie repeats commercial refrains, such "
Rice-A-Roni
Rice-A-Roni is a pilaf-like boxed food mix that consists of rice, vermicelli pasta, and seasonings. To prepare, the rice and pasta are browned in butter, then water and seasonings are added and simmered until absorbed. It is a product of Quak ...
, the
San Francisco treat"; his girlfriend, Dot (
Emily Hampshire), does a survey on "how the clothes you wear define you" - one she both detests and is obsessed by.
These events are framed by the pretextual plot of Laurie conquering his fears — and by extension, the fears of those around him. However, by the film's end, it is doubtful that anything has been changed or achieved.
Cast
*
Paulo Costanzo as Laurie
*
Emily Hampshire as Dot
*
Willie Garson as Erin
*
Keegan Connor Tracy as Vicky
*
Camille Sullivan as Michelle
*
Benjamin Ratner as Alan
*Jennifer Clement as Tina
*James McBurney as Bill
*
Marnie Alton
Marnie Alton is a fitness expert and the Founder and CEO of M/BODY studio and exercise technique.
She is originally from Alberta Canada, this prairie girl grew up immersed in music, theatre and dance. After graduating from The Canadian Colleg ...
as Daphne
*
Melba Montgomery as the escalator lady
External links
*
2003 films
Canadian comedy films
2003 comedy films
Canadian independent films
Films directed by Gary Burns
Canadian satirical films
English-language Canadian films
Films shot in Calgary
Films shot in Montreal
Films set in Calgary
2000s English-language films
2000s Canadian films
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