''Mustard Bath'' is a 1993 Canadian film written and directed by

Darrell Wasyk Darrell Wasyk (born 18 May 1958 in Edmonton, Alberta) is a Canadian film director. Biography Darrell Wasyk was born in Edmonton, Alberta. He worked extensively in both theatre and opera before making the transition to film. Film Making his fe ...

Plot

Matthew, a young medical student from

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, returns to his birthplace in

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

on receiving a letter from his mother three months after her death. Prompted by his surroundings to sort through the idealized memories of his childhood, Matthew reaches the horrifying realization that he has returned to a world which he was never a part of. Contemporary Guyanese reality highlights the white

colonialist Colonialism is a practice or policy of control by one people or power over other people or areas, often by establishing colonies and generally with the aim of economic dominance. In the process of colonisation, colonisers may impose their relig ...

privilege his family had enjoyed. Retroactively homeless and nostalgically orphaned, he throws himself into his work at an underfunded and under equipped Georgetown hospital, developing a fatherly devotion to Dexter, a young orphaned boy housed at the local orphanage. Matthew spends endless nights with a ghostly old Hungarian woman who stumbles about the hallways of his hotel, spying on him with longing. She offers Matthew the comfort he has been seeking in the memories of his mother, seducing him with cigarettes and warm rum, and terrifying stories of being captured and raped by soldiers of the

Hungarian Revolution of 1956 The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 (23 October – 10 November 1956; hu, 1956-os forradalom), also known as the Hungarian Uprising, was a countrywide revolution against the government of the Hungarian People's Republic (1949–1989) and the Hunga ...

. Slowly, even these marginal connections to reality disintegrated, and Matthew finds himself utterly alone.

Cast

Michael Riley Michael Riley (born February 4, 1962) is a Canadian actor. From 1998 to 2000, he portrayed Brett Parker in ''Power Play''. He has acted in over 40 films and television series, including '' This Is Wonderland'', for which he received a Gemini Awa ...

as Matthew Linden *

Martha Henry Martha Kathleen Henry (née Buhs; February 17, 1938October 21, 2021) was an American-born Canadian stage, film, and television actress. She was noted for her work at the Stratford Festival in Stratford, Ontario. Early life and training Martha ...

as Grace *

Tantoo Cardinal Tantoo Cardinal CM (born Rose Marie Cardinal; July 20, 1950) is a Canadian actress of Cree and Métis heritage. In 2009, she was made a member of the Order of Canada "for her contributions to the growth and development of Aboriginal performing ar ...

as Sister Amantha *

Eddy Grant Edmond Montague Grant (born 5 March 1948) is a Guyanese-British singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, known for his genre-blending sound; his music has blended elements of pop, British rock, soul, funk, reggae, electronic music, Afr ...

as Rasta Fad’dah *

Elizabeth Shepherd Elizabeth Shepherd (born 12 August 1936) is an English character actress whose long career has encompassed the stage and both the big and small screens. Her television work has been especially prolific. Shepherd's surname has been variously ren ...

as Matthew's Mother

Production

''Mustard Bath'' was filmed in

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

. Much of the movie’s soundtrack is credited to

, and features the

Mighty Sparrow Slinger Francisco ORTT CM OBE (born July 9, 1935), better known as Mighty Sparrow, is a Trinidadian calypso vocalist, songwriter, and guitarist. Known as the "Calypso King of the World", he is one of the best-known and most successful calyp ...

’s hit ''No Money for Love''.

Awards

won a Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of Grace at the

15th Genie Awards The 15th Genie Awards were held in 1994. Nominees and winners The Genie Award nominees, with winners in each category shown in bold text: References External links Genie Awards 1994 on imdb {{Canadian Screen Awards 15 Genie Genie J ...

and at WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival the film won a Gold Prize for the Best Dramatic Feature Film.

References

External links

*{{IMDb title, id=0107624, title=Mustard Bath
Yahoo Movies
1993 films Canadian drama films English-language Canadian films Films set in Guyana Films shot in Guyana Films directed by Darrell Wasyk 1990s English-language films 1990s Canadian films