Local screenwriter
Michael Sparaga is looking to overturn the idea that
in order to be a truly Canadian film, a movie must be
obscure and artsy.
Sparaga penned Sidekick, an independent superhero film
that stars Daniel Baldwin alongside young Canadian up-and-comers
Perry Mucci, Mackenzie Lush and David Ingram.
The film recalls a more innocent age,
when movies brought a sense of wonder to audiences.
"What's missing in movies these
days is awe," Sparaga said. "If you think
back even 20 or 30 years, when you saw something like
Yoda lifting Luke's X-Wing out of the swamp, you felt
awe."
Sidekick takes that sense to a new
level. The film's hero is not actually the superhero
himself but, as the title suggests, the helpful but
downtrodden man on the sidelines, Norman Neale (Mucci).
"You have Superman, Batman, and
this guy's Normal Man, or Norman," Sparaga said.
"I thought it would be interesting to see what
would happen if the superhero wasn't the lead."
Norman's journey begins when he realizes
co-worker Victor Ventura has a mild form of telekinesis.
The geeky Norman discusses his find with his confidante,
a comic book store owner played by Baldwin, and decides
to train Ventura.
"The idea is that not everyone
is meant to be a hero," Sparaga said. "Norman
is so desperate to change his own pathetic life. He's
the guy that nobody ever remembers. Victor's the kind
of guy who uses his power to lift girls' skirts in bars
and thinks that's funny."
Because the film was independently
produced, it was shot on a shoestring budget. The crew
was constantly scouting free locations and looking for
a way to stretch its thin budget.
"There was construction along
College Street, so we'd go in and borrow their pylons,
then put them back before anyone missed them,"
Sparaga said. "Everyone involved took the job just
to get the job. We had people who had a lot of experience
working other people in the industry who were able to
use this to become the head of a department."
Though the idea of a superhero movie
shot on a tight budget seems impossible in the age of
blockbusters, Sparaga said the team working on the special
effects worked hard and managed to pull off some remarkable
feats.
"I'd put our effects up against
any other special effects in any other movie, but there
just aren't as many of them," he said. "Jaws
didn't have a lot of money, but it was a huge success.
With a film like this, where we want to catch the audience
is with a better script and better acting."
Being able to cast Baldwin was a coup
for the film as well. The actor was in town working
on another project and jumped at Sidekick when it was
offered to him.
"It was a real departure for him,
to play this nerdy comic-book store owner, but he jumped
right into it and he was amazing," Sparaga said.
"He had a lot of fun with it."
The writer
bristles at the notion that a superhero movie does not
fit the mold of Canadian film. He said that a film can
be truly Canadian without having a dark, brooding, Atom
Egoyan-like tone.
"It's defeatist to say that if
you make something commercial, it's not a Canadian movie,"
he said. "I'm Canadian, and I wrote a film about
what interests me, which I think makes it as Canadian
as anything Atom Egoyan would do."
He said the star-based culture in the
United States winds up drawing too much Canadian talent
south of the border. While Canada is full of great actors,
many of them see big success as being unattainable in
this country.
"I want to stay in Canada, but
I want to be allowed make the movies that I want to
do. We have to start making star-making movies here
and not wait until stars move down south and make it
big before reclaiming them as Canadian. Wunderkinds
in this country are guys like Paul Quarrington, who
(is) 45 and who came out of nowhere after writing six
novels."
The film's Canadian-ness is evident
because it is actually set in Toronto, whereas when
American blockbusters are filmed in the city, Toronto
often masquerades as a major American location. Even
the choice of American star Daniel Baldwin in a supporting
role has a Canadian feel.
"Daniel Baldwin has a house in
Canada and he knows Canadian politics better than most
of us," Sparaga said. "The big difference
between this film and most Canadian films is that this
one was 100 per cent privately financed, which is crazy
up here."
Should Sidekick take off - talks are
already underway with a major studio that wants to remake
the film using A-list stars - it will be another step
in what has already been a fantastic journey for Sparaga.
The writer, who now lives in the Yonge
Street and Eglinton Avenue area, moved to the Yonge
Street and Wellesley Avenue area while the film was
under way.
"I wanted to look like I had things
together and have a spot where I could have meetings,"
he said.
"This movie took up all the money
I didn't have but that the banks had. But right now,
I'm not married, have no kids, have nothing but the
single life. At worst, I'll be devastated with debt,
but that's no different than going back to school for
another couple of years."
Now that there is major studio interest
in the film, that investment is prepared to pay Sparaga
back many times over.
"Here I am, a guy who can't afford
tuna, and I go to an airport and see a guy with a placard
waiting to pick me up," he said. "It's been
a great ride from a waiter to a writer to a guy with
a film that I'm really proud of."
Sidekick is holding a fundraising premiere
at the Isabel Bader Theatre at 93 Charles St. W., near
Museum subway station, on Monday, June 13. The show
takes place at 8 p.m. Tickets are available for a minimum
$10 donation at www.sidekickmovie.com
