photo/rickmcgrath.com 

Indie film Alive and Lubricated examines hot women, cool buddies, and cooler brews 

Toronto’s Butler Brothers, Jason and Brett, are good ol’ brew-chuggin’ Canadian boys.

Substance Productions, their production company, recently released Alive and Lubricated on DVD, a story about beers, babes, and buddies. The babes seldom appear in the film; they’re likely in an off-screen bed somewhere, recovering from an evening of great sex. At least, that’s what the film’s male characters want you to believe.

The indie filmmakers reportedly made Alive and Lubricated on a $2000 CDN budget. This means that aspects of the film may irk you, like the horrible sound mixing, the violations of continuity, and the lack of synchronicity between the characters’ mouths and their dialogue. And couldn’t the filmmakers afford extras? Whenever the characters travel to a public place, the film shifts to after the event. Viewers are teased with stories of bar adventures and strip club hijinks, but nothing appears onscreen. It’s like listening to your drunken friend recite a half-believable tale about a threesome in Mexico.

However, considering the budget, the Butler Brothers do most things right. They’ve studied Kevin Smith so well that they can probably tell you the number of hairs in his beard: Dickey, the protagonist, works in a video store, and the characters could have all walked out of Clerks. The film follows Dickey and his friends through boozing and chatting, after his girlfriend dumps him. Jason Butler stars as Dickey, and director Brett Butler plays Willy Boy, a character with a smooth musical theme that trails him everywhere. Craig Greenham stars as Ben, Dickey’s profanity-loving best friend. Karl Neal provides the most natural acting as Morris, my favourite, and most disturbing, character.

Craig Greenham, left, and Jason Butler spend the film discussing ex-girlfriends and hot tomato handjobs.

photo/reelfilm.com 

The Butler Brothers wrote the script, and the Smith-esque dialogue is the reason to see the film. Real people don’t talk like this, but it really works in the film – even if Greenham struggles with his lines. Characters discuss the ins and outs of sex and relationships, and occasionally provide insights on less important topics, like Love, Time, and the working world. Greenham has most of the best lines: for example, he enjoys soft-core porn, as opposed to hard-core, because “it’s nice to be seduced every now and again.” I laughed out loud at the chocolate bar-sex comparison , where the characters analyze the significance of Mounds and Eatmore. The Butler Brothers also deserve an Oscar for creating a fresh spin on the stale baseball-sex analogy: it goes way past “getting to first base.”  
The film contains great Canadian appeal: it begins with an explanation of why Labatt Blue gets men laid – as opposed to Molson Canadian – and then references Ontario staples like Sunshine girls and the Toronto Maple Leafs. Ben, the character with the strongest Canadian accent, compares his sexual misadventures to the Leafs: “even the Leafs lose from time ta time.” This is The Red Green Show for people under thirty who aren’t lumberjacks.

Women should approach Alive and Lubricated cautiously. This movie is about guys one-upping each other with stories of hot tomato handjobs. The Butler Brothers need to work on creating complex female roles. Both female characters feel empty and stereotypical.  

The film, tailored to twenty-something Canadian males, runs 75 minutes – perfect for a pre-drinking session. You’ll be repeating the best lines, like “a lay and a slap in the face is better than just a slap in the face,” with your friends at the bar later. You’re cheering for these characters because they’re you. Or, if they’re not you, they’re definitely someone you know.

The Canadian Kevin Smiths have arrived. These guys have talent. Someone give ‘em a bigger budget.