‘Cas & Dylan’ a Road Movie, But Not a Clone
Posted on October 13th, 2014 in Entertainment, Movies with 1 Comment
My biggest fear going into Cas & Dylan was that it would be just another road picture.
We all know the drill: Mismatched protagonists start out bickering but end up learning valuable lessons from each other during the course of some epic journey.
This week’s contestants: Academy Award-winning actor Richard Dreyfuss (The Goodbye Girl, Jaws, Mr. Holland’s Opus) and Tatiana Maslany, star of the BBC America sic-fi drama Orphan Black.
The 2013 Canadian film was all that, but more. It held my attention, even making me weep at the end. Credit Dreyfuss and Maslany for making one care about their characters, as well as director Jason Priestly (Beverly Hills, 90210 and Call Me Fitz) and writer Jessie Gabe for presenting the movie’s theme in a real-life context.
With thinning white hair and looking more like U.S. Sen. John McCain than the guy from Jaws, the 66-year-old Dreyfuss plays Dr. Cas Pepper – yes, “Dr. Pepper” – a guy who’s having a really bad week.
Fans of Orphan Black, for which Maslany has earned two Critics Choice Television Awards playing multiple clones, will recognize her character, 22-year-old Dylan Morgan, as a lighter version of Sarah Manning, with a dash of Helena at mealtime. (If Dreyfuss could look like Maslany, he’d be Alison.)
The characters cross paths over two days at the hospital where Cas works. The first day, they merely make eye contact. It’s amazing Cas even remembers, because moments later he receives test results confirming that he has a malignant, inoperable brain tumor.
Cut to Cas’ home. He sits on a couch despondently with a half-empty pizza box on the coffee table, accompanied only by his dog, Winston. A game of fetch with bits of leftover pizza appears to lift his spirits – until the dog drops dead in mid-retrieval.
An aspiring writer, Dylan loiters in the hospital ward. Cas and others assume she is visiting a patient, but she’s really looking for story ideas.
On Day Two, Cas is a man with a plan. He’s loaded his car, taken one last look at his house and stopped by the hospital for some additional supplies. Dylan is back in the ward, ignoring texts from her boyfriend.
When she eventually goes outside to call him, an argument ensues. He won’t come get her, so she needs a way home. Spotting Cas sitting in his parked car struggling to write something, she approaches and turns on the charm – using writing in a bid to create some commonality.
Richard Dreyfuss and Tatiana Maslany in “Cas & Dylan.” ~ Montefiore Films Inc.
Cas says no; he’s heading out West. But Dylan manages to wheedle a ride home, which she swears is on his way. En route, she brags about her writing and reads Cas a nonsensical passage from her notebook.
After dropping off Dylan, Cas appears back on plan – only to discover she’s left her notebook in his car. He tosses it out the window, but his conscience makes him go back, dust it off and return it to her.
On this third meeting, events conspire to put Cas and Dylan into an old-school, orange VW Beetle convertible heading west out of Winnipeg – destination known only to Cas.
Indeed, both characters are harboring secrets, but the plot offers many clues to help figure them out.
Along the way, Cas’ health deteriorates visibly. He “loses it” on several occasions – from the effects of the tumor, in reaction to Dylan’s eccentric behavior, or both. Other times, he is remarkably lucid … and perceptive. This is fairly realistic, except for the amount of time he spends behind the wheel.
There is an Odd Couple vibe to the journey, with Cas channeling Felix Unger and Dylan being a free-spirited Oscar Madison. Priestly makes it a point to show off the scenery. While the prairie doesn’t do much for me, the shots of the Canadian Rockies and Vancouver Island were breathtaking.
So what do they (and we) learn from the trip? Life has several stages, but they are all chapters in the story. Appreciate the past, and know that the future will bring change.
Cas & Dylan has earned several awards on the film-festival circuit, including the People’s Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival; the Audience Award at the Whistler Film Festival; and Best Feature Film and Best Foreign Film at the L.A. Comedy Film Festival and Screenplay Competition. Dreyfuss and Maslany earned Best Actor and Best Actress at the Los Angeles event, and Priestly was honored for Outstanding Achievement in Filmmaking at the Newport Beach Film Festival. This review follows an October 2014 screening at the Scottsdale International Film Festival.
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Stu Robinson practices writing, editing, media relations and social media through his business, Phoenix-based Lightbulb Communications.
Tags: Cas & Dylan, Orphan Black, Richard Dreyfuss, Tatiana Maslany
COMMENTS
WilliamMize
This is one awesome post.Thanks Again. Mccleese