Eye Weekly (June 30, 2005) By ADAM NAYMAN
VARIOUS POSITIONS
Starring Tygh Runyan, Carly Pope. Written and directed by Ori Kowarsky. (14A) 81 min. Opens July 1.
There's nothing particularly complicated about the opening moments of the Vancouver-based film Various Positions, in which
fetchingly rumpled law student Josh (Tygh Runyan) spies Cheryth (Carly Pope) in a library elevator and does the whole
love-at-first-sight thing. But things get plenty complicated when Josh, having attained the affections of his dream girl, brings
her home to meet the family.
The problem is that Josh's parents are Orthodox Jews who don't approve of the half-Jewish Cheryth and quickly toss down the
us-or-her gauntlet. At this point, it's tempting to write Various Positions off as another message movie about the perils of blind
traditionalism in modern society, but first-time writer-director Ori Kowarsky works with nimble fingers rather than a heavy hand.
In a simpler film, Josh's decision would be a no-brainer -- take the shiksa and run. He's tempted but restrained, both by his love
and respect for his family, as well as his encroaching realization that his girlfriend's behaviour tends toward the erratic.
It's a testament to Pope's performance that Cheryth's mood swings seem more like by-products of a well-developed character
than the whims of a screenwriter, while Runyan finds humour and sensitivity in a stock part. A subplot about Josh's father trying
to cover up a scandal at a cemetery doesn't work -- it's a pat summation of the major themes in a script that's otherwise
perceptive and understated. It's a compliment to say that less happens here than you'd expect: Various Positions is modest in a way
that most first features aren't, eschewing ostentatious stylistics and melodrama for a naturalistic approach
Source: eye.net