Plot
When a mortician confronts a boy hiding out in his morgue past emotions are triggered and he is determined to help the boy flee from danger killing anyone who stands in the way.

Release Year: 2011

Rating: 4.9/10 (304 voted)

Director: Gareth Maxwell Roberts

Stars: Method Man, Dash Mihok, E.J. Bonilla

Storyline
A mortician's (Method Man) life is suddenly changed when a dead woman's body comes into his morgue jolting old memories from his past. As days go by he discovers a young boy hiding out in his morgue. When confronted the mortician learns that the boy is there to see his dead mother one last time while hiding from his father, who wants him dead. This triggers something inside the mortician and he is determined to help the boy escape from danger and is prepared to kill anyone who stands in the way.

Cast:
Method Man -
Dash Mihok - Carver
E.J. Bonilla - Noah (as EJ Bonilla)
Judy Marte - Jenny
Angelic Zambrana - Maria
Wendell Pierce - Clinger
Dana Fuchs - Ava
Edward Furlong - Petrovski
Cruz Santiago - Kane
Vernon Brooks - Young Mortician
David Jensen - Officier Laurel
Randal Reeder - Officer Hardy (as Randall Reeder)
Idella Johnson - Mortician's Mother
Luis Da Silva Jr. - Benny (as Luis DaSilva)
Ann McKenzie - Millie

Release Date: 14 February 2012

Filming Locations: Louisiana, USA

Technical Specs

Runtime: 89 min

"The plot of The Mortician has breadth and depth" "a well told story that will draw you in emotionally, pique your interest and impress upon you the power of redemption"

Rating: 8/10

I recently attended a private screening of the film The Mortician in 3D directed by Gareth Roberts of Full Circle Films, a UK company. It stars Method Man in the lead role of the nameless Mortician, an introvert. The Mortician made its public debut at the Berlin International Film Festival on February 12, 2011, although not to rave reviews if you are a reader of Variety and Obsessed With Film, an obscure website. Both disliked the film, yet both reviews lacked any literary analysis concerning plot, theme, structure and the use of techniques such as flashback that assist the plot in creating and resolving the Mortician's internal and external conflicts.

The plot of The Mortician has breadth and depth. Gareth introduces the Mortician through a series of chance meetings, meticulous work habits and a decaying city allowing Method Man to display his interpretation of the introverted Mortician. Method's performance is convincing as he dons a full beard, over-sized glasses and a bowler hat to assist his acting skills in physically depicting the meek Mortician. His facial expressions, soft spoken tone, and demure carriage were well placed throughout. The sequence of events changes tempo when the corpse of a young woman, Jenny, played by Judy Marte, is brought to the Mortician's morgue. As the Mortician cleans her body in preparation for the autopsy he notices a tattoo of Botticelli's Birth of Venus, which begins the rising action - a series of flashbacks hearkening the Mortician to his upbringing with a single mother, who unbeknownst to him as a child was a prostitute. The use of the flashback technique was masterful (compare it with Bordertown) as it becomes the catalyst through which the internal conflict is developed and is ultimately resolved through and with the external conflict.

The external conflict centers around Kane, a young boy played by Cruz Santiago. Kane is trying to gain access to the morgue but is turned away by the Mortician. The Mortician notices that Kane is living on the street and being manhandled by the Mortician's assistant, Noah, played by EJ Bonilla and is also being hunted by the local gang leader Carver, played by Dash Mihok. Despite knowing the dangers Kane faces, the Mortician is unable and unwilling to intervene as he goes about his predictable introverted routine seeking interaction only with his regular prostitute, Ava, played by Dana Fuchs. The irony here is that the Mortician's relationship with Ava represents goodness and light amongst the decaying and violent city. Moreover, Gareth's choice of tastefully depicting this relationship reinforces this paradox.

The Mortician's flashbacks coupled with his awareness of Kane's plight ultimately propel him to intercede on Kane's behalf and introduces us to the film's main theme - redemption. The redemptive power of reconciliation, forgiveness, and understanding are underscored through the Mortician's metamorphosis from an apathetic android to a caring human bringing us to the climax of the film, which has several interesting twists and turns.

It is likely the 3D aspect probably boosted the funding of the film, but its value will probably be lost on a generation whose only association with 3D has been animation or action films, not drama. While The Mortician does have some significant action scenes, it is not enough to appease the expectation of 3D audiences. With that said, however, the use of 3D in this film did work quite well in bringing the setting to life and in the emotional close ups of the characters. The Mortician is a well told story that will draw you in emotionally, pique your interest and impress upon you the power of redemption.

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