In this age of mass media I’d like to believe that we’re all savvy enough to discern between fantasy and reality, fact and fiction. But, as FOX News proves daily, those lines can be blurred often and with impunity. Closer to home we have Pogey Beach and its social commentary disguised as comedy as the creators of Just Passing Through turn the magnifying glass on Prince Edward Island’s subculture of the gainfully unemployed. Is this satire or merely an honest glimpse into a federally funded vacation paradise?
Of course, that question is quickly put to rest when we see Turkey Tits (Robbie Moses) and his frosted tips. There’s a fine art to dancing across the line of credulity, and Pogey Beach reliably mows it down. If there’s an opportunity for a joke they’re going to ride roughshod over it all the way to a joke in the next town.
The feature-length film follows the misadventures of recently arrived come-from-away Bethany Lockwood (Celia Koughan) on Pogey Beach and her immersion in a world of drinking, dune screwing, crib playing, and cash jobs. Or as they put it, “working for the government.” Bethany quickly finds herself being courted by both the King of Pogey Beach, Gary Gallant (Robbie Carruthers), and Lyle MacDonald (Ryan Cameron), spiritual pogey bum. Things turn sour when Bethany’s disapproving father (Dennis Trainor) sicks the Pogey Narcs on the beach and threatens their whole way of life.
Pogey Beach offers something of a reminder that it has been 35 years since the release of the iconic Canadian comedy Strange Brew. Our cultural kaleidoscope is perhaps in need of an update. Though it might be apples and oranges to compare Larter and his motley crew to Rick Moranis and Doug MacKenzie, I think we can safely lump them all in the same fruit basket. Pogey Beach colours in another corner of the great hoser map.
There’s a special place for this brand of over-the-top comedy that makes it exempt from all other rules. In the end, its ultimate value is in the number of belly laughs it gets, and Pogey Beach gets them. From Ryan Cameron’s sly Bricklyn roll-up and “hey hey hey,” to Dennis Trainor’s shaved head, to every tiny cultural quirk that gets worked in, Pogey Beach is one ridiculous moment superseded by the next.
In defence of his film, writer, producer and Mayor of Pogey Beach Jeremy Larter offers, “Well, no animals were harmed in the making of this film…”
And if nothing else, Pogey Beach makes Prince Edward Island look like a great time. The film is likely to become a cult classic.
Pogey Beach premieres 10:00pm Friday, September 14th, 2019 at Cineplex Cinemas, Park Lane Theatre 4 Halifax, Nova Scotia as part of the FIN Atlantic International Film Festival. Tickets can be purchased here.