Hank and Mike

Colour, 35 mm
Canada, 2007, 86 min
IP – International premiere
Section: Forum of Independents

Synopsis

Friends Hank and Mike work as Easter bunnies for Easter Enterprises; even though they only work once a year, they get paid all year round. When one of the guys fails to deliver his Easter eggs, their boss is given a pretext for their planned dismissal. And since they have never done anything else in their lives, the prospect of the unemployment office hits them hard. But everything has its bright side – after all, throwing out the slops might be the ideal odd job to test the strength of their friendship. The film is based on a model synthesis of real lives and absurd professions dictated by an evil organisation which controls all public holidays. It conjures up the spirit of the “loser” films of Kevin Smith and, like them, Hank and Mike doesn’t content itself with a march-past of eccentric characters but delves deeper into their characterisation. The film uses the latter for a sophisticated gibe at the pursuit of profit, but also revels in the delights which money can bring. The main roles of Hank and Mike are played by the film’s scriptwriters, Paolo Mancini and Thomas Michael.

About the director

Matthiew Klinck (b. 1978, Aylmer, Canada) began making films at the age of twelve which he entered for local amateur competitions. In 1993 he established the sketch comedy troupe Y B Normal? and directed a pilot for a TV series based on the team’s work for the Canadian TV company The Comedy Network. He then went on to direct another thirteen episodes. In the meantime he made several video clips and animated and feature shorts, including Hank and Mike (2001), which later provided the material for the director’s third feature film. Klinck’s first feature was the comedy Greg & Gentillon (2005), and his second, Tagayet (2006) was filmed in the Sahara desert.