King of Herrings

Actor Eddie Jemison co-wrote and co-directed this ambitious relationship drama, which comes across like a Tennessee Williams play being directed by legendary independent filmmaker John Cassavetes. Jemison plays lowlife Ditch, a loudmouth who wastes his days in the company of fellow idlers Gat (David Jensen), the Professor (Joe Chrest), and Leon (Wayne Pére). Set in a grimy, broken-down section of New Orleans, the loose story finds the four men splitting into two sets of adversaries over Ditch's unpaid $9 debt to the Professor. This trivial conflict seems to rip apart a thin veneer that exposes each man's desperation, fear, and anger over an unfulfilled life. Ditch may not have the animal magnetism of Stanley Kowalski in Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire, but his explosive brutality causes the Professor to strike back by making a seductive play for Ditch's housebound, much-ignored wife, Mary (Laura Lamson). Meanwhile, Gat's curious sexual pursuits put him on a collision course with Ditch, and Leon—a throat cancer survivor—loses his electronic voice box, becoming the story's mute fool, observing all of the goings-on while in visible distress. The film sadly loses steam after the initial setup, but there are nice touches along the way, especially a couple of scenes involving Mary and her sister-in-law, Evie (Andrea Frankle), regarding a wedding dress. A strong optional purchase. (T. Keogh)