DRIFT Rating: Director: Quentin Lee Producers: Bella Yurkovetsky, Quentin Lee Writer: Quentin Lee Director of Photography: Quentin Lee Cast: R.T Lee, Greyson Dane, Jonathon Roessler, Sebastien Guy

Review by: Warren Curry
3/29/02

Drift, a new film by Quentin Lee (who co-directed 1997's Shopping With Fangs with Better Luck Tomorrow director Justin Lin), is a structurally daring film about the different possible results of a love triangle. Shot on digital video (Lee was also the DP), the movie charts an interesting narrative course, as well as distinguishing itself as one of the better looking DV films I've seen to date. Lee knows his characters intimately and invests each with a unique personality, which accurately depicts the confusing world of relationships. Drift may come ripe with the "queer cinema" label, but the truths that it uncovers certainly aren't limited by any boundaries.

We first meet Ryan (R.T. Lee) and Joel (Greyson Dane), a 20-something couple, at a hip Hollywood party where both men feel a bit out of place amongst the schmoozers in attendance, who are more interested in "what you do" as opposed to who you are. Trying to escape the self-important guests, the guys retreat to the kitchen where they stumble upon 20-year-old Leo (Jonathon Roessler), a student by day and writer by night. Leo and Ryan, a struggling screenwriter, are both originally from Canada and share quite a bit more in common -- in fact, their similarities greatly outnumber those of Ryan and Joel. Quickly approaching their three-year anniversary, Ryan is beginning to question whether or not he feels fulfillment with Joel as his mate. It soon appears that it may have taken this chance encounter with Leo for Ryan to realize that there might be more suitable fish in the ocean. Ryan decides to call it quits with Joel and, before you can say on the rebound, begins dating Leo. Or does he?

This basic set up is told in three separate unfolding scenarios ala Sliding Doors or Run Lola Run. It's a bold approach and a wise one, as it lends the characters with such different dimensions that they can't help but feel well developed. Ryan is the focal point in all the stories and his plight is familiar, yet finely tuned. We may not agree with some of his decisions, but there's a wonderful sincerity to his confliction, as he struggles to grasp the solution to one of life's most difficult quandaries.

R.T. Lee is convincing and likeable in the lead role, but in somewhat of an atypical sense. He's distinctly human and prone to the same identifiable mistakes that we all make, and Lee manages, both verbally and physically, to gracefully embody contradicting emotions. Jonathon Roessler's Leo is almost too aware of his lack of life experience and carries on with a balanced optimism, although his performance can at times be stiff. In the end, you hope that all the characters find a happy outcome to their respective dilemmas.

Director Lee, takes advantage of the freedom of the digital medium, as his camera covers scenes with a variety of interesting set ups. He makes some unusual choices in cutting certain angles together, but this appears by design. Some of the dialogue is a bit stilted and just a little too well spoken (a few of the lines could've come right off the page of a Dawson's Creek script), but Lee best navigates the territory when his characters, often painfully, expose vulnerability. The film is never vain, seldom sad, and predominantly involving.

Drift, which is being distributed theatrically through Lee's Margin Films, is further proof that filmmakers who intensely know their material and possess a strong, clear vision don't need excessive budgets to create something provocative and entertaining. Quentin Lee's genuine artistry is informed by an understanding that personal, thoughtful work usually makes the most lasting impression.

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