Desperate Decisions-

Entertaining- With some food for thought

P Gavin James, writer

KMC PRODUCTIONS and Pragmatic Entertainment have  turned in a respectable effort with this drama that goes against the normal Jamaican made film protraying gunplay and violence. At the very least, is surpasses most local film releases releases aimed at both local and international audiences based on a Jamaican theme.
The Paul Beale directed romantic drama Desperate Decisions, thanks to its clever blend of bare bones reality and an engaging cast, makes for a well assembled production. The film jumps off practically moments after the credit listings with the central character Patrick (played by Martin Clarke) preparing to go to the local bar (which is a central point in the rural scene of the film) When he leaves the single rooms he occupies in the ramshackle yard he owes rent for, he heads to the bar, which is presented as the only place he gets some level of solace, as this is portrayed as the place he forgets about his demanding landlord( played by Owen ‘Blacka’ Ellis ) and his practically extortive baby mother. At the bar he finds time to interact with his longtime friend Digo, who offers him help and council during turbulent times of his life.
All seems to be well within the first few scenes of the film, as Patrick is seen having a jolly time rocking to the music, and while the resident selector toasts the crowd, in walks a turbulent character Rose, and the tension within the bar atmosphere feels as if it can be cut with a knife. On advice of his friends, he steps outside to speak to Rose who is his baby mother. What makes his dilemma worse is that Patrick struggles to make any money doing farming and other odd jobs, but most of this money is used to feed his child and himself. He sometimes pays his rent, but throughout the first 30 minutes of the film, hew has a contentious relationship with his landlord, which culminates in his forced removal after his landlord requests the rent on numerous occasions without a positive result. It is his best friend Digo, who advises him to reassess his relationship with Rose, after which Patrick explains that this would be an impossibility based on her nature, as he describes her succinctly as a ” terrorist”. The viewer learns of his interest in Verona when he describes her to Digo, and it is at this point one is convinced that there is no future for Patrick and Rose.
After being evicted from the ramshackle house, he then turns to Digo who offers him the floor of the bedroom in the house he shares with his girlfriend. During all the tribulations taking place around him, between struggling to pay his rent and to meet Rose’s demands,  he meets Verona, played by Jessica Francis. Verona is set as a character that is at a transition between high school and university and based on a discussion that she has with an older sister, the viewer could see that she is introduced as a somewhat indecisive character.
The semi-playful tone and  attitudes adopted by Verona during some of the film’s early scenes is at odds with the serious nature that she takes when confronting her mother about her pregnancy for Patrick further on in the film. During many of the film’s early scenes, she appears to be a stuck-up uptown girl who is overprotected by her parents , who have already determined her life’s path. Upon her parent’s noticing her change in behaviour, she is confronted at first by her mother, who does not give her any specific advice but warns her to be careful. Her father, Herbert, played by Winston ‘Bello” Bell  however,  is far from accomodating. He is authoritative in his approach to the situation, demanding Rose to cut all ties with Patrick. His objecton to any from of a relationship is seen in the lines where he boldly states ” Whatever you have between him is over, and that is the end of the matter”
Despite her retorting that she is going to be friends despite her parent’s ignorant attitude, within  Hubert’s mind, Patrick is negligent to his responsibilities. He goes on to explain that Patrick had a child which he was not supporting which was unbeknown to Rose before her father’s intervention, and this caused tension in their relationship. Hubert presents himself as a father who only wants to safeguard the interests of his daughter, for whom he foresees a bright future.
Some of the complexities in Patrick’s life are not entirely his fault, as it is revealed in the film that  Rose hands over money to a controlling and manipulative character Michael, her real boyfriend, who commands her every move. This presents Rose as the  total antithesis to the demanding baby mother that she plays to Patrick. The money she receives is really meant to take care of a child which is further revealed in the film does not exist. Michael, upon learning that Patrick is becoming reluctant to pay up decides to pay up , decides to add more intensity to the mix. When Patrick and Michael meet up, both throw insults at each other, and a fight ensues between the two, which results in Micheal’s death, causing Patrick to flee the district and head straight for Kingston in a getaway attempt.
Is is from this point that the internal struggles between the two main characters are outlined, as Patrick  goes to Kingston with little prospects , and is even worse off than he was at the district. It is a prostitute who takes him in and befriends him, before any semblance of order takes place within his life. In kingston he starts out doing odd jobs, before receiving a position as a car salesman . Initially, he is struggling, but with great persistence he eventually gets promotions and then steps out on his own.His life takes a true turn for the better when he opens a studio, and he repays Digo with a permanent position at the studio for his previous good deeds.  The value of the friendship is seen where Patrick also pays the full cost for Digo’s girlfrind’s cancer surgery. When Patrick offers advice to Digo however, he does not accept it and this results in his untimely        demise.
Verona’s struggles are of a different nature however as she is unsure of where she stands with Patrick. While she remains committed , she is presented as having doubts. To make matters more complexed , a character at her university- Shaun enters the scene. She fights valiantly to resist his charms. He is presented as an almost polar opposite character to Patrick. He is refined, highly learned ,and has a silvery tongue, which makes him an easy catch. Even before patrick’s departure to the country, Verona assists him with food and money, but the real brunt of her burden was maintaining a long-distance relationship, which was proving to be fickle with other people entering both of their lives. This causes Verona to be of two minds about her relationship with Patrick until it was confirmed that she was pregnant with his child, to the consternation of both of her parents. She is therefore made to struggle between a relationship between her parents and a relationship between Patrick.
While the  two main stars are underwhelming at some points of the film, there are some bright spots to be found in the supporting roles. Verona’s father, Herbert , played by theatre veteran Winston ‘Bello’ Bell  is suitably stern and convincing and Rosemarie Murray, playing Verona ’s mother is believle in her transition from the submissive wife to the independent thinker, which results in a change of heart for the couple who had reservations about Verona’s pregnancy from the beginning. The cameo appearances by reggae artists Mr Perfect and Nanko in the studio scene added an additional element of entertainment to the script . Visual flourishes are used within the fighting scenes for Desperate Decisions. The fighting sequence which forces Patrick to flee to Kingston provides a few moments of shock and awe, and the occasional guffaw of disbelief from the audience. In the fight , which is shot in a backyard scene,  a knife is employed, but in a surprising twist this does not kill Michael. Micheal in his attempt to hurt Patrick hurtles fists and kicks, but somewhere in the middle of the fight stumbles and hits his head on a rock which knocks him out, and Patrick upon realizing that he cannot be revived flees.
Despite the good offerings,  the film downfalls are due to the fact that there are event gaps which seem unrealistic, as the viewer does not learn how Micheal learns that he receives a ‘jacket’, and some of the transitions between Micheal’s struggle’s and success seem to good to be true and disjointed. This makes the film seem inconsistent despite all the best efforts of the actor and director.
Beale , as a director has proven through Desperate Decisions that  Jamaican films can teach valuable life lessons and  pluck the heartstrings,and need not be overly violent or sexual. One such moment was when the new parents came back in the country to visit. After much encouragement Herbert who completely cut off his daughter, reconciles with her , and after this is ecstatic upon meeting his granddaughter, and it in this scene in particular the importance of family ties is evident . Where much of the movie is spent in retrospect on events the past, and what is new new being a response to things seen before, the film starts and ends with Dennis Brown’s hit Money in My Pocket . Comedic purists will be more than satisfied, but with all things considered more can be expected from KMC Productions and Pragmatic Entertainment. As it stands, Beale does an adequate enough job in both his writing and direction to make the film a good production.

P Gavin James is a graduate from UWI’s Carimac.