Young Triffie Review Score: 7/10 | Date Posted: March 29th 2007 In: Movie Reviews Young Triffie Review by Michael Simpson| HNR Staff Writer Young Triffie is the directorial debut of Newfoundland-born actress, writer and comedian Mary Walsh (This Hour Has 22 Minutes). It is a cheeky, cheerful and occasionally absurd contribution to the village murder mystery genre made popular by Agatha Christie. The mood of Young Triffie harks back to the comedic Miss Marple movies of the 1960s that starred Margaret Rutherford. Some of the humour is of a more liberal age, however. Forty years ago the idea that a suspect would be accused of “rogering" young children would probably have sent censors into paroxysms of anguish. Not so today. Suggestions of such extremely unsavoury behaviour, full frontal nudity, and less-than-polite expletives place Young Triffie firmly in that subgenre of films that puncture their considerable charm with barbs of adult humour (think Little Miss Sunshine or Men With Brooms). The screenplay for Young Triffie was a collaboration between Walsh, Christian Murray and Ray Guy and was based on Guy's play Young Triffie's Been Made Away With. The story takes place in 1948 in the Newfoundland coastal hamlet of Swyers' Harbour. The story starts when a mysterious case of sheep-shagging is discovered near the village. Taking the locals; concerns lightly, the nearest ranger station sends out their most dispensable officer, the clumsy, sensitive and inexperienced Andrew Hepditch. Things get complicated for Hepditch, when the body of local girl Tryphenia Maude Pottle (the Young Triffie of the title) is washed up on the seashore with knife wounds in her back. When Hepditch's senior tells the young ranger that he will be worse than useless in this case, the Hepditch determines to solve the crime and prove himself worthy of his uniform. What follows is a mixture of mystery, slapstick and misunderstandings, with the usual collection of suspects display degrees of maladjustment such that almost any of them could have committed the crime. Fred Ewanuick (Corner Gas, Robson Arms, pictured right with Walsh) puts in an endearing performance as Hepditch, who comes across a bit like a combination of Inspector Clouseau and Mr. Bean. Hepditch's clumsiness gets a little repetitive early in the movie, but Walsh's directing and Ewanuick's performance convincingly convey the character's attempts to progress from bumbling buffoon to confident criminologist. Other members of the cast also put in good performances. Andrea Martin (My Big Fat Greek Wedding), seems to have a great time as the over-the-top fruit cake wife of the local doctor (played by Rémy Girard). Colin Mochrie, as the Ranger station Sergeant, Andy Jones as Pastor Pottle and Walsh herself, in the role of a voluble postmistress with a storming temper, also stand out. As Hepditch pieces the crime together, some of his thoughts are illustrated in flashbacks or conveyed by voiceover. Some of these seemed unnecessary to me and I also felt that some shots felt confined on a big screen (although this was not helped by the theatre's appalling projection gaffs). The rural setting of Swyers' Harbour is illustrated using cartoons, but some establishing shots of the surrounding landscape might have helped to further set the scene. Those minor criticisms notwithstanding, Young Triffie rolls along pleasantly (hints of rogering, aside) and contains plenty of laughs. Its historical context, self-deprecating humour and obligatory digs at the U.S. also give it a distinct Canadian identity. If you are not looking for a mystery that would boggle the mind of Monsieur Poirot and you are not as easily shocked as Miss Marple, go see who made away with young Triffie. Young Triffie opens across Canada on April 6. (The reviewer would like to thank the First Weekend Club for providing tickets for a special preview screening of this film.) Photo of Mary Walsh and Fred Ewanuick © 2007 Michael Simpson/HNR

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