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Damian (W.G.White) is, how shall I put it, a little different from
other boys his age, basically because he is ... half-bear. That doesn't
stop his black leather-clad mother from loving him though. But Damian
wants more than just her mother's love and the affection (?) of his weird
German reladives including his Nazi gramps (David Robinson), a lampshade
maker who spends most of the time in the basement - making lanpshades and
constantly mumbling what could be Nazi slogans. What Damian wants are
friends, actually, and to this end he even persuades his mother to let him
go to school with other kids his age ... however, in school his quite
unique appearance soon gets him into troubles. Before long, Damian's
only real friend turns out to be Preston (Chuck Fusca), the redneck
neighbours' son ... but then Damian steps on the ingrown toenail of
Preston's crazy cousin who thinks the ingrown toenail is her twin sister
and Damian has now killed her - and Damian, always gullible, suddenly
finds himself on the run. Eventually he finds work at a strip club, but
his very moderate tap dancing skills don't go too well with the patrons
who expect female strippers, then he is kidnapped by a trio of weirdos in
animal costumes, before finally mama manages to track him down and save
him from his kidnappers' clutches - and she once again takes him in her
loving care ... When watching Mama and Damian, just
don't expect the usual - the fillm tells a highly original and completely
bizarre story in such an engaging way that it compeltely obscures its
amateur origins and its shoestring budget, which is also helped by a
carefully chosen cast playing rather unique characters. However, a bizarre
plot and a good cast don't automatically make a good movie, and to be
honest, the film is a little weak in the narrative department. What
totally saves Mama and Damian though is that the film has got lots of
heart without ever getting cheesy. The film shows a genuine love for its
freaky characters (even the not so likeable ones) and treats them with
respect even in the most unlikely of situations - and this in itself makes
the film rather unique. If you like your films unusual and bizarre, this
one's no doubt for you, and you can order it directly from http://www.trinkafivefilms.com.
review © by Mike Haberfelner
... and a second opinion by Dale Pierce ...
This is one weird vehicle produced, directed by and starring Kathi
Lehmer of Delaware, USA. It does not look like the kind of thing
one would expect to come out of the area, her state being a tiny world
within itself, full of patriotic, God-fearing citizens and Republican
Goerge Bush lovers. Well, not everyone is a religious freak or a Republican, I suppose, in that neck of the
woods. Some weird people surface now and again. Its eems like they all came up to the top
to work on Mama & Damien. The fact Kathi moved there from New York
might explain it better.
In any case, this is the strange tale of a mutant bear-boy (W.G.White). You read it
right, a bear-boy. How this thing/human came into being is never fully
explained. Cross breeding by a kinky mother (Kathi Lehmer) who dresses in leather and
doesn't seem quite right in the head? The result of experiments from a
Nazi grandfather (David Robinson), hiding in the basement? An act of God? Who knows.
All the info may be found at http://www.trinkafivefilms.com
for data.
In short, the bear-boy runs away from home, falls in with a crowd of
strippers and ends up reunited with his family in the end. Really
oddball stuff, like somehting John Waters might have cranked out.
The interesting thing about this movie and perhaps social message is
the whole cast is a cast of weirdos. The thign is, each of them
consider everyone else to be freakish, while they fail to notice their
own absurdities. Typical of life, that one!
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