REVIEWS
REVIEWS
Tommy… A Family Portrait
By the National Film Board of Canada (NFB)
Reviewed by Dina Guirguis
Tommy Sexton was born in 1957, the middle child of nine, in St
John's, Newfoundland. He displayed talent as a young child, winning awards as a
boy soprano in the Kiwanis Musical Festival, making his theatrical debut playing
the lead in an all-boy school production of Alice in Wonderland, and
playing the title role in a production of Oliver! At 14, he joined the
Newfoundland Travelling Theatre Company, where he met many of his future Codco
alumni, touring with productions See How They Run, Pool's Paradise
and Starrigan.
Created in 1939, the National Film
Board of Canada (NFB) is a public agency that produces and distributes films and
other audiovisual works which reflect Canada to Canadians and the rest of the
world. It is an exceptional fountain of creativity, which since its very
beginnings has played a crucial role in Canadian and international filmmaking.
Its founder and the first Government Film Commissioner, John Grierson, wanted to
make the NFB the "eyes of Canada" and to ensure that it would
"through a national use of cinema, see Canada and see it whole: its people
and its purpose."
At 16, Sexton went to Toronto and was hired by Global Theatre. He made his TV debut in the series Police Surgeon. Tommy and some other young Newfoundland actors raised $300 from Theatre Passe Muraille to write and produce Cod on a Stick. Thus Codco was born, going on to create a string of successful satiric revues and a hit TV show that ran for seven seasons. The Plays of CODCO was published in 1992. Working with Greg Malone, he performed in the revue Two Foolish to Talk About; the TV mini-series The S and M Comic Book; and the TV special The National Doubt. He also performed with the Wonderful Grand Band, both in live venues and on TV. Sexton won numerous awards, including Geminis for comedy performance and writing. He died in 1993 at the age of 36.
This film is a tribute to Newfoundland writer, comic and Codco founder Tommy Sexton. It is a biography that is lovingly told through his family members and directed by his sister Mary Sexton and her husband Nigel Markham. They take us through Sexton’s beginnings and rise to stardom with stories told by his siblings and his biggest fan – his mother. raised in a lively household in the old port town of St. John's, Newfoundland. Tommy's final battle with AIDS in 1993
This informal approach works well for
this biography. You are welcomed into his family and are left with a sense of
familiarity. It is filled with footage that displays some of Sexton’s greatest
performances and characters. The stories complement the footage as they show how
some of Sexton’s characters developed.
The stories told are filled with
fondness and admiration. It truly is a family’s loving tribute to one of their
own. It was done in such a way so as not to exclude the audience but quite the
opposite. Mary Sexton was careful not to weigh it down with sappy tales. Instead
we get a wonderfully directed and focused biography.
Produced by Kent Martin, this film is
approximately 70 minutes long and is available through the National Film Board
of Canada. You can check out the website for information on how to order this
film at www.nfb.ca/store. You may also
find this title at local libraries.
Dina Guirguis has a BA in English from Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada. Email: dguirguis@yahoo.com
