HYENA: A Look At Gerard Johnson's Tony

I'm creeped out by myself in that movie.

If the name Gerard Johnson doesn't ring any bells, it should. Perhaps you will recall a grubby, claustrophobic film from a few years back called Tony. (We can see you nodding at your computer as you read this blog post. But we swear we're not creepy.)

What is definitely creepy is Tony. As discussed in our director profile of Gerard Johnson and his new film Hyena, it was made on a miniscule budget after Paul Abbott saw Johnson's ten-minute short of the same name. Although sometimes films made from shorts lose their steam after a while, this was not the case with Tony. Every frame is suffused with grit and bleakness, and the score, by Johnson's brother Matt (The The), adds to the sense of suffocation and pathos.



Based loosely on serial killer Dennis Nilsen, Tony (played to grimy perfection by Peter Ferdinando from A Field In England) is a bit of a loner. He fails miserably at nearly every interpersonal interaction in which he is involved. Granted, he tries to befriend the bootleg DVD guy on the street corner who may not speak English and a couple of smack addicts, but still, you have to feel sorry for the guy.

At least until he starts killing people.

What makes Tony's murders even more chilling (other than the scenes featuring dismemberment and blue plastic bags and the constant discussions of the smell coming from "the drains") is how little his demeanor changes when he commits them. Sure, he seems angry, but the tone of his voice and facial expressions are pretty much the same whether he's trying to get out of taking on a job or bashing a hustler in the head with a hammer.

Yet, although he's surly and somewhat lazy and totally clueless about relationships, be they platonic or sexual, he comes across as more of a pathetic figure than a genuine threat, which is where Johnson's film and Ferdinando's performance are most horrifyingly effective. He is a genuine threat. It's never clear what sets Tony off and makes him kill. Is he frustrated at his lack of social skills or repulsed by his own sexuality? Or is it because no one takes him up on his offers of food? (Beans on toast! I thought you'd never ask!)

Another aspect that makes the film more grotesque is the humor, though it's admittedly bleak. Granted, the film is not an uplifting comedy, but there are still laughs to be found, however queasy they might make one feel.

For another look into the darkness of the soul from both Gerard Johnson and Peter Ferdinando, add Hyena to your list of must-see films at this year's Festival.

HYENA screening times:
Sun., Sept. 7th, 6:45 PM, BLOOR HOT DOCS CINEMA
Tue., Sept. 9th, 9:00 PM, SCOTIABANK 12
Fri., Sept. 12th, 12:00 PM, BLOOR HOT DOCS CINEMA

HYENA: Director Profile of Gerard Johnson

There's just something dangerous and seductive about damaged cops. In Pieter Van Hees's Waste Land (also playing at the Festival), Leo Woeste becomes embroiled in a bizarre murder case and his world starts to fall apart. In Hyena, cop-on-the-take Michael Logan prowls the mean streets of London, boozing and drugging until his job and personal life collide with disastrous, dangerous results. The film receives its international premiere at the Festival's Vanguard programme, so we thought we'd fill you in on its director Gerard Johnson.

Despite no formal film training, Johnson went to the "watch as many films as you can" school and was encouraged to discuss cinema by his equally film-obsessed family. Influenced by European art house films, as well as British classics like The Wicker Man and Peeping Tom, Johnson wrote and directed the short film "Tony." After Shameless creator Paul Abbott caught a screening of the short he asked if the director would be interested in expanding it into a full-length feature. Naturally, Johnson jumped at the chance.

Scary men brooding, part one.

Shot on real film and for only £40,000, 2009's Tony was partly inspired by real-life British serial killer Dennis Nilsen, who confessed to killing 15 men and boys over a five-year time span. Johnson intended the film to be character study and one "that summed up the London [he] knew." He describes Tony as not a horror movie but a "social-realist black horror comedy," one in which the titular character is portrayed as monstrous but sympathetic.

The thematic similarities to Taxi Driver are not accidental, as Scorsese's 1976 film is Johnson's favorite of all time. Tony was a critical favorite, being described as "a masterclass in psychological horror" by the Mirror, with special attention being paid to lead actor Peter Ferdinando's career-making performance as Tony.

Scary men brooding, part two.

Johnson's latest feature, Hyena, which once again features the mesmerizing, chameleonic Peter Ferdinando as the lead and another hypnotic, yet low-key score from Matt Johnson (The The). Talent clearly runs in Gerard Johnson's family: Peter Ferdinando is his cousin and Matt Johnson is his older brother.

If you'd like to explore the seedy underbelly of London without buying a plane ticket (or putting yourself in mortal danger), then you should attend a screening of Hyena.

HYENA screening times:
Sun., Sept. 7th, 6:45 PM, BLOOR HOT DOCS CINEMA
Tue., Sept. 9th, 9:00 PM, SCOTIABANK 12
Fri., Sept. 12th, 12:00 PM, BLOOR HOT DOCS CINEMA