Pubdate: Fri, 24 Oct 2014
Source: Vancouver Sun (CN BC)
Copyright: 2014 Postmedia Network Inc.
Contact:  http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/477
Author: Katherine Monk

MOVIE REVIEW: CITIZEN MARC EXAMINES THE 'PRINCE OF POT' MARC EMERY

Citizen Marc

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

Starring: Marc Emery

Directed by: Roger Evan Larry and Sandra Tomc

Running time: 92 minutes

'Prince of Pot' Emery Perturbs

Documentary Makes It Very Easy to Dislike Marijuana Advocate, Who Film
Suggests Touted Legalization for Political Gain

Marc Emery wants to be seen as a modern-day David slaying the
government Goliath. He wants to be seen as the king of the underdogs,
the indefatigable force of justice, and a guy who is so honest and
straightforward, it's impossible not to like him.

But the plain truth of the matter is it's very easy to dislike the so-
called Prince of Pot.

Arrogant, entitled, entirely self-absorbed and kind of irritating, he
exhibits the uglier traits associated with clinical narcissism, but
thankfully, Vancouver-based filmmakers Roger Evan Larry and Sandra
Tomc address all those dimensions in their new movie, Citizen Marc.

A feature-length documentary that opens with Emery's claim to
national fame as the de facto spokesman for marijuana legalization,
Citizen Marc shows us scenes of Emery standing defiant as he is
sentenced to five years in a U. S. prison.

He gives every media outlet a little nugget about the importance of
personal freedom and civil disobedience. He compares himself to Gandhi
and Martin Luther King. He tearfully says goodbye to his friends and
family in a flashy blitz of media attention.

And just when the hagiography feels complete, the filmmakers take us
back in time, before Emery's pot advocacy began to bud, when he was
just a political geek in London, Ont., working for Ed Broadbent's NDP.

That's right: The pot pioneer revered as a demi-god in Vancouver is
not even from British Columbia, which kind of explains a lot, because
as this documentary makes abundantly clear, Emery isn't the chill hero
who would grow naturally from a grassroots pot movement.

He seems to be more of an opportunist who saw pot as the perfect
platform to launch his own political career.

It's a good toothy edge that makes Citizen Marc an interesting film
because it chips away at the concept of personal identity versus the
unrelenting demands of a dollar store ego.

The more we see Emery try to aggrandize himself as a man with purpose
and integrity, the more sleazy and opportunistic he begins to look.

One minute the filmmakers show us archival footage of Emery singing
Canada's praises, and the very next, we get period footage of Emery
angrily stomping south to the United States, where people are free to
shop on Sundays.

You see, before Emery fired up the boilers on the pot parade, he
pushed for other causes under a Libertarian banner, including the
"unfair" law that once made Sunday shopping illegal in Ontario.

He espoused every right-of-centre cause that favoured greater personal
wealth and freedom, but still imagined himself a friend to the little
guy.

So how did a money-centric wannabe politician end up becoming the 
Prince of Pot? Easy: He saw green in all that green.

The nice thing is Emery admits to just about every glaring flaw for
the cameras. He shares his love of money with us in the same breath as
his soliloquies about selflessness, which makes Citizen Marc a very
honest portrait - and a very confusing one as well.

Emery is a man whose ego is in a constant state of renovation, tearing
structural walls, slapping on new paint, all to make a good impression
on the neighbours.

The man may be arrogant, but his insecurities are the elephant in the
room. The filmmakers make us feel their presence, but they never point
them out, ensuring the great confrontation between ego and reality
never happens.

Things go by in an entertaining blur without defining moments, leaving
one underwhelmed by the subject, but hungrier for truth - and deep-
fried snacks - by the final frame. 
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MAP posted-by: Richard