point of contact

DOSSIER 2006
The official online publication of the
Syracuse International Film Festival, Vol.3
A Point of Contact Production

Self Medicated, USA
Monty Lapica, Director
(13 minutes)

Based on true events in the life of writer/director Monty Lapica, this award-winning film offers a sincere and powerful portrait of troubled adolescence. Hard times face 18-year-old Andrew Ericksen at every turn, torn by unresolved grief over the recent death of his father and the endless harping of his overwrought mother; Andrew takes his anger out on the world. Riveting scenes show him as a paintball shooting, boozed up pothead, running wild, wreaking havoc, and spewing disrespect at teacher and parent, in schoolroom and at home, with equal venom. Out of sheer desperation his mother takes well intended but misguided action by arranging her son to be institutionalized. Literally kidnapped by “authorities” in the middle of the night, Andrew is carted off to a “Boot camp” in American Samoa. In this isolated, latter-day “reform school,” geared toward drastic transformation, he fares no better. Here his insolence is rewarded with unforgiving discipline. Neither tough administrators nor kindly counselors can seem to penetrate his emotional armor. Ultimately, a series of convincing and adventurous plot machinations, help Andrew find his way, on his own, to a place of self-awareness, reconciliation, and the beginnings of maturity. It is a heartfelt journey made all the more powerful by ensemble acting of the first order. Writer/director Monty Lapica’s portrayal of youth at bay, battling circumstances he cannot fathom recalls the cinematic angst of Rebel Without a Cause. Veteran actress Diane Venora finds hidden dimensions in the role of Andrew’s mother. Venora, (Charlie Parker’s wife in Bird opposite Clint Eastwood) is simply excellent here. There is a raw honesty that distinguishes Self-Medicated. It is at times heartbreaking, humorous, picaresque, darkly romantic, and always memorable.. Driven by character, shaped by color and action, enhanced by an ethereal score and sensitive photography, it rings with the sound of emotional truth,