Art of Cinema: Starbuck Film Critique by James Drewes

            

            Starbuck is an independent film about a sperm donor who, years after helping conceive 533 children, deals with 142 of them trying to force the fertility clinic to reveal his identity, while making an effort to turn his life around. Years before the film takes place, David Wosniak went by the pseudonym, Starbuck, to remain his anonymity while donating sperm. We see David now as a meat delivery truck driver who owes some unidentified group $80,000. Money problems are nothing new for Wosniak. He used to donate sperm to make up for his debts, and now he attempts to grow pot to get some extra cash. He is later told that many of the children he once conceived wish to know his identity. He is faced with the predicament of choosing whether to help these kids discover who their father is and risk public humiliation, or file a countersuit against the clinic that would afford him more than enough money to pay off his debts. He files the suit, but shortly after, decides to reveal himself. He then goes on to propose to his girlfriend, with whom there was tension and an unborn child between them. She say yes.

            This was the first modern foreign film I have ever watched, but the story made me forget entirely about the subtitles. There was an abundance of powerful imagery, especially in a scene where David is spending time with his “kids” who don’t know who he is yet, on a dock watching the sun set. Watching him simply stand there a joyous man, yet one who has such a difficult decision to make, put a grin on the face of everyone in the theater.

            Director Ken Scott created the best feel good film I have seen in a long time, and it was incredibly refreshing to see a character with so many problems trying to make amends with his past, while wearing a smile the whole time. Everyone can learn a thing or two from David Wosniak, as the character sets an example of someone trying hard to make changes in his life despite numerous obstacles. If nothing else, you’ll walk out of the theater with a big smile on your face.