The drudgery of manual labour gets a comedic spin in Moving Day, the latest feature from Trailer Park Boys auteur Mike Clattenburg. Will Sasso (Mad TV) stars as a simple, beleaguered mover who quietly suffers through the comic foibles and occasional fistfights of working in a Dartmouth furniture store. His overwound sister/boss (Corner Gas‘ Gabrielle Miller) won’t give him time off, the store’s owner (Victor Garber) is conducting some shady business, and his driver (Gabriel Hogan) is drinking again. But the biggest standout is Charlie Murphy, of Chappelle’s Show fame, who delivers a subtle performance as Sasso’s fellow mover that’s equal parts brazen attitude and warmhearted mentor. Clattenburg, who co-wrote the screenplay, imbibes the dialogue with his particular blend of fluidic profanity. But blue jokes are just one part of this overall melancholy tableau of working-class folk struggling to stay afloat.
This article appears in Jul 19-25, 2012.