Mr. Big aka Canada's Scary Sting It-Could-Happen-to-You Operation

Last night was another rainy June evening in Seattle (so many things wrong with that sentence), when the BF and I decided to go see one of SIFF's documentaries.

The BF loves this kind of material and I had to see this film after I read this article that was in Seattle Weekly.

This documentary is a critical examination of RCMP's Mr.Big sting operation, focusing on the trial and conviction of Atif Rafay and Sebastian Burns.

Mr. Big is a Canadian police sting operation that has been perfected by the RCMP over the years. When the RCMP has a suspect(s) in mind for a crime, any kind of crime, they start the slow, long, and costly process of getting a confession of the suspect by playing the part of mafia criminals.

Regardless of whether or not any evidence actually points to their chosen suspect.

Regardless if the confession is the truth.

The fake mafiaosas slowly gain the suspect's trust through small interactions. For example- giving him $200 to drop off a package at a specific location. The undercover cops continue this charade until it gets to the point that the suspect believes that they are capable of hurting and/or killing his family and loved ones. So again and again false confessions are obtained.

Because you don't want to lie to Mr.Big.

In 1994, there was the horrific murder of Atif's family- his father, mother, and sister at their home in Bellevue, Washington. Rafay and Burns were convicted of murder after the RCMP's Mr.Big sting operation targeted the two teenagers and got a confession out of them.

That confession, considered entrapment if it had been conducted by American police, was allowed in court because the boys are Canadian citizens although expert witnesses for the defense were not.

Tiffany Burns, the writer, producer, and director of the film and former newscaster, is Sebastian's sister, making her passionate advocate of both her brother and his friend with an obvious bias to the film but she did a great job of making this film about the expose of the Mr.Big sting operation, not a campaign to free Atif and Sebastian.

Overall, I think this movie did an excellent job of portraying what's wrong with the Canada Mounties's Mr.Big sting operation and why it shouldn't exist. It also looked at the operation at a higher level- not just the cops but who's controlling these situations.

At times, I felt like certain points were repeated a little too often but maybe if those had been made apparent in the trial Atif and Sebastian may not have been convicted.

I think that there is enough reasonable doubt, that the boys shouldn't be convicted and I think that they didn't commit these murders. More so because of the evidence or lack thereof than anything else.

Regardless, you should go see this film for education if nothing else.

To make up your own mind, here are some links:

Here's what 48 hours reported.

The Seattle Times article from 2004.

For more information on the movie and what you can do to help, click here.

For information about injustices click here.

For information about their appeal click here.

Kiss the Bride aka The Gay Version of My Best Friend's Wedding

This past Thursday, I went and saw a SIFF film, Kiss the Bride with a couple of my girlfriends.

For those who don't know what SIFF is, it's a Seattle based film festival that hosts hundreds of international and national films. It lasts about 25 days with multiple screenings of each film. All different genres of films are present and a lot of directors come too. Essentially- a film connoisseur's wet dream.

It's a Seattle event not to be missed.

But back to the movie review at hand- Kiss the Bride is an independent film that is basically a gay version of My Best Friend's Wedding, in fact there are multiple Julia Roberts referencing throughout the film. Which, to me, really endears the film to its audience because I am a big fan of movies that make fun of themselves a little bit. Shrek, Enchanted, and America's Sweethearts come to mind.

I was pleasantly surprised at how much I liked Kiss the Bride. It follows the story of Matt, a successful gay magazine editor living in San Francisco, who decides to go back to his Podunk home town when he receives his former best friend's, Ryan, (and first gay lover- "he taught me what it was like to kiss a man . . . and that thing with his tongue") wedding invitation to a WOMAN named Alex.

Matt flies home after being gone for the past decade because it's a humanitarian mission to tell Ryan that he doesn't have to do this. He doesn't have to conform. Matt also happens to possibly still be in love with Ryan because none of his boyfriends since him have measured up; possibly "The One Who Got Away".

Matt is the new Julia Roberts.

When Matt arrives he meets the wife-to-be, Alex played by Tori Spelling, in an awkward stripper scene (look out for a cameo of Spelling's husband) and finds her to be charming, cute, and well, "terrific." Alex and Matt instantly take a friendly liking to each other and so the love triangle begins before Ryan even knows that Matt's in town.

As the countdown to the wedding continues, there are moments of great comedic timing, over-the-top cheesiness yet unexpected scenarios to keep it interesting, lessons about love and commitment, and some well-written lines.

If you like rom-coms and like a little twist thrown in, my recommendation is to GO SEE IT!