Road to Saddle River

Road to Saddle River is a Canadian comedy film, directed by Francis Damberger and released in 1994.[1] The film stars Paul Jarrett as "The Cowboy Kid", an Eastern European immigrant to Canada who settles in Alberta and undertakes a road trip in search of Saddle River, his idealized vision of the perfect place to establish his desired cowboy lifestyle.[2] His travelling companions are Sam (Paul Coeur), an unhappy salesman afflicted with ringworm; Dieter (Eric Allan Kramer), a German tourist; and Norman Manyheads (Sam Bob), a young First Nations man who idolizes Elvis Presley.[2]

Road to Saddle River
Directed byFrancis Damberger
Produced byFrancis Damberger
Arvi Liimatainen
Graydon McCrea
Dale Phillips
Written byFrancis Damberger
StarringPaul Jarrett
Michael Hogan
Paul Coeur
Eric Allan Kramer
Music byDarcy Phillips
CinematographyPeter Wunstorf
Edited byMichel Lalonde
Production
company
Damberger Film & Cattle
Release date
  • 1994 (1994)
Running time
110 minutes
CountryCanada
LanguageEnglish

The cast also includes Michael Hogan, Ben Cardinal and Bryan Fustukian.

The film was originally shot in 1992, immediately after Damberger's prior film Solitaire,[3] but Damberger was unable to secure distribution until 1994.[4] It had at least one film festival screening before premiering commercially on September 23, 1994 in Edmonton.[4]

The film received a 20th anniversary screening in 2013 as part of Alberta Culture Days.[5]

Awards

The film received two Genie Award nominations at the 15th Genie Awards, for Best Overall Sound (Dean Giammarco, Paul Sharpe, Garrell Clark, Bill Sheppard) and Best Sound Editing (Marti Richa, Eric Hill, Shane Shemko, Cal Shumiatcher, Jacqueline Cristianini).[6] It won two Rosie Awards, for Best Dramatic Screenplay (Damberger) and Best Cinematography (Peter Wunstorf).[7]

The folk music group Saddle River String Band took their name from the film.[8]

References
  1. Fred Haesecker, "Road film strives hard for whimsy". Calgary Herald, September 23, 1994.
  2. Rick Groen, "Film Review: Road to Saddle River". The Globe and Mail, November 26, 1994.
  3. "Turning winter to cinematic summer: the making of a Canadian movie". Edmonton Journal, November 12, 1992.
  4. "Film's fortunes hinge on hometown". Edmonton Journal, September 23, 2014.
  5. "Damberger invites locals to special screening of 'Road to Saddle River'". Tofield Mercury, September 17, 2013.
  6. "The Genie nominees". Kingston Whig-Standard, October 20, 1994.
  7. Greg Kennedy, "Gritty, low-budget wonder comes up Rosies". Edmonton Journal, March 13, 1994.
  8. Nancy MacPhee, "Saddle River String Band ready to release first CD". Journal Pioneer, December 8, 2006.
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