“Sir John A and the Curse of the Anti-Quenched”, A Must-See Horror/Comedy Film

Imagine having to stay drunk in order to not turn into a demon. That would be reality if “Sir John A and the Curse of the Anti-Quenched” was more than just a feature-length film packed with Canadian star power.

The horror/comedy was written and directed by Adam Kirkey, an award winning filmmaker based out of Ottawa, Ontario. The plot follows two brothers out on the town in Kingston for an evening of drinks in celebration of a recent promotion. After a some 150 year-old curse is unleashed by Sir John A, everyone must remain inebriated, otherwise they will take the form of a demon. It’s up to the brothers to save their city, all while being intoxicated. The spooky yet comical feature is based on the short film Kirkey had made years prior that won Local Shorts at the Kingston Canadian Film Festival in 2015.

Sir John A is played by the late, great John Dunsworth, heavily known for his role as Mr. Lahey on “Trailer Park Boys”. Other Canadian talent includes Spencer Rice of “Kenny VS Spenny”, Paul Spence of “FUBAR: The Movie”, Kathleen O’Hurley, Monica Zelak, Timothy Bell, Brock Terriah, Matthew Bell and more. Visual effects and post-production editing were completed by Kirkey; he even was the composer of some of the film’s music. “Some days I was the only one behind the camera,” he noted.

With a budget of $30,000 CAD, Kirkey, with his cast and fellow crew, began to shoot the production in the spring of 2016 on the weekends when he had the cash to do so. The final wrap came in December of that year, with the premiere of “Sir John A and the Curse of the Anti-Quenched” arriving in February 2017. The filming locations consisted all within the Kingston city limits, and Kirkey shares that the plot tied into a piece of Canadian history as well. “It was a real labor of love,” the filmmaker shared. “Everything was either favors or I owed people a favor after the fact.”

Zelak, who portrays Isabel in the film, is an actress, model, cosplay artist and gamer. She has previously worked with Kirkey on the 2018 short film “Getting Away”, written and directed by Kirkey. Together, the two also worked on the music video by Lions Leading Sheep for their song “Shapeshifter”, with Zelak appearing as the on-screen talent and Kirkey behind the camera. “Monica was a late addition to the cast as we’d struggled to find our second female lead,” Kirkey explained. “We considered writing out the part for a small time, but once she came in to audition, we knew it would work.” Her primary role in the film is reactionary to the comedy, with character development and involvement in the story increasing over time.

“I love comedy and enjoy making people laugh,” said Zelak. When asked if she related to her character, Isabel, Zelak jokingly responded “I do work as a bartender, but I’m not an alcoholic... yet. So, that part isn’t factual. Librarian was easy to relate to as I love reading and books. It’s not hard for me to get lost in a book store or library.” She was in the area of Kingston, some two and a half hours from her residency, and had seen the ad for auditions on a website she utilizes for work. Thinking, “why not?” Zelak went in and was the final audition of the day. After a callback for a read-through of the script, casting notified her on the spot that she landed the role.

“Sir John A and the Curse of the Anti-Quenched” is a Slinger Pictures production, which is a company owned by Kirkey. He serves the residents of Kingston with real estate photography, corporate videos, virtual tours and music videos when he’s not filming, editing, writing and directing his own movies. Running a total of one hour and 34 minutes, the film is slated to be released on Amazon Prime Video, but at the time of this publication, it is available on Vimeo On Demand at the low rental price of $2.06. It can also be found on Amazon and iTunes, with special edition DVD/Blu-Ray combos being sold here.

Tons of behind the scenes footage and images can be found on the official “Sir John A and the Curse of the Anti-Quenched” website, as well as full cast and crew biographies, merchandise for purchase and a link to the short film that inspired the feature-length film where horror meets humor. According to Kirkey, while many exist, the most troublesome element of filmmaking would be the uncertainty of the project’s success while putting in the effort to piece the production together. “It doesn’t stop me from following through, but I’ve for sure put lots of time into projects that never saw the light of day,” he said.