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Amos Lassen wrote on 04/03/2011:

If you need a boost or just want to feel good, get a copy of “Wilby Wonderful” (Film Movement) and your spirits will rise from the monument the opening credits roll especially when you see that Sandra Oh of “Gray’s Anatomy” is in the film. Wilby is a small town a short ferry ride from mainland Canada but the people who live there rarely go anywhere because they love their town so much. On the outside peace and tranquility are the norm but Wilby has a collection of eccentric characters and lots of drama. The movie looks at what happens to several people who live in Wilby when secrets (that are not so innocent) threaten to reveal themselves and make a mess of a well-knit community.
This is a multi=plot comedy-drama with an excellent ensemble cast and a wonderful low-key approach with quirky touches and warm emotions and it pulls you in. We first meet Carol (Oh) who is a control freak trying t promote Wilby Island where no one can seem to do anything right. The townspeople cannot even hang the town banner correctly. She has no idea that her husband (the town cop) is lusting after a single mother in the town whose teenage daughter is being pressured by her football player boyfriend to have sex. Then there is a character named Dan who sashays around town deep in thought about suicide and distracted from actually going through with taking his life by a friendly builder. There is so much happening that no one seems to be bothered by a local scandal and there are more characters who are involved in other strange activities.
On Wilby Island, everyone seems to get along but they are all afraid to be themselves and have nothing to fear from each other. Some of the residents are highly judgmental while others could not care less of what is happening around them. Almost everyone has some obsession with sex—either they want it or they are afraid of it, or they are jealous of those that are having it and this is all very obvious. Below the surface of this sweet little community everyone is disgruntled and frustrated that they are not where they want to be in life.
So welcome to Wilby where all hell is about to break loose. This is a short story on the silver screen which covers one single day in the eccentrics of Wilby. As desperate as the characters are, they are all connected and much can change in one day especially in a small town where everyone knows everyone else.
The scandal that is about to break in the town has something to do with the gay men having sex in public places but there is so much else going on that no one really has time to notice. When the scandal does break there is an interesting reaction. Some do not care, some are frightened, some are shocked and some just could not care less.
This is wonderful storytelling with several scenes that are truly brilliant. Writer/director Daniel MacIvor has captured something unique in this film. By the time the movie is over, you feel like you actually live in Wilby and know everyone in town and that shows the power of this amazing little film.

Janorm wrote on 04/16/2008:

Macivor gives a whole new meaning to a Gay Green Fried Tomatoes movie! It is a pure joy to see and hear such a fantastic film produced and directed in the USA!! The actors portraits of their individual characters are nothing less that superb! This film is destined to be one of the Classics and should be added to your Collection. ADULT INTERACTIONS OVER THE THREATEN EXPOSURE OF GAYS IN A SMALL COMMUNITY!!!

just a reviewer wrote on 03/15/2006:

****4 BIG STARS ((1)) What a little life-affirming gem this is; if it does nothing else, it leaves you with hope. Performances are everything in a film of this nature........and, here, not one of them lets you down. These guys and gals 'put out' what the multi-millionaire cookie-cutter types of Hollywood quite often do not. So, just a comment or two concerning them and/or their characterizations: ((a)) Sandra Oh: Gee whiz, where has she dropped out of? If you're a fan of hers from TV's "Desperate Housewives" and think she's the greatest, you ain't seen nothing yet (til you see her here........can there be any wonder why she won a 2006 Golden Globe award?). ((b)) Paul Gross: Playing the 'almost' disillusioned husband and the oh-so-wise town policeman, he sneaks in under our radar and becomes one of the main axles of the town of Wilby. He's one of those types we all know who "keeps things running," someone with a stick-to-it tenacity. ((c)) Rebecca Jenkins & Ellen Page: Being mother and daughter, they bring us into their skins (what tremendous performances). ((d)) James Allodi: As 'one of life's saddest,' he gives us two instants on film when, in the lifeless eyes of a benumbed man undergoing both marriage breakup and devastating lifestyle change, we see appear a "spark" (the first a scarily breathtaking moment for us; the second a joyous one---you'll easily recognize them both). ((e)) Callum Keith Rennie: As Allodi's Dan is the one begging redemption, the "life-loss" in this movie so to speak, then Rennie is its "life spark." Aside from the town policeman, no other is as sensitive to everyone else and their needs as is Duck MacDonald (to be stable, a vehicle needs at least two axles; Duck is this town's other). He is amazing in his tenacity, his caring, his persistence in landing who he knows to be the "love of his life." Showing my partiality (and preferences, I guess) I must say I only wish that every film of a lighter, romantic nature (containing gay aspects, or not), had a Callum Keith Rennie. ((2)) Lastly, what great and uplifting closing moments we've been given: the depth of feeling and the emotional intensity reached in the final scene's pairing is palpable, almost overwhelming........perfectly capping a little---but monumental---film belonging in every movie lover's collection. ((3)) PS: In its release year, if any film would have been worthy of consideration for one of the several "Best Ensemble Acting" awards, this film certainly should have been foremost (I can't believe the multi-cast acting in the recently awarded "Crash" could be of any higher caliber).

marty wrote on 01/20/2006:

I have a pet peeve against reviewers who give away the entire plot of a movie. So I'll do my best not to be that kind of reviewer.
Think of this movie as the "anti Big Eden"
Big Eden is the kind of town you WANT to live in - a utopia of complete acceptance and happy endings. Wilby is the kind of town most of us actually DO live in - a world with both small minds and big hearts.
The story is an interesting look at the ups and downs of relationships. The acting is excellent. In a very few places the dialog was difficult to decipher (at least on the first viewing). Over all - a great film.