Poppoli

ACT NORMAL When Yuri Gagarin became the first man in Space, a young boy was looking up to the sky. Robert T. Edison did not suspect that his enthusiasm for space travels would lead him to the most dramatic decision of his life later on.Robert Edison was born and raised in Nottingham. He had always had the feeling of being a Buddhist and started to practice from early age. His teacher advised him to seek further guidance, leading Robert to a monastery in Thailand.

His plan to stay there for several months became a decade.His life was transformed when he decided to visit one of his pen-pals in Iceland. Where he found hundreds of Buddhists who had immigrated to this cold country in the north. He was asked to stay there to serve their religious needs. Suddenly Robert became the only Buddhist monk in Iceland wearing simple robes in the harsh Icelandic winter.Roberts life was transformed again when he travelled to Kazakstan (2000) to visit a space station where Yuri Gagarin had took of from. Robert had always been interested in space travels and that interest lead him to the surprise of his life. He fell in love with an aerobic instructor in Kazakstan, asked her to come with him to Iceland and marry him. That she did, and Robert resigned after sixteen years of monk-hood.

His marriage latest for five months. He separated and started to work as a security guard in a hospital. In few months Robert was transformed from a naïve monk to a normal person. Encountering the challenge of wearing pants, paying bills, as well as dealing with the headaches from the opposite sex.His visit to the normal world ended in May 2004 when he travelled to Thailand to become Dhammanando again.

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ACT NORMAL

VARIETY REVIEW - ACT NORMAL

A Poppoli Pictures production, with the support of the Icelandic Film Center, Nordisk TV & Film Fund, YLE, DR, ETV, RUV. (International sales: Icelandic Film Center, Reykjavik.) Produced by Ragnar Santos, Olaf de Fleur. Executive producers, Skuli Fr. Malmquist, Thor S. Sigurjonsson. Directed, edited by Olaf de Fleur.

With: Robert T. Edison.
(English, Thai, Russian dialogue)

The unusual, if not bizarre, spiritual journey of an Englishman who became a Buddhist monk in Thailand, moved to Iceland, and then gave it all up to marry a Russian is recounted in engaging docu "Act Normal." Appropriately contemplative in pace, given its subject's beliefs, this sophomore effort by Icelandic helmer Olaf de Fleur shifts away the jocular tone of his debut "Africa United," but still lets the warmth of its protagonist's personality shine through. Pro production values make "Normal" look better than the usual docu fare, which should provide fest circuit-legs and an increased chance of offshore TV bookings.
Protagonist Robert T. Edison explains in interviews throughout the pic that he was a shy, teenage loner when he discovered Buddhism as a 14-year-old living in Nottingham, England. By the time he was 18, he'd already spent time in Brit Buddhist retreats, then made the decision to visit a monastery in Thailand, planning to stay for perhaps three or four months. He ended up spending 10 years as a fully ordained monk, living in various monasteries around Thailand.

Using interview material shot over a 12-year period by de Fleur, pic tells how Edison, who adopted the name Dhammanando, ended up moving to Reykjavik, Iceland, to start a temple serving the immigrant Thai community there. Falling in love with a Russian woman (interviewed here, but not named in credits), he left the monk's life in order to marry her.

Editing by de Fleur somewhat confusingly crosscuts between Dhammanando/Edison in 2005, back in his monk's robes, on a journey to a forest monastery, with the older material.

The most compelling sequences feature Dhammanando/Edison after he left the sect, having to take work as a security guard to support himself.

Although clearly devoted to his religion, Dhammanando/Edison displays an endearingly down-to-earth personality. There's something charmingly incongruous about his priestly Asian garb and earthy, Nottingham-accented cussing that occasionally slips from his mouth. Pic doesn't quite plumb the depths of his soul, but he opens up well enough to retain audience interest.

Staged sequences re-enacting Edison's childhood add a welcome whimsical layer to the pic's narrative.

Sparse electronic score, brooding and otherworldly at once, by Bardi Johannsson stands out in the pic's generally solid tech package.

Camera (color, HDV), Ragnar Santos; music, Bardi Johannsson; production designer, Linda Stefansdottir; sound (Dolby Digital), Jon Skuggi Mix. Reviewed at Reykjavik Film Festival (Icelandic Panorama), Sept. 18, 2006. Running time: 80 MIN.

ACT NORMAL
Original title	Act Normal
Release	2006
Director	Olaf de Fleur Johannesson
Short summary	Buddhist monk decides to disrobe and get married after sixteen years of monkhood. Filmed for over ten years.
Cast	Robert T. Edison
Script	Olaf de Fleur
D.O.P	Ragnar Santos
Editor	Olaf de Fleur, Benedikt Johannesson
Sound	Jon Skuggi Mix
Music by	Bardi Johannsson
Add. Music	Tomas R. Einarsson, Pavel E Smid
Producer	Ragnar Santos, Olaf de Fleur, Helgi Sverrisson
Co-producer	Zik Zak Filmworks My Pocket productions
Region produced in	Iceland / Thailand
Shooting format	Sp Beta, DV, HDV
Technical information
Format	DigiBeta
Screen	Widescreen 16:9
Colour	Colour
Length in min's	56 min TV / 70 min Theatrical