The Trotsky: Bringing the Russian Revolutionary Back to Life

Ever wake up one morning and realize that you’re the reincarnation of a famous communist leader? Leon did, and his life as a high-school student/left-wing radical is documented in director Jacob Tierney’s latest film, The Trotsky. Perfectly tailored to fed-up high-school students all across Canada, Tierney’s script proves to be not only unique but also relevant. I recently caught up with the Montreal director in Calgary to find out more about his exciting new release.

YT: You started writing this movie 10 years ago. Did you have any doubts as to whether “The Trotsky” would ever make it to the big screen?
JT: No, it was always a script that people liked. And I was the reason it wasn’t getting made because I didn’t want to make it. I was waiting to make sure that I had the opportunity to tell the story the way that I wanted to, which was bigger and brighter and with more stuff and more colours and more characters... because every actor is more money, and every location is more money, and so I didn’t want to feel limited. I wanted to be able to give this kid [Leon] the movie I felt he deserved.

YT: What about Leon Trotsky made you think he would be a good character for a movie?
JT: Well, really I was just reading a biography about him, and what he did between 17 and 21 I found to be very very cool. I was like, “Wow, I could just model this on that.” You know, he got married to a woman 10 years older than him, started a student uprising, got put in jail, sent to Siberia, moved to London – I was like, “OK, that’s a movie.”

YT: Some of the characters in the movie really interested me, like the “fascist” characters of Mrs. Davis and Principal Berkhoff. I’m wondering if you encountered these characters in your high- school experience?
JT: Were there fascists? For sure! There were ridiculous things at my school, like they tried to limit the number of bracelets girls could wear. You know, I’d just figure, “Are you guys just bored?” They had a policy against unnatural hair colours... like green hair and stuff like that. I went to a public school, but they took themselves very seriously. They liked to think of themselves as a private school. And it was a great school, but there were a lot of elements that I used for the movie from there.

YT: Were you at all like Leon in high school?
JT: I was not like Leon. You know, I had a good time in high school. I was a pretty good student. I enjoyed myself. I was also a child actor, so I was working all the time. I would go off in the summer and make movies, and then go back to school in the fall. And sometimes I’d miss chunks of school for that, but I had a good time in high school. I liked high school.

YT: What was it like working with Jay Baruchel as two Montrealers?
JT: It was great! We had a great time. You know, we’re really good friends, and we had a really fun time making this movie. We just made another movie together this winter, and we’re copasetic. We get along really well. He’s obviously a huge talent. He’s really good, and so, it’s a real pleasure for me to get to work with him.

YT: I thought that Jay did a great job, and I really like how he took a somewhat crazy character and made him loveable and relatable. How did you both go about achieving that?
JT: You know, we just did it! I think that Jay and I have the same instinct, which is, I don’t go for jokes, I go for moments of truth. I mean, I have to believe what’s going on. We talked a lot about the idea of basically what you said – we really have to ground this guy and he needs to feel real. You can’t just watch a cartoon character for two hours. He needs to be someone that you can actually believe in. And believe that he believes what he’s saying. That’s Jay’s great gift.

YT: Did you aim this movie at a high-school audience?
JT: I definitely wanted to make a movie that I would have liked when I was in high school... like if I could make a movie like the way I reacted to Heathers when I was in high school... because you love those movies so much!

YT: Overall, what were you trying to achieve with this movie?
JT: All I wanted to achieve with The Trotsky was to make people smile. If they walk out of the theatre in a good mood, and they’re smiling, and had a good time, then amazing!