1981 - Directed by Clay Borris - PLOT SUMMARY : Shot in Toronto, Canada, on YOUNG STREET in front of "Sam The Record Man" store. The loosely constructed plot revolves around two grown-up siblings who still live with their parents. Their already precarious lifestyle is threatened when their mentally unbalanced aunt comes to stay. The best scenes occur in the streets of Toronto. "French-Canadian adult brothers Mike and Bin still live with their parents in the working class neighborhood of Cabbagetown in Toronto, their parents who largely support them. Mike works a low paying nine to five job hoping to come out the other end with a long term stable career in the trades. Bin is shyster who doesn't really believe in work. What money he earns is in flipping junkers. His M.O. in selling them is to tell his customers of some minor issues with the cars so that they cannot come back to him later with the major issues which he doesn't disclose, he referring them back to the sales pitch and blaming the problems on their improper maintenance. Bin spends most of what he makes at the bar, with his one material extravagance being a several hundred dollar pair of alligator shoes for which he's long been looking. Despite the differences between the two, they will always help the other out of their frequent scrapes in the old adage of blood, at least theirs and their parents, being thicker than water. Their mother informs them that the youngest of their maternal aunts, Danielle, who is only a few years older than the two of them, is coming to live with them temporarily. Danielle has just been deinstitutionalized from her second psychiatric hospital stay. This temporary living situation is until she can get on her feet and demonstrate to social services that she is fit enough to retain custody of her pre-school aged daughter, Ginny. Danielle added to the household has the potential to tear the brothers apart as one wants nothing to do with her, while the other not only sees her as family but has a greater affinity to her emotionally. Being around Mike and Bin also has the potential to throw Danielle's recovery off track in coming between the brothers."CREW VIEWER COMMENT : "I worked on this film. Clay Borris was way ahead of his time when he made "Alligator Shoes". I did the sound recording for Alligator Shoes. While a teenager, Clay Borris began writing and making films about his own, his family's, and his friends experiences while he was growing up in a poor east-end Toronto neighbourhood known as 'Cabbagetown'. Clay Borris's family is very interesting. Clay's French speaking Acadian parents came from a very impoverished and poorly educated background in east coast Canada and moved to east-end Toronto in search of a better life for themselves and their children. Clay, his family, and their friends did what was necessary to try and succeed on the mean streets of Toronto. His mother, Rose, ran their home as a boarding house. His father, Albert, who was illiterate, taught himself to be an excellent auto mechanic and earned a Class A Journeyman Mechanic's license without any formal training. His friends earned money through scalping hockey tickets at Maple Leaf Gardens, and other similar activities (some very illegal). In telling the stories about himself, his family, and friends, and using them in his films (Rose's House, Paper Boy, Alligator Shoes), I think he was well ahead of his time. In 1981, Alligator Shoes was recognized for its importance by film critics at Cannes and elsewhere but the public didn't "get it" until recently as evidenced by the popularity of 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding' and 'Reality TV. Recent films such as 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding' and 'Reality' TV are very similar to the Mise-en-scene of Alligator Shoes. Unfortunately Clay Borris hasn't been given the credit for his insight and vision. View his films 'Rose's House', 'Paper Boy', and Alligator Shoes and think of its 'reality' context and you will understand."
A library of 20,000 to 30,000 video items from 1978 forward, including multiples, is being offered for the first time to the eBay community. ALL inventory is OFFSITE from eBay listing center, so singular items may not be described individually, but in general to the collection. Some images may be representative. The quality of playback and visual presentation is GOOD to VERY GOOD to FINE. Some items may be Brand New Factory Sealed, while a few may slip through in a lesser quality. These items are inspected but individual items slip through occasionally, and we apologize for this inconsistency. Please, ask questions before purchase, we will do our best to oblige you.