''FUBAR 2'' (also known as ''FUBAR: Balls to the Wall'' or ''FUBAR: Gods of Blunder'') is a 2010 Canadian comedy film produced, co-written, and directed by
Michael Dowse
Michael Dowse (born April 19, 1973) is a Canadian director.
Life and career
Born in London, Ontario, to Irish parents, he was trained as a film editor. His first full-length movie, ''FUBAR'' was shot on a digital camera with a tiny budget, but w ...
. It is the sequel to the 2002
cult film
A cult film, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a cult following. Cult films are known for their dedicated, passionate fanbase, which forms an elaborate subculture, members of which engage in repeated ...
''
FUBAR
Military slang is a colloquial language used by and associated with members of various military forces. This page lists slang words or phrases that originate with military forces, are used exclusively by military personnel or are strongly associa ...
''. It made its world premiere by opening the Midnight Madness program at the
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...
. It was released on October 1, 2010.
Plot

In
Calgary
Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...
, Terry (
David Lawrence) and Dean (
Paul Spence) are tired of barely scraping by on menial jobs. Recently
evicted from their rented house, they are out of options until their old buddy and "party leader", Troy (better known as Tron) (Andrew Sparacino) gets them high-paying jobs laying oil pipeline in
Fort McMurray
Fort McMurray ( ) is an urban service area in the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo in Alberta, Canada. It is located in northeast Alberta, in the middle of the Athabasca oil sands, surrounded by boreal forest. It has played a significa ...
.
While Terry quickly becomes a welcome member of the pipeline crew, Dean cannot take the pace of work and decides to injure himself for the
Workers’ compensation
Workers' compensation or workers' comp is a form of insurance providing wage replacement and medical benefits to employees injured in the course of employment in exchange for mandatory relinquishment of the employee's right to sue his or her emp ...
money with Tron's help, however he quickly finds that the money offered is much less than he desired. Flush with money and confidence, Terry starts dating Trish (
Terra Hazelton), a waitress at the local strip bar who has slept with every member of the pipeline crew at one time or another. When Terry quickly moves in with Trish, Dean does his best to save his friend from fading into a domestic lifestyle.
When
layoffs hit the pipeline crew, Terry's fast-spending lifestyle quickly catches up with him, putting heavy strain on his relationship with Trish, who soon reveals she is pregnant. This only makes things worse, as it was revealed that Terry is infertile, meaning that the father is likely Dean, who had drunkenly slept with Trish while on a trip to the
West Edmonton Mall
West Edmonton Mall (WEM) is a large shopping mall in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, that is owned, managed, and operated by Triple Five Group. It is the second most visited mall in Canada, after the Toronto Eaton Centre in Toronto, followed by Met ...
. Meanwhile, Dean's latest medical checkup for his
Workers' compensation
Workers' compensation or workers' comp is a form of insurance providing wage replacement and medical benefits to employees injured in the course of employment in exchange for mandatory relinquishment of the employee's right to sue his or her emp ...
claim reveals that his
cancer
Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...
has returned in more aggressive form, due to his heavy drinking and failure to attend a single follow-up treatment over the past five years. Terry, upset that Dean had vandalized his new truck and defecated in his dryer while drunk, ends their friendship, adding insult to injury. Dean reveals his condition only to Tron, who since being
laid off
A layoff or downsizing is the temporary suspension or permanent termination of employment of an employee or, more commonly, a group of employees (collective layoff) for business reasons, such as personnel management or downsizing an organization ...
has developed a serious
crack habit. Each despondent for his own reason, Dean and Tron form a
suicide pact
A suicide pact is an agreed plan between two or more individuals to die by suicide. The plan may be to die together, or separately and closely timed.
In England and Wales, a suicide pact is a partial defense, under section 4 of the Homicide Act ...
, planning to end their lives the day after
Christmas
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...
.
As Christmas fast approaches, Terry finds out from another member of the pipeline crew that Dean has lost his other testicle due to cancer. Terry rethinks his decision and goes to pick Dean up from a
Hobo
A hobo is a migrant worker in the United States. Hoboes, tramps, and bums are generally regarded as related, but distinct: a hobo travels and is willing to work; a tramp travels, but avoids work if possible; a bum neither travels nor works.
Et ...
colony, where he has been living out of his car. Terry welcomes Dean into his home for Christmas. On Christmas Eve, Dean's family arrives, attempting to show him there are things worth living for. While singing
karaoke
is a type of interactive entertainment system usually offered in nightclubs and bars, where people sing along to pre-recorded accompaniment using a microphone.
Its musical content is an instrumental rendition of a well-known popular song. I ...
, Dean discovers that his complete lack of testicles has allowed him to sing higher notes than ever before however, and decides not to commit suicide. However, after the group has gone to sleep, Tron shows up at Terry's house, intent on fulfilling the pact. Tron attempts to smother Dean with a pillow, but Dean fights back and ends up in a scuffle with Tron, in which Tron soils himself. Dean's daughter Chastity is awakened by the whole ordeal, and walks into the living room finding Tron dressed in a red suit and a Santa hat. Believing him to be Santa, she gives Tron a hug.
The film ends with Dean performing as the wedding singer for Terry and Trish. The two leave the reception and are showered by friends and family, including Tron, who also decided not to commit suicide. The film ends with a family photo of Terry, Dean, Trish and the new baby, who bears a striking resemblance to Dean.
Cast
*
David Lawrence as Terry Cahill
*
Paul Spence as Dean Murdoch
*Andrew Sparacino as Troy (Tron) McRae
*
Terra Hazelton as Trish
*Dr. S.C. Lim as Dr. S.C. Lim
*Tracey Lawrence as Trixie Anderson
Production
Filming began in November 2009. Early plot ideas regarding Terry and Dean trying to conquer
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywood ...
were scrapped, in favour of the
Fort McMurray
Fort McMurray ( ) is an urban service area in the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo in Alberta, Canada. It is located in northeast Alberta, in the middle of the Athabasca oil sands, surrounded by boreal forest. It has played a significa ...
storyline. Once again the dialogue was heavily improvised, and the budget was "a lot more" than the first film, according to
Dowse.
Awards
Spence received a
Vancouver Film Critics Circle
The Vancouver Film Critics Circle (VFCC) was founded in 2000 by David Spaner and Ian Caddell, in order to help promote Canadian films and the British Columbia film and television industry. Its membership includes print, radio, on-line, and telev ...
nomination for
Best Actor in a Canadian Film at the
Vancouver Film Critics Circle Awards 2010.
The film received three
Genie Award
The Genie Awards were given out annually by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to recognize the best of Canadian cinema from 1980–2012. They succeeded the Canadian Film Awards (1949–1978), known as the "Etrog Awards" for sculptor ...
nominations at the
31st Genie Awards in 2011, for
Best Supporting Actress (Hazelton),
Best Art Direction/Production Design (Myron Hyrak) and
Best Original Song (Spence for "There's No Place Like Christmas").
[Brendan Kelly, "Barney's Version tops Genies". '']Montreal Gazette
''The Gazette'', also known as the ''Montreal Gazette'', is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper which is owned by Postmedia Network. It is published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
It is the only English-language daily newspape ...
'', February 3, 2011.
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fubar 2
2010 films
Canadian comedy films
English-language Canadian films
2010s English-language films
Films directed by Michael Dowse
Films set in Calgary
Films shot in Edmonton
Films shot in Calgary
2010 comedy films
Canadian sequel films
2010s Canadian films