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'Bristol Boys' uncovered
By: Amy V. Talit, The Herald Press
04/21/2007

BRISTOL - "The biggest message I ant to get out is I didn't make a movie about Bri tol," said Brandon David, "I made a ovie about something that happened to people I know."

A Bristol native, David wrote, directed and produced the recently released "Bristol Boys" movie. Though the story is based on real events which culminated in the August 2001 arrest of Kevin Toolen, a longtime friend, David uses a lot of literary license in his 90-minute retelling of one of the Statewide Narcotics Task Force's biggest drug arrests.

Before the film's release there had been some criticism from city residents and local police that the movie would glorify the drug trade, make Bristol look bad and bash the police.
David said this is untrue. "You have to create a world for the film and it [the Bristol in the film] only exists in the world of the movie," the director explains.

What 'Bristol Boys' offers is a gritty look at the reality of the drug trade, the effect it has on people's lives - sucking them deeper into the harsh reality that money does not buy happiness.
David, 34, graduated from Bristol Eastern High School in 1991 and, though he now lives in California, frequently returns to the city to visit lifelong friends.

Hollywood, Bristol style
It is the filmmaker's ties to the community that led him to have his most recent movie debut at the Loews Cinema in Plainville April 3. That same day, 'Bristol Boys' was released on DVD and, on April 6, David hosted a DVD launch party at Bleachers Sports Bar in Bristol, complete with cameras to catch the reactions of those who had seen the film. Dean Winters and Charles Woody, actors who played key roles in the film, were on hand to sign autographs and share a cocktail with the party-goers.

Winters, who had been filming for a show all day in New York and had an early morning shoot the next morning said, "I'm such a believer in Brandon, that's why I'm here. I think he's a really talented kid."
Of the more than 300 people in attendance, many had yet to see the movie and said they couldn't wait to get their hands on it, making it a profitable night for the filmmaker, who sold copies at a promotional, "launch party" rate.

The Movie
Based on the drug operation and subsequent arrests of Toolen and Miguel Rivera, "Bristol Boys" stars Thomas Guiry, Dean Winters and Will Janowitz, and is centered on Michael "Little Man" McCarthy and his overwhelming desire to make enough money to better his life. To do so, however, "Little Man" requires money to afford a reliable vehicle, pay rent and buy necessities like groceries, and - most of all - to get his drug-addicted mother clean.

Neither Toolen, on whom "Little Man" is based, nor Rivera, on whom the character "Wancho" is based, ever went by those nicknames, said David. And while there really were two men in Bristol who went by those monikers, they were not affiliated with Toolen and Rivera. David said while writing the screenplay the names "Little Man" and "Wancho" came to him as fitting for the characters, but were in no way related to their real-life namesakes.

"I guess those names have been kicking around in my head for a while," David said.
Changing the characters' names was not David's attempt to shield his friends - as the movie begins and ends with brief synopses of the real events, which include Toolen and Rivera's names - but instead allowed for the filmmaker to tell a story which flowed and captivated the audience's interest.
For continuity and licensing reasons, David explained, many of the fictional characters are amalgamations of several real-life players.

There are also aspects of the movie which are wholly fictionalized, said David, pointing in particular to the story lines of "Little Man's" mother being addicted to the prescription painkiller Oxycontin and dying of an overdose, and the suicide of one of the main characters.
Though Toolen's mother died during the time in which the Statewide Narcotics Task Force was building its case against him, it was not related to drug use, but was a significant event in Toolen's life. David said for the sake of the movie's plot, he chose to use creative license and change the circumstances of the death of the main character's mother.

David's creativity did not stop with the name changes and character combinations, but extended to actual situations and events. This was a good thing, according to Toolen, "I'm not all that interesting ... even back then I wasn't. It [his day-to-day life] was really more repetitive nonsense than anything else," he said.

A Hard Truth
In the movie, "Little Man" is brought down by someone whom he considered a trusted friend, but who ratted him out to police - a scenario which, aside from the character's name being changed, David and Toolen said is sadly not fictional.

David said this is also "the inciting incident" for him to make this movie
"He was one of Kevin's [Toolen] closest friends. For three or four years they hung out every day," David said. "And when Kevin was arrested and we got our hands on the wiretap applications, and this guy is supposedly one of his [Toolen's] best friends, there it was [the friend's name] in the warrant.
"It was a shocking fact that a good friend of Kevin's was a DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency) informant," the filmmaker said.

Motivating Factors
"I wanted to make this film for a while because I think it resonates with kids across the country; everybody looks at the characters and says 'I know that guy,'" said David, "I've made a story that really resonates."

According to both Toolen and David, the motivating factors for youth to become involved in the sale or trafficking of drugs is an epidemic not just in Connecticut, but across the country.
The pair explained that, nationally, youth turn to drug sales first as a way to supplement honest income, as "Little Man" does in the movie, but quickly find that it turns into a lucrative full-time line of work. "Be realistic about what's really going on," said Toolen. "Bills come. That's reality."

David said he wanted the movie to realistically portray the lengths many youth - growing up in a "blue collar" community where career opportunities are limited - will go to in order to make ends meet.
"As a filmmaker, at the end of the day you want to know, 'does the film work?' and it works," said David, "and that's the most important thing."

Controversy surrounds 'Bristol Boys'
Since first hearing the premise of "Bristol Boys," many Bristol residents and several law enforcement officials from around the state have said they will not watch the movie.
The main reason city residents have cited for their decision is the belief that the movie portrays Bristol as rundown and filled with crime, while law enforcement officials are skeptical that the movie either mocks or bashes police.

David said people have been too quick to judge it based on speculation, and "really just have to watch the movie."
"It's not about Bristol, Connecticut. It's not a travelogue about Bristol, Connecticut," David said. "It's not against the Bristol police, or any police."

Additionally, David adamantly denies speculation that the film is a vehicle to portray his friends as martyrs who were targeted and unjustly treated by the police.
"It's definitely not about someone unjustly treated," David said.
Another school of thought, which David and Toolen dismiss, is that the movie is a propaganda piece funded by Toolen.

Having seemingly learned his lesson about the evils of drugs, Toolen, who now owns a real estate agency, said, "I'd never encourage anyone to do drugs of any form."


Where to buy the DVD
In Bristol:
Insane Irvings - 900 Farmington Ave.
G&G Pawn - 294 Middle St.
Bristol Pawn and Trading Post - 467 Farmington Ave.

In New Britain:
The Village - 103 West Main St.



©The Bristol Press 2007