MacHomer meets Lepage! by MATTHEW HAYS While Montreal's anglo theatre scene is viewed as something of a nasty little backwater, skeptics should take note. Rick Miller, star of the biggest breakaway hit to emanate from the anglo-dominated Fringe Theatre Festival, has ended up breaking into the big time--and in large part due to his Fringe success. Now starring in Robert Lepage's first English-language feature film, Possible Worlds, Miller paused to chat with the Mirror about his rapid rise from relative thespian obscurity. Miller, of course, is the maniac behind MacHomer, the bizarre and hilarious Fringe show concocted out of his own love for The Simpsons and his ability to mimic voices. The show fuses Shakespeare's story of wronged royalty with the Fox hit series to make for an hilarious one-man show. "I had studied architecture at McGill," recalls Miller. "And I had also done this show. Robert Lepage had come into our program to discuss his feelings about architecture. At a certain point, I just decided it was time. I sent him a heartfelt letter, saying I'd really like to work with him. About a week later, Robert had written back. There was a spot to be filled in The Geometry of Miracles [Lepage's touring show] and he cast me in it." In Worlds, Miller plays the role of a police officer investigating a mysterious murder--a violent crime which turns out to be something quite different than it first appeared. The film, a Quebec-Ontario coproduction, is budgeted at $4.5 million and is slated for a late 2000 release. Miller is now juggling a tour of Geometry, a continuing tour of MacHomer and the filming of Possible Worlds. "It's an exciting time," Miller says. To say the least. The various anthologies of advertising make for very popular fare at repertory houses. This week, something touted as the World's Best Commercials of the Century opens at the Cinema du Parc (starting Friday, Nov. 12). While this collection includes some interesting stuff, it really, truly, does not feel like the very best advertising from the beginning of time. The old theory about TV screwing with our collective sense of memory appears to be true, as the folks behind this collection heavily favour commercials produced in the past ten or 20 years, neatly ignoring some of the campiest stuff ever from the '50s or '60s. You'll still enjoy this as a night out, but it doesn't live up to the title. The Banff Television Festival has proven itself to be the premiere showcase for excellence in idiot-box fodder. Each year the fest doles out various awards for outstanding achievement in the medium. Again, this year a collection of the very best Banff Fest items will be screened at the Cinematheque quebecoise Monday, Nov. 15 to Nov. 21. Continuing for its final weekend is Cinemania, the fifth annual French-films-with-subtitles festival. There are a number of great films to look out for, and fest organizers have again done a wondrous job of snagging many of the best French-language films for our perusal. So head down to the Museum of Fine Arts and check out the franco-action! : COMMENTS: matt_hays@babylon.montreal.qc.ca