Billy, a carefree young man flush with a substantial inheritance from a distant relative, is living it up, gambling away his newfound fortune. After losing an enormous sum of money one night, his wife Janelle confronts him about his recent activities. Frustrated at Billy, Janelle threatens to walk out of the relationship. Scott, a childhood friend and an employee at Billy’s cork factory, is Billy’s pillar of support through these difficult times. Scott tries to talk sense into Billy and induce in him some good sense regarding his finances and relationships. Billy will have none of that, even from a good friend. One night, feeling quite lonely and after a strong resolution to stay away from his gambling habit, Billy walks into a lonely club he has never been to before. As per the policy of the club to prevent its patrons driving drunk, Billy hands over the keys of his car to the friendly waitress and later discovers that Hazel, a girl he had dated back in school, was also working in the club. Hazel and Billy hit it off and they rekindle the flames of their earlier relationship. Unknown to Billy, he is the target of an elaborate conspiracy to rob him of his wealth by those he trusts the most.
The Canyon Club is a feature length script by writer Michael Dean. Michel recreates the magic of the mid-1980s, in the wine country of Napa, CA. In a story of love, deceit, deception, drugs and crime, Michael tells the story of wayward Billy as he negotiates through life, facing his own demons. Michael builds his characters with care, efficiently capturing their transformations as his characters cruise through the story, turning into complete strangers from the friends we meet at the beginning. The production of this script is a production designer’s dream come true of bringing to life the vibrant life of the 80s in the scenic wine country.
The Canyon Club tells us that not everything is what it seems like, and not everyone is who we have taken them to be. Michael uses his craft to tell a story that holds innumerable twists and turns, each better than the one encountered before.
