Review: Douglas Morrione's FAIRWAYS TO HAPPINESS Goes Online

It is 6,849 miles (13 hours and 41 minutes by plane) from New York City to Dubai. For filmmaker Douglas Morrione, the distance is a world of lifestyle and values away from the hustle, bustle and neuroses of the Big Apple.

Dubai is the capital of the emirate by the same name ~ one of seven of the United Arab Emirates, located at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. With a population of nearly 3.5 million, a majority of whom are expatriates and foreign workers, it is a cauldron of cultural diversity.

One of the country's most distinctive attributes ~ aside from its form of government, geopolitics and massive wealth ~ is its commitment, in policy and action to happiness. Yes, happiness! An exclamation point and an explanation are in order here, for unique among nations, and certainly in contrast to the United States, the United Arab Emirates has made happiness a statement of fundamental policy.

In the nation's 2021 vision statement, the UAE declares that it "strives to preserve a cohesive society proud of its identity and sense of belonging" and "promotes an inclusive environment that integrates all segments of society while preserving the UAE's unique culture, heritage and traditions and reinforces social and family cohesion. Furthermore, the National Agenda aims for the UAE to be among the best in the world in the Human Development Index and to be the happiest of all nations so that its citizens feel proud to belong to the UAE."

It is to this place that Morrione expatriated in 2014 when his wife landed a job there. The relo was four years past what he deemed was one's normal tolerance for the manic life style of New York. Since then, Dubai has been a source of fascination for him, enough so that he, whose last feature (Everything in the Song is True) focused on four characters whose personalities and perspectives define the American West, now casts his lens on Dubai's happiness-centric culture.

FAIRWAYS TO HAPPINESS is the result ~ a smart and enlightening exploration of that elusive source of personal contentment.

At first glance, as the camera reveals the lush manicured greens, majestic silver skyscrapers, and cloverleaf interchanges of this wealthy principality, it may seem that Morrione is framing a Chamber of Commerce exposition of Dubai's attractions or that he's serving as a self-appointed member of the Ministry of Happiness and Wellbeing. Such is not the case, however. In all seriousness, Morrione is serving a larger purpose. He has a serious and compelling agenda. He explores not only what defines happiness but also what measures, transformational in nature, can cultivate and develop it.

The film evolves into an intelligent and provocative discourse on the subject, interlaced with golf-related humor and probing interviews with a diverse set of individuals ~ scholars, educators, spiritualists, students and laborers ~ whose origins extend from Nepal to Ukraine and points in between.

In the case of golf, the game and the never-ending quest to break 80 constitute Morrione's metaphor for the journey of life. The captain of this narrative is a clearly well-heeled and relaxed guy named Eugene. His witty and self-effacing accounts of slices and shanks alternate with the film's deeper expositions on the concept of happiness and the counterproductive influences of conventional education and social media. The interludes with Eugene are cleverly positioned throughout the film, offering refreshing breaks from those matters of greater substance to which Morrione dedicates his attention.

The film maker understands the value and imperative of new and life-changing paradigms that may be foundational to happiness. To this end, Morrione introduces the viewer to a sampling of groundbreaking programs and perspectives: the International Buddhist Academy's Khenpo Dr. Ngawang Jorden; the leaders of the unique child enrichment programs of the Curiosity Lab (Moheb Nabeel and Eugene Kerrigan); the faculty of the Sunmarke School ("a character-building and disruptively innovative school transforming young lives"); and Dr. Martin Seligman whose theory of positive psychology addresses the key ingredients of "the pleasant life, the engaged life, and the meaningful life." The commentaries are interesting and illuminating.

In a significant way, FAIRWAYS TO HAPPINESS becomes a prism through which the viewer might examine and contrast the pillars on which American society and its systems of care are based. Consider it an opportunity for self-reflection and wonderment about an American culture and medical economy that is more focused on illness and neurosis rather than on wellness. Consider the U.S.'s painfully low standing on numerous key criteria in the Sustainable Development Solutions Network's World Happiness Report.

Duncan O'Cleirigh's original music, supplemented by the moods of such classics as Fur Elise and Ode to Joy, and Laura Martinovic's clever animation add brightness and energy to the documentary's narrative.

The bottom line: With a delightful and captivating blend of humor and intellect, Morrione has opened wider the doors of perception about happiness and the pathways to realizing it.

FAIRWAYS TO HAPPINESS received its North American Premiere at the Maine International Film Festival in July of this year and will be released online (iTunes, Amazon, Google Play) on November 17th.

Photo credit to Doug Morrione

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