Panic Fest Film Review: “Malibu Horror Story”

Starring: Dylan Sprayberry, Robert Bailey Jr. and Valentia de Angelis
Directed by: Scott Slone
Rated: NR
Running Time: 93 minutes

If I had to pick a genre that’s hard to create something new in, it would definitely be the found footage genre. From “Cannibal Holocaust” to “Paranormal Activity,” there’s a lot of genre busting films that manage to take the basics of the genre and elevate them to a new brand or style of horror. But this seems to be a genre that’s more miss than hit in my opinion. For every “V/H/S,” there’s at least a dozen bad ones like “The Amityville Haunting” or every “Paranormal Activity” film with a number after it. So that brings us to 2022. I’m not gonna lie, “Malibu Horror Story” isn’t necessarily a good title for a found footage horror film, but never judge a film by its title or genre.

We open with four paranormal investigators in a reclusive cave amongst the mountains north of Malibu, California. They’re in this desolate location to film their latest episode and investigate what happened to four teenagers back in 2012. For more backstory on the teens, the film shows the investigators showing off what work on the episode has already been completed. From that point, we dive from found footage of the investigators into their show which features newspaper clippings, interviews with law enforcement and of course the found footage left behind by the teenagers. To the general public, the found footage only revealed that the teenagers were dirtbags. The search for the teens pretty much ended when the found footage showed the teens doing drugs and partying more than it actually show what happened to them. So, you could say it’s technically a found footage film within a found footage film or within a fake paranormal investigator show all wrapped around a conventional claustrophobic film. Either way, without getting too deep in the thick of it or confusing you, “Malibu Horror Story” structures the story like a puzzle so that we can comfortably sit back and let the mayhem and story unfold as the pieces fall into place.

The set-up and premise are actually quite clever in that it never becomes too confusing and it manages to give us enough exposition to explain things while making us thirsty for more of the mythos behind the cave and the potential Native American curse that is about to show our paranormal investigators what happens when they meddle in something they shouldn’t, much like those dirtbag teenagers. The film has some effective scares once the monster/entity/ghost/thing makes its appearance. Of course, you have to wonder why the teens continued forth once things were clearly going awry, much in the same way the paranormal investigators find out they’re someplace they shouldn’t be.

When characters keep filming, I always wonder if that’s the urge filmmakers or voyeurs get in that situation because if I was in their shoes, I’d be using the camera as a blunt weapon to escape instead of making sure I frame the monster right. I’m not the first to make an observation like that, nor will I certainly be the last. While “Malibu Horror Story” breaks the mold of found footage storytelling, it can’t help but rely on tropes to get us from point ‘a’ to point ‘b’. “Malibu Horror Story” doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it manages to add a few neat spokes to it.

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Filed Under: Film Reviews, Movies Tagged With: dylan sprayberry, film reivew, jeremy werner, malibu horror story, panic fest, robert bailey, ...

Panic Fest Film Review: “The Sadness”

Starring: Berant Zhu, Regina Lei and Ying-Ru Chen
Directed by: Rob Jabbaz
Rated: NR
Running Time: 100 minutes

This wouldn’t be the first time, nor will it be the last time, that I say that I ultimately enjoyed a movie I can’t really recommend. For perspective, I’ve said that about films like “Swiss Army Man,” “Vortex” and damn near anything with Troma’s name on it. Even then, I still talk about those movies as interesting films to watch in the hopes that someone amongst my group of friends who don’t watch the insane amount of films that I and other critics watch will give it a peruse and see what I see. I don’t think that will happen with “The Sadness.”

As if the zombie genre wasn’t already slightly depressing enough with its themes of the world ending and the trashiness of society, a film like “The Sadness” comes along and spits on all of them before flipping the bird. “The Sadness” begins with a couple, Kat (Lei) and Jim (Zhu) talking before their individual days at work. It’s through this early morning, post cuddling conversation that we learn about the Alvin virus, a virus that’s clearly an allegory for COVID-19. But unlike COVID-19, the Alvin virus has an alarming chance to mutate into rabies on crack. Which it does. Once it does, the couple is already split up heading off to work and now with everything descending into chaos, they have to work their way across Taiwan’s capital to reunite, but nothing is ever that simple.

The zombie virus in “the Sadness” turns everything up to 11, as the people who become zombified don’t simply walk around slowly and munch on brains. This virus makes people act upon their most primal urges, whether it be sadistic violence or even more sadistic sex. So, if you get squeamish over sexual violence, appendages being torn off, knives entering orifices’ or a blood orgy of severed limbs and viscera, this movie is probably one huge trigger warning that will have you running to the nearest exit and trash can to throw up in. But at my screening, every person sat in their seat horrified and mesmerized with the occasional “oh my god” and “what the fuck” splattered amongst us.

While the brutality clocks in at over an hour and a half, the film manages to squeeze in every bit of plot and mayhem without sacrificing the other or making the audience members, who have the stomach for it, check their phone for a time. The actors, who deliver some of the vilest lines seen outside of a snuff film, gnaw on the scenery with such ferocity I wouldn’t be surprised if people began having nightmares about their black, red tinted haunting eyes and blood-soaked grins. It’s very clear from the get-go that director/writer Jabbaz isn’t concerned about whether or not he’ll work again.

Like any good zombie film, “The Sadness” does have a message, albeit one deep in bitter nihilism. Having just exited a pandemic, “The Sadness” does reflect on humanity’s collective response to a virus as well as some jabs at the rising autocracies around the world that took advantage of the unthinkable. That being said, “The Sadness” seems to have its eye on future pandemics and how well humanity can come together to overcome the next mutated strain of a disease we have yet to encounter. If “The Sadness” is a representation of our past, present and future, I think it’s clear we are all fucked.

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Film Review: “Wyrmwood: Apocalypse”

Starring: Luke McKenzie, Shantae Barnes-Cowan and Jake Ryan
Directed by: Kiah Roache-Turner
Rated: NR
Running Time: 88 minutes
XYZ Films

Unlike one of it’s clear influences, “Wyrmwood: Apocalypse” could care less if you haven’t seen 2014’s “Wyrmwood: Road of the Dead.” For the unaware, “Road of the Dead” was a “Mad Max” with zombies. But unlike “The Road Warrior,” Apocalypse keeps it’s foot on the gas and doesn’t bother reminding you who have the characters are. So as a refresher, in the world of “Wyrmwood,” zombie breath and blood are a fuel source for vehicles and other technological weaponry. It’s the kind of idea, at least on paper, that is absolutely stupid, but thanks to a gung-ho cast and plenty of zombie scenery chewing, it manages to become a modern B-movie worthy of any backwoods drive-in. But that’s “Road of the Dead,” how does its successor hold up?

Apocalypse” is about Rhys (McKenzie), an apocalyptic scavenger that bounty hunts the living and dead for his bosses, the evil remnants of the government’s military police. Rhys is handed a hefty bounty in the from of Brooke (Bianca Bradley), our zombie hybrid femme fatale from “Road of the Dead.” Brooke, we come to find out, killed Rhys’ brother making this bounty extra important for our lead. Lest I forget to explain, since the movie doesn’t, the zombie hybrids are able to tame their zombie side by drinking blood, which allows them a variety of odd zombie powers or, I guess you could say, powers that are made-up and needed when our heroes are in a predicament. Rhys has a bounty hunter’s change of heart when he encounters another hybrid, just like Brooke, by the name of Grace (Tasia Zalar).

The exposition, while thick and sometimes unnecessarily complicated in the first half of the film, is forgivable considering the richness of the film’s backdrop coupled with some spectacularly low-budget action sequences. For instance, Rhys home/compound feels like something you’d see in the video game “Fallout 4” while the ultimate battle between good and evil, the zombie hybrid alliance and the bloodthirsty military industrial complex, feels like Immortan Joe and Furiosa using Weyland-Yutani Corp. weaponry and science. If some of these pop-culture references are going over your head, you may not have as much fun as I did watching the final act bedlam of “Apocalypse” because writer/director Roache-Turner isn’t shy about his influences or leaning heavily into them.

“Apocalypse” feels nostalgic in the sense that it’s a mish-mash of 80s action, sci-fi and horror, all bathed in neon lights and shiny red gore.  If blood, guts, mayhem, carnage and the crunch of smashing vehicles is your thing, you’ll be smiling ear to ear during this. The world-building feels endless and lacking at the same time. Sometimes the small details are explained while the bigger details are glossed over, something I wish they flipped, but maybe that’s my own expectations for a sequel in general. That feeling doesn’t go away by the end, when it becomes obvious that “Apocalypse” may be the middle of an expected trilogy. Regardless of my nitpicks or hesitations, I’d be lying if I said I wouldn’t be the first in line for a third “Wyrmwood ” so that I can quench my own thirst for high octane vioelcne and apocalyptic theatrics by over-the-top characters.

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Film Review: “Infinite Storm”

Starring: Naomi Watts, Billy Howle and Denis O’Hare
Directed by: Małgorzata Szumowska
Rated: R
Running Time: 104 minutes
Bleecker Street

I’m not very vocal about my side gig as a film and pop-culture critic. I’ve found that once people find out, they expect me to have watched every movie they’ve watched or for me to have fallen in line with critical consensus or mainstream opinions about said film. That’s a different topic altogether, but I also encounter the problem of having to divulge more information than most people on whether or not I like a film. And sometimes I just like something or don’t like something. It’s nice not having to think too hard about why I feel a certain way and instead just letting those emotions be. But in film criticism, I have to dig into why I felt the way I feel after a movie. So why did a well-shot, breathtaking film like “Infinite Storm” not resonate with me?

The film begins with Pam Bales (Watts) scaling Mount Washington in New Hampshire in mid-October. Visually, we see that she’s experienced and smart. She leaves notes about her whereabouts on her car windshield as she sets out alone into the wilderness, with extra clothes, food and supplies to keep her warm, safe and well-fed if something awful arises. It’s gray and chilly looking when she sets out, but by the time she starts to get towards the peak, the conditions have turned into a white out blizzard. While she isn’t concerned, the concerns begin to arise when she finds footprints in the snow that lead to a non-verbal man half dead in the snow.

“John” (Howle) isn’t his name, but Pam refers to him by that in the hopes of eliciting some kind of response or reaction. None follow. So in the midst of the blinding snow, Pam now finds herself having to lug along the equivalent of a corpse back down the treacherous mountain she just scaled. This all sounds fascinating and at times was, but none of it clicked when all was said and done. So I go back to the problem I have as a film critic, trying to pinpoint what it was that this movie failed to do for me. I wish I could just move on and say that it didn’t work for me, but alas I’m the one having to convince you on what you should be spending your time and money on.

In an attempt to figure it out, I read the article that this movie is based on. The descriptions of the unforgiving Mount Washington in the article are reflected well in “Infinite Storm,” but I never get a feeling for who Pam is, from the movie and article. I do get way more out of who “John” is from the article, whereas the film merely hints at it. Interestingly enough, the film focuses on the emotions of Pam while the article is more of a gut punch reveal about “John”. So who is “Infinite Storm” about? The film is about Pam, which isn’t a knock, she’s an individual who was in an extreme situation and acted with bravery. The article, while written from Pam’s experiences, feels like it’s more about life and emotions in general, depicted through “John.” In fact, the ending is drastically different between real-life and the film. I don’t want to say I have some kind of psychic level of intuition, but maybe the film shouldn’t have tinkered with what actually happened. I understand the need to make Pam the focus of the film, but I also understand the morals in this story and the moral necessity is about “John,” not about Pam. Unfortunately, there is no context unless you read the article and watch the film. So if you just watch the film, you miss a lot of context and what context you do get is a brief 10 minutes at the end of the film that feels more like an incomplete epilogue.

“Infinite Storm,” while visually engaging, never makes us care about the characters. Not even the based on a true story attachment at the beginning of the film ever makes us feel like elements of the story aren’t contrived. The elements appear to be manufactured as opposed to the actual harrowing journey. For instance, “John” disappears after falling into a stream, yet miraculously appears later seemingly unharmed. The article tells no such tall tale like this. The basis of “Infinite Storm” may be true, but its emotional core appears to be built on false pretenses.

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Film Review: “Cyrano”

Starring: Peter Dinklage, Haley Bennett and Kelvin Harrison Jr.
Directed by: Joe Dante
Rated: PG-13
Running Time: 124 minutes
United Artists Releasing

I tell people that sometimes I’m grateful I’ve been ignorant of certain elements in pop-culture. 2022’s “Cyrano,” based on “Cyrano de Bergerac,” a play written in 1897, has been adapted dozens of times. So what does the new one have that the others don’t? I don’t know, but I can tell you that this “Cyrano” features a dazzling performance, some solid ensemble songs and some touching moments.

In the original story, the title character has a big nose that prevents him from proclaiming his love. In this updated story, Cyrano (Dinklage) has a size problem that prevents him from professing his adoration for Roxanne (Bennett). Instead of singing his love to her he lends a helpful ear when she needs one. That leads to him watching as she begins to fall for a Christian (Harrison Jr.), a young soldier that isn’t as witty, clever or skillful with a sword as Cyrano. Despite this, a love triangle forms as Christian recruits Cyrano to win over Roxanne, but is that what’s right for everyone?

It took me a while to warm up to “Cyrano” because I wasn’t quite sure if this movie had anything to say other than “looks aren’t everything” and I’m glad it did, but it took a while. That’s because the film is littered with several music scores (some great, some mediocre) that break up the pacing of the plot, especially when the song calls for something completely unrelated to the storyline. The thing that kept me hanging on during those down moments was Dinklage’s performance, one that I can say is one of the best of the year.

Despite his stature, Dinklage commands the screen and the actors around him. Dinklage doesn’t chew the scenery, he serenades it, enchants it and morphs into it raising everyone and everything up to his level. Bennett, Harrison Jr., as well as Ben Mendelsohn in the role of villain, only appear to be acting their proverbial butts off when Dinklage is in the vicinity. Otherwise the film seems a little lost without Dinklage’s magnetic presence.

Dinklage is such a massive part of this film, I was shocked that he wasn’t the director, writer (although his wife did pen the script), editor and distributor as well. While Dinklage is more well known for his time on HBO’s “Game of Thrones,” fans of his role as Tyrion Lannister may find themselves hypnotized by his quick wit and quick tongue in “Cyrano.” At the very least, “Cyrano” is a testament to Dinklage’s abilities as an actor and as a leading man in any role he’s given.

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Film Review: “Pursuit”

Starring: Emile Hirsch, Jake Manley and Elizabeth Ludlow
Directed by: Brian Skiba
Rated: R
Running Time: 92 minutes

It’s always easy to say there’s too many cooks in the kitchen when the end product fails. But for a film that has four writers, you would think someone would have eventually read the script and axed some of the characters, trimmed the dialogue and cleaned up the jumbling, bumbling plot. But since that didn’t happen, we’re left with “Pursuit,” a film that’s almost too difficult to explain and even more difficult to care about.

So if I understand the 92 minutes I watched correctly, Rick (Hirsch), a hacker that is the epitome of hacker film clichés, is searching for his wife who has been kidnapped by a mysterious drug cartel, off screen. But while Rick is searching, he is being hunted by Mike (Manley), a New York City detective. Mike actually arrests Rick about a third of the way into the film, setting up the rest of the film which is about Rick potentially offering up worse individuals, including Rick’s father, played by John Cusack, who may have something to do with the kidnapping of Rick’s wife.

It’s sometimes difficult to tell where this movie is supposed to take place, who is working for whom, what characters are actually important to the story and which ones have been created to simply provide an exposition dump, which is funny since the exposition dump’s don’t clear anything up, and instead complicate the plot even further. Even with all the forced twists and turns, there is no payoff at the end for the ridiculousness on screen. It’s almost as if all four writers for “Pursuit” were told four different things about what the story was about.

Compounding the messy story issues in “Pursuit,” is the insane tonal shifts. In the opening sequence alone, the film tries to tell us it’s a techno thriller, but becomes so comically inept, it makes you wonder if one writer was writing a comedy, one writer was taking it too seriously, one writer was trying to figure how many ancillary characters is too many and one writer simply believed there wasn’t enough gun play. So when the film attempts humor, and it does frequently, it comes off jarring. We’re supposed to laugh at a bystander getting shot as some kind of physical comedy, but then in a few minutes we’ll see innocent women and children leaking life force after being shot? Those two things don’t jive well in an entire film, much less in a few minutes of each other.

Almost as if he saw the writing on the wall while reading the writing in the script, John Cusack, who’s predominantly featured in this film’s marketing, seems to be on autopilot as he casually drifts from mundane scene to mundane scene, at least the ones he’s in. I also wonder how much he was actually in it and how many times they just recorded him talking and then had an extra with their back turned for the scene. When we actually know Cusack is the one on-screen, he spends most of his time reacting or talking solemnly on the phone, which tells me his contract most likely stipulated that he would only do the film if they would film it at his house in one day.

Somehow “Pursuit” is equally grotesque and boring with it’s action. As far as low-budget action movies go, “Pursuit” isn’t even worthy of being in a discount bin in Wal-Mart or ran during off-hours on one of Pluto TV’s channels. You’re better off pursuing a different movie, or even a different hobby if “Pursuit” is the only movie you have at your disposal.

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Film Review: “Strawberry Mansion”

Starring: Kentucker Audley, Penny Fuller and Grace Glowicki
Directed by: Kentucker Audley and Albert Birney
Rated: NR
Running Time: 91 minutes
Music Box Films

The year is 2035 (although you’d never know it’s even in the 21st century based on the technology you see in the film) and the only thing that appears to have changed are dreams and taxes. Government auditors, like James (Audley), check in on people’s dreams, assessing the costs associated with the various items that pop-up in the person’s brain. We’re not told much about this structure, which I’ll admit I’m disappointed in since the conceit is fascinating, because the real story involves one dream audit in particular. The audit of Bella (Fuller), an eccentric woman that lives by herself, involves James going through Bella’s dreams one-by-one from her youthful era, which have been recorded on VHS tapes to circumvent the establishment and it’s tax system. Nonetheless, she opens up her mind to James who’s about to open up his mind and heart to the surreal visions he’s about to experience.

“Strawberry Mansion” is like a small town carnival funhouse, most people will see it as a cheap excuse for entertainment while those with an open mind will look past the duct taped together bits and fully immerse themselves in the non-sequitur dreamscape. Part of what made me really enjoy this movie is the obvious budget issues. “Strawberry Mansion” isn’t getting a check from Disney or Miramax, but I’m sure the directors had to max out a few credit cards to cobble some scenes together. The story also gives credence to the somewhat patchwork filming because we are in a dream and dreams aren’t necessarily flawless visual feasts, but more or less flawed droplets of our own introspection and self-actualization. So when James communicates with a subconscious advertisement in an entirely pink kitchen or is the captain of a pirate ship staffed by sentient mice, we accept the insanity of the premise and the cheapness of the effects, knowing that James is in a dream state.

Even though James is viewing old dreams, he’s able to interact with the elements, including Bella, who approaches James much like you approach others in dreams, believing they are the real deal. But as the movie progresses it seems like Bella understands who James is, almost as if her dream memories know they’re dream memories. The overall messaging of the film is a little frustrating, but I feel like it’s intentionally set-up for people to take away different concepts and run with them, whether it’s a commentary on obtuse filmmaking or the dreams we attempt to analyze despite their fleeting nature. “Strawberry Mansion” could also be a meditation on humans allowing the noise and clutter of unnecessary things inhabit our lives, like advertising and government influence. I saw a lot of themes and ideas, but none of them were strong enough to sway me one way or another. I wasn’t sure if it was intentional or not by the creators to be like this, but in a film like “Strawberry Mansion,” there may not be a wrong answer, and therein lies the cleverness of the film at moments.

“Strawberry Mansion” is far from being a head trip action-adventure film like “Inception” or “Total Recall,” but feels more like an Adult Swim acid trip because it’s bizarre, crass at times, silly, confusing and oddly heartfelt. If you’ve ever watched the fake “Infomercials” on Adult Swim, “Strawberry Mansion” is for you. Thankfully, “Strawberry Mansion” isn’t be weird to simply be weird, so even people who aren’t the film’s target demographic may be able to take something positive away from it, even if they don’t like the film. 

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Film Review: “Those Who Walk Away”

Starring: Booboo Stewart, Nils Allen Steweart and Scarlett Sperduto
Directed by: Robert Rippberger
Rated: NR
Running Time: 94 minutes
VMI Releasing

Every year I try to make it to the annual horror movie festival in my neck of the woods (Kansas City, Mo.) called Panic Fest. Over the years I’ve talked with people about this event and a lot of times I get asked the same thing, “How can you enjoy low budget horror? It’s bad.” Well, here’s the thing. I don’t need a horror film to be from Blumhouse to appreciate low budget craft and I can ignore average acting if other elements are above par. Everyone’s gotta get their start somewhere. I’ve always been more likely to judge a big budget film more critically than I am a film put together with a shoestring budget and first time director. So when I say “Those Who Walk Away” is decent, I’m potentially only telling that to people who feel the same way about low budget horrors. Everyone else will watch it and go, “How can you enjoy low budget horror? It’s bad.”

Max (Stewart) is on a tinder date with Avery (Sperduto) and the nerves are palpable as they meet in-person for the first time in a park. Avery, a theater manager who’s also in school for literature, isn’t upfront with every little detail, apologizing profusely while also cushioning the blow of lying by saying that she’s genuinely interested in Max, and that’s why she’s being honest. This is one of many red flags as the two stroll through their town making idle chit chat and revealing their own personal demons. Avery’s personal demon is clearly lying, while Max’s personal demon is his emotional inability to take care of his ailing mother. This elongated conversation and revelations are setting up the film’s monster, which doesn’t arrive until the date begins taking bizarre turns.

I don’t want to reveal too much more about “Those Who Walk Away” because my attempt at the synopsis above does more than cover basic exposition, it covers the first half of the film. That’s right, the first 40ish minutes of the film (I didn’t pause to check) is a conversation/date between Max and Avery. While this kind of set-up helps establish our characters for the second half of the film, it also prevents this movie from ever developing its aesthetic. I say that because the second half of the film is like a found footage nightmare in a still livable home that more closely resembles a condemned shack. Max finds himself in a maze of horror, even though the audience feels no fear moving forward because we’ve already spent a good chunk of time watching a bad first date.

“Those Who Walk Away” employs a lot of single takes, attempting to pull a “Birdman” by tricking the audience into believing it’s all one single take even though the director and cinematographer aren’t as adept as Inarritu at fooling people. Even though they aren’t very good at tricking us, or much less scaring us, the visuals that are created are sometimes fascinating to pick apart and sometimes do offer a mirror to Max’s psyche. Actor Booboo Stewart really gets to shine through in the latter half of the film whereas I wasn’t sure in the first half if he was still stretching his acting legs or simply channeling an introverted man on a first date.

I had to think for a bit after watching “Those Who Walk Away” because I felt that there was an important message being delivered. However, I couldn’t quite pick through the noise to see the message as the credits began to roll. It’s a good ending, but it feels like such a misfire in terms of conveying what it wants to say. “Those Who Walk Away” offers up plenty of peculiar, surreal horror moments in it’s finale, but without a cohesive message the overall look and idea feels lost. It’s difficult for me to recommend “Those Who Walk Away” because the film’s title feels like such a self-fulfilling prophecy about the audience members who will get tired of waiting for the haunted house spooks to begin, and even those who do tough it out, will most likely find themselves walking away empty-handed.

 

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Film Review: “Lotawana”

Starring: Todd Blubaugh and Nicola Collie
Directed by: Trevor Hawkins
Rated: N/R 
Running Time: 97 minutes

Forrest (Blubaugh) is a wanderer. He spends his days tending to his sailboat, which doubles as his house, on a Missouri lake. He goes to land for essentials and to zip around town on his motorcycle. One day he finds another wanderer named Everly (Collie). The two fall for each other immediately and discuss a future that may never happen.

“Lotawana” reminds me a lot of 2016’s “American Honey,” and not just because both had scenes filmed in and around Kansas City, my hometown. Both films show aimless young adults coming into their own as adults even though they don’t want to become adults and do everything in their power to avoid that inevitability. Forrest, who we literally know almost next to nothing about, enjoys a simple life on a Missouri lake daydreaming about journeys around the globe he will never take. Everly, who we know barely a little bit more about, listens to these daydreams and adds to them. Neither of them is following through with those daydreams, but I won’t spoil why.

As “Lotawana” goes through the motions, we learn very little about our characters, picking up hints from the nature surrounding them as well as interactions they have with people who also live on or around the lake. Because of its vague nature, it wouldn’t surprise me if viewers had different theories as to what is happening and why. Personally, I feel like Forrest and Everly represent two ideologies when it comes to youth.

Forrest appears to be a symbol for privilege. We never really learn what he does or how he has money, but it’s clear he has no problem financially maintaining a boat with food. He also seems to be in no hurry to find a career unless that career is an unpaid internship he gives himself on his boat. Everly, who has a rocky relationship with her family, appears to be fleeing trauma she’s not willing to confront yet, if at all. Both find solace in their wanderlust, but both are following it for wrong reasons, meaning that the happiness we see on screen will eventually turn into conflict unless one of them makes the first move by making an adult decision.

Very rarely do I find myself enjoying a film that features no exposition, much less dialogue that reveals the inner workings or backstory of our characters. Most of the time I’d probably find this frustrating, but thanks to some outstanding cinematography and vignettes involving Forrest and Everly’s relationship, “Lotawana” is gorgeous and serendipitous at times. If “Lotawana” is any indication, first-time film director Trevor Hawkins has a bright future ahead.

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Film Review: “Sundown”

Starring: Tim Roth, Charlotte Gainsbourg and Iazua Larios
Directed by: Michel Franco
Rated: R
Running Time: 83 minutes
Beecker Street Media

Neil (Roth) and Allison (Gainsbourg) appear to be a happy couple on vacation in Mexico. Two kids are with them as they go to and from the beach, enjoying the sun and warmth. Then, Allison receives a call about trouble back home. The family packs, dashes to the airport, and then all of a sudden Neil says, “I forgot my passport.” No problem as he says he’ll take the next flight home and gets into a cab. But he doesn’t go back to their hotel nor has he seemingly lost his passport. What happens and why is what “Sundown” is about.

To really become engaged with this film, you need to know as little as possible. In fact, the less you know, the more my opening paragraph reveals that not everything is as it seems. Neil seems apathetic about the family tragedy and we aren’t sure why. He checks into a cheap motel, he lounges around on the beach sipping on drink after drink, and then finds a cute young woman to bring back to his cheap motel. Well, wait, what about Allison and the kids? What about that family tragedy? What’s going on?

So even if you begin to understand what is happening, because Neil doesn’t appear to be the most trustworthy and definitely least likable person in the film, are we really seeing reality? Is reality Allison and the family tragedy or is the reality the one Neil is telling this young woman? There are certain truths that are revealed as the movie goes on, but the crux of the film centers around this event. This family death back home leads to the death of whatever was happening between Neil and Allison, or it’s possibly on a more personal level with Neil. Is Neil frustrated or relieved?

“The Abandon” withholds a lot of information, expecting audiences to do some mental digging on their own. For some audiences, that could easily backfire since there are a lot of times in this film where nothing happens. I’m not saying that Roth isn’t using that nothingness to command the screen, but there really is nothing happening. That’s going to frustrate some to the point where they will no longer care about the conclusion and by the time the film ends, I’m curious if Franco even knew how to say what he wanted to say. I also realize this review is probably frustrating because much like the director, I’m not telling you much.

What I am trying to say, without spoiling the film, is that this is a tough film to enjoy, much less a tough film to fully comprehend. That’s not me saying this film is on another intellectual level, I just feel the messaging is crafted in such a way that you’re most likely going to be mad that you watched the film. While I wasn’t mad about the ending, I certainly felt let down that such a meticulously crafted and well-acted movie seemed to ultimately say nothing when it felt like it wanted to tell me everything.

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Filed Under: Film Reviews, Movies Tagged With: bleeker street, Charlotte Gainsbourg, film review, Iazua Larios, jeremy werner, michel franco, ...

Film Review: “The Abandon”

Starring: Jonathan Rosenthal and Tamara Perry
Directed by: Jason Satterlund
Rated: N/A
Running Time: 96 minutes

Back in the summer of 2002 I went to my local Blockbuster to rent “Cube” after going down an internet rabbit hole. “Cube” is about multiple people waking up in different colored cubed shaped rooms with tiny doors on all sides leading into another similar cube in a different color. The movie kept building and building, making you wonder what was going on and if they’d get out. I only mention this film because I kept getting that vibe from “The Abandon,” a film about an American soldier in Iraq who’s wounded during a firefight, only to be mysteriously transported to a cubed, bland room with no doors.

Miles (Rosenthal), the soldier, spends probably the first 20 minutes by himself in this cubed room, examining his surroundings at first before tending to his injuries he suffered in the gun battle. Before too long, his satellite phone rings. On the other line is Damsey (Perry), a woman who sometimes seems to know more about Miles than she leads on, but nonetheless she isn’t a soldier or in any way shape or form connected to the powers that have imprisoned Miles. She’s an elementary school math teacher who is also imprisoned in a cubed, bland room with no doors.

Despite the slow, and I mean really slow, start to the film, “The Abandon” begins to pick up as Miles’ and Damsey’s conversation gets more and more personal. It’s during these moments where some of the theories people might have begun to take shape. At the beginning, it’s easy to believe that aliens may be behind the whole plot, but before the final frame, I had several theories in my head, including that this may in fact be a secret sequel to “Cube.” That being said, these kinds of films hinge on two things, whether or not the person on screen can carry the somewhat solo adventure and if the ending reveal is worth it. Let’s call it a draw.

“The Abandon” is rarely boring past the first 20ish minutes of Miles frantically pacing around the cube and testing the walls. Not only are little bread crumbs scattered about for us to pick and piece together, but the film manages to create tension between Miles and Damsey, making us question Damsey’s motives and sometimes Miles’ motives. There’s a fascinating cat and mouse game for most of the film, that is until the climax and finale. So, this brings me to the payoff.

It’s not very good. The ambiguous nature of the ending is a bit too ambiguous. While I feel like there can be a straightforward answer, the messaging of the film is mixed. I won’t ruin the ending, but I really want to because it’s difficult to discuss films like these without spoiling everything. These films demand you watch through until the end because the end is what’s supposed to bring it all together, but “The Abandoned” seems to have abandoned any attempts at a cohesive conclusion. That’s not to say the rest of the film isn’t interesting or good, but it feels dampened by its finale.

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Filed Under: Film Reviews, Movies Tagged With: film review, jason satterlund, jeremy werner, jonathan rosenthal, tamara perry, the abandon, ...

Film Review: “Imperfect”

Directed by: Regan Linton and Brian Malone
Rated: NR
Running Time: 77 minutes

“Imperfect” opens with Regan Linton’s morning routine of showering, putting makeup on and getting clothed, but it’s different from most. That’s because in college she was in a car accident that paralyzed her, forcing her to use a wheelchair to get around. Despite her disability, she continues to live and follow her dreams. According to her, her lifelong dream has always been acting and being on the silver screen, but her new focus in “Imperfect” is an entirely different beast, directing.

“Imperfect” follows Linton’s journey as she directs the musical “Chicago” in Denver with a cast made up entirely of people with disabilities. We see people from all walks of life come to audition, some with Parkinson’s, some with autism, and nearly every disability. However, instead of focusing on those disabilities, the documentary cleverly shows us the artistic process. That’s because we watch as art elevates everyone in the production regardless of challenges they face. We watch as Linton and her crew make accommodations or changes with production schematics so that some of the actors are able to come to life on stage.

As pointed out in the film and by Linton, audiences won’t see the disabilities, but instead will see the characters and stories they tell as long as they act as well as they promised they could at their auditions. While it is impossible to see past some of the actor’s disabilities, it makes the final product of the performance that much more impressive and heartwarming when everyone comes together and puts on a real banger of a show.

Outside of taking a behind-the-scenes look at this wholly unique production, we learn about some of the actors. Some have spent years working a basic job and have merely dreamed of being on a stage to get their big break while others actually have had a big break in Hollywood, but are still relegated to stereotypical roles suited for their disability, which in a lot of cases (as the film points out) is a damn shame. Some of these people have incredible talent, not only as actors, but as singers and dancers.

Not everything is inspiring and hopeful. At times we see the pain and frustration that comes with this overwhelming process, as well as how difficult the disabilities can be. Despite the film’s brief runtime, the film never wastes a second perfectly showing who these people are, what their talents, dreams and hopes are. It’s the kind of documentary that makes you upset you didn’t experience this production yourself. Despite its title, “Imperfect” is a near flawless look at a once-in-a-lifetime production.

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Filed Under: Film Reviews, Movies Tagged With: Brian Malone, documentary, film review, imperfect, jeremy werner, regan linton, ...

Film Review: “GameStop: Rise of the Players”

Directed by: Jonah Tulis
Rated: NR
Running Time: 94 minutes
Neon

There’s a current trend happening with documentaries and I’m pointing the finger of blame directly at Youtube. This trend is to hop on a big moment in contemporary history immediately and then attempt to encompass and explain the entire scenario in a brief documentary film. I blame Youtube because Youtube content creators are doing this on a daily basis, sometimes foregoing things like facts and pertinent information that sometimes comes with the passage of time. It’s kind of like a “strike when the iron is hot” idea.

Since my full-time job is in news, I will admit that this wasn’t a structure created by Youtube, but I would say was created by TV news organizations that are wanting to quickly and briefly explain complex situations and condense lengthy interviews. Sometimes it works, but that requires a news room with a large staff with good ethics and knowledge of storytelling. So, when a documentary like “GameStop: Rise of the Players” comes out, I have to wonder if what I’m being told is the God honest truth because so many players in this story are still actively participating in what happened.

If you didn’t know, or had been doing a media break last year (and honestly, I wouldn’t blame you), a little brick-and-mortar store by the name of GameStop was, at least through public perception, dying. Stores were closing, the stock was starting to look like it was going to be worth less than a few mere dollars and the video game industry itself was evolving towards a digital market. But something odd happened, the stock began to double, then triple, then quadruple, in value, but it kept going. Not just over a period of months or week, but hours and then minutes. So, what was going on?

“GameStop: Rise of the Players” kind of explains all this with spliced footage of talking heads on 24-hour news networks, but that really isn’t the meat of the film. The best thing the documentary offers is one-on-one interviews with stock traders who benefited from GameStop’s meteoric stock. Some are simply down on their luck individuals looking to turn things around by, quite literally, gambling on the stock market. It’s these personal stories that make us root for these individuals, as well as GameStop’s stock, throughout the film. Some of the people benefiting were always going to be well off, so I can’t speak to my sympathy or rooting of them, but for the individuals who were having to move back in with their parents or who had received a devastating cancer diagnosis, I’m glad to see their David vs. Goliath story on-screen.

That being said, I wish the film had more context which wouldn’t be possible in the time frame the documentary was created. A quick Google search shows that the GameStop stock is still percolating with hot gossip, whether people are talking about the stock making another climb to infamy or media outlets looking at the aftermath as if the stock will now be left to die. The story of GameStop has yet to be fully told, yet here we are with a documentary claiming to do just that. While I knew most of what was being discussed, I couldn’t help but think that even someone who knew the basics of what happened would still be confused about what was happening. At times the documentary seems to forget that maybe you don’t know about certain things, like how these people were talking to each other over Discord or the phenomenon of people seeking financial advice on Youtube. “GameStop: Rise of the Players” attempts to tell a story, but just like GameStop’s old brick-and-mortar stores, it offers nothing new.

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Filed Under: Film Reviews, Movies Tagged With: film review, gamestop, jeremy werner, jonah tulis, rise of the players, wallstreetbets, ...

Film Review: “Slapface”

Starring: August Maturo, Mike Manning and Libe Barer
Directed by: Jeremiah Kipp
Rated: NR
Running Time: 85 minutes
Shudder

When we first meet Lucas (Maturo), he and his brother Tom (Manning) are mourning the loss of their mother. To deal with this trauma, and his brother’s trauma as well, Tom forces Lucas to mourn with him via a game called ‘slapface’, which might be exactly what you think it is. The two brothers sit across from each other and slap one another repeatedly, hitting harder as the game goes on.

When the two aren’t physically beating each other in grief, Tom is finding the bottom of a bottle of liquor and Lucas is practicing witchcraft. One of these is not like the other. “Slapface,” a film that took me a while to grasp the concept of, is about Lucas more than it is about Tom. Lucas is not only enduring physical violence at home, but is enduring mental and emotional torture from classmates who bully him as well as the Virago Witch, which he summons into existence.

I say “Slapface” took me a while to grasp the concept because I really wasn’t sure what I was getting from this film. The opening felt silly and I wasn’t quite sure why a prepubescent boy was suddenly dabbling in witchcraft, but this is the kind of film that really hits you over the head before the credits. The Witch itself isn’t scary, but it’s not there to frighten us with cheap jump scares, nor is it there to harm Lucas. The Witch, after being summoned, appears to randomly pop-up when the story calls for it, a hint at what the film is actually trying to say. Like any good dramatic horror movie, the point isn’t to simply scare us and have us move on with our lives, “Slapface” shows us the unfortunate outcome of an extreme situation that can be applied to the real world.

Maturo does an incredible job in the role, showing the wildly high strung emotions that a child his age would go through, sometimes appearing carefree about the events around him while flipping on a dime in a fit of rage or sadness. It’s clear that Lucas isn’t confronting his feelings, instead opting to bottle them up. Even during the game ‘slapface’ he withholds, possibly fearing the aggression and sadness that’s building up inside him. As an actor, Maturo channels that same kind of fear, sadness and frustration we once saw in Haley Joel Osment in “The Sixth Sense.” As for everyone else, the acting is fine, but doesn’t stand out as much as Maturo.

While the Virago Witch in “Slapface” is far from unique or creative, what the monster represents is entirely fresh. For those interested in a late night creature feature packed with scares and gore, look elsewhere. For those who want psychological horror, you’ve come to the right place, but prepare yourself for your own slap in the face.

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Filed Under: Film Reviews, Movies Tagged With: august maturo, film review, jeremiah kipp, jeremy werner, libe barer, mike manning, ...

Film Review: “A Shot Through the Wall”

Starring: Kenny Leu, Ciara Renee and Clifton Davis
Directed by: Aimee Long
Rated: NR
Running Time: 89 minutes
Vertical Entertainment

There are plenty of days where I feel like nuance is missing. I say that because we have so much content at our fingertips now, it’s hard to really dive into the meat of something. We need to get to the next piece of content to devour, so we look at the headline or photo and move on. Without diving too deep into the realm of politics “A Shot Through the Wall” still manages to do a very impressive job of reminding us that not everything is black and white.

Mike Tan (Leu), the son of two Chinese immigrants, is a fresh-faced street cop in New York City. Unfortunately for him, his white and also fresh-faced partner looks for trouble where it isn’t, spotting a few young African-American teens who “should be in school.” One of those teens flees, for reasons we don’t know and soon won’t care about. Tan, just a dozen steps behind the teen, ends up in an apartment complex, unholsters his gun, but accidentally fires off a shot under pressure. That one accidental gunshot enters an apartment, killing an African-American man and setting off a chain of events.

“A Shot Through the Wall” plays with a lot of unfortunate things that happen during officer-involved shootings. We see the immediate outrage from the public, even when all the facts aren’t in yet. We also see the cellphone footage that’s released of Officer Tan attempting to revive the man he accidentally shot. What the cellphone doesn’t capture, is everything that led up to that shooting, as well as everything after. Nonetheless, the cellphone footage captures only one part of the incident which still paints Officer Tan in a negative light. We also see accusations of racism and conspiratorial thinking along the lines of police cover-ups, as well as the threat of vigilantes looking for their own brand of justice. On the flip side, we do see how police attempt to smooth things over, through potential plea deals and PR campaigns. While all of this is interesting, that’s not what makes “A Shot Through the Wall” unique, because we’ve seen this before in other movies.

“A Shot Through the Wall” takes us through the emotional toll this takes on Tan, his family, his African-American fiancée and others. The movie does make a critical mistake in not showing us the emotional pain the actual victims family and friends are going through, but that may also be a creative choice on the end of Aimee Long in her first written and directed film. She’s not shy about showing some unmentionable truths, like the fact that Tan isn’t racist at all, but his parents are. Or the fact that Tan goes back and forth on whether or not to put his relationship on the line by publicly proclaiming, “I have a black girlfriend, so I can’t be a racist who shot an unarmed black man.”

In the end though, and throughout the movie, the audience has to wonder: Is Officer Tan innocent? It’s a tough call and the movie, to it’s credits, opts to let Officer Tan say if he is or isn’t himself before the credits roll. “A Shot Through the Wall” isn’t about red vs. blue, Black Lives Matter vs. Blue Lives Matter, or any of the usual nonsense that’s associated with officer-involved shootings nowadays. It’s about the pain of it all. For that, I’m grateful I watched “A Shot Through the Wall” because we sometimes need a reminder that we’re all humans on this random spinning globe and the only way to confront pain is head-on.

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Filed Under: Film Reviews, Movies, Uncategorized Tagged With: a shot through the wall, aimee long, film, film review, jeremy werner, kenny leu, ...
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