FOLLOWING FILMS

1980 Directed by: Dusty Nelson Starring: Tom Savini, Joe Pilato, and John Harrison Certain genre fans will have nostalgia, not only for oddball films that might not stand up to the test of time, but for special effects from those films. When I've shown friends the original DAWN OF THE DEAD a common comment is that the blood looks fake. I grew up with that melted crayon looking blood and it holds a special place in my heart. It doesn't have the same effect as CGI squibs exploding into the camera lens but it does have a tactile nature that computers haven't been able to replicate. I was aware that Tom Savini did the makeup for EFFECTS, but I was genuinely surprised when I saw a blood effect from DAWN OF THE DEAD in this film. It would be like taking a drive through Pittsburgh and accidentally happening across the Monroeville Mall. I was taken back to a middle school version of myself, but while watching something I've never seen before. Cobbled together with loos...

2017 Directed by: Michael O'Shea Starring: Eric Ruffin, Chloe Levine, and Aaron Moten Very seldom is a vampire film, just a vampire film and more often than not a genre film is not just a genre film. Writers and directors have used the macabre to explore ideas and comment on society in ways that mainstream films ignore. First-time feature director Michael O'Shea has used the vampire myth in THE TRANSFIGURATION to explore poverty, violence, gangs, rape, and the many facets of inner city adolescence. It's clear from the get go that O'Shea is fully aware of the blood sucking tropes that fill this particular sub-genre of horror films. He isn't nervous about subverting those standards or using them as he sees fit. It's knowledge of what has come before that allows O'Shea to make something unique that stands completely on its own. Milo (Eric Ruffin) is an isolated teenager living in a densely populated city. An outlier that doesn't fit in with the oth...

BIRTHDAY 2017 Directed by: Alberto Viavattene Italy Night. An abusive nurse wanders through the halls of a nursing home. She integrates her salary by secretly selling prescription drugs to junkies and stealing from the most vulnerable patients. The only thing she hates more than her job is old people. Upon entering room 12, occupied by three sisters, she discovers that one of them has just turned one-hundred years old: there must be a birthday present somewhere… that will change their lives forever. THE PECULIAR ABILITIES OF MR. MAHLER 2017 Directed by: Paul Philipp Germany East Germany 1987: Special investigator Mahler, who is said to possess paranormal abilities, is assigned to solve the case of a missing 6-year-old before this issue leads to political tensions with the West. PUMPKIN 2017 Directed by: Jay Rathore Canada Eric is your average suburban teenager, obsessed with the internet and constantly glued to his phone. ...

RONIN. Noun, historical. A samurai who no longer serves a daimyo, or feudal lord. From director John Frankenheimer (SEVEN DAYS IN MAY, THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE) comes RONIN, a pulse-pounding, action-packed crime thriller featuring an all-star cast headlined by Robert De Niro (TAXI DRIVER, HEAT) and Jean Reno (LEON: THE PROFESSIONAL). On a rain-swept night in Paris, an international crack team of professional thieves assembles, summoned by a shady crime syndicate fronted by the enigmatic Deirdre (Natascha McElhone, The Devil's Own). Their mission: to steal a heavily guarded briefcase from armed mobsters, its contents undisclosed. But what begins as a routine heist soon spirals into chaos, with the group beset by a series of double-crosses and constantly shifting allegiances, and it falls to world-weary former CIA strategist Sam (De Niro) and laconic Frenchman Vincent (Reno) to hold the mission together. A latter-day return to form for Frankenheimer, the film evokes the sam...

2017 Starring: Francesca Eastwood, Clifton Collins Jr., Marlon Young and Peter Vack Directed By: Natalia Leite A couple weeks ago, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos announced plans to roll back title IX protections for victims of sexual assault established under the Obama administration. Instead of helping victims of rape to navigate the legal process she hopes to protect the innocent victims of false accusation. Rape statistics vary greatly from source to source but I've yet to come across any study that postulates the number of false accusations out numbers actual assaults. And yet here we are. In a time where an equivalency is being drawn between the two. M.F.A. is the story of Noelle (Eastwood) an art student who is raped and decides to take decisive action when she sees a system that turns a blind eye. Early in the film Professor Rudd (Young) tells Noelle to "make something ugly." He encourages her to fail. He asks her to push herself outside of the comfort...

2017 Written and Directed by: Dustin Guy Defa Starring: Abbi Jacobson, Michael Cera, Tavi Gevinson, Philip Baker Hall, Bene Coopersmith Self-examination and exploration are the way individuals hope to understand the reasons behind their motivations, desires, purpose, and personality. These are people analyzing life and the world, looking for the things that speak to them. Often these people are seeking objects, relationships, professions, or in some cases redemption to help define who they are. They use the external as a means to scrutinize the internal. PERSON TO PERSON uses a split narrative structure to study the lives New Yorkers who are all looking for something. Benny (Coopersmith) is a record collector hunting down a rare Charlie Parker LP and an honest opinion of his shirt. Claire (Jacobson) is a rookie reporter looking for a paycheck under the tutelage of Phil (Cera), a pushy but sensitive reporter who looks for every opportunity he can to talk about his metal band. ...

2017 Directed By: Navin Ramaswaran Starring: Lora Burke, Robert Notman, and Will Conlon Written By: J. Gordon Ross Put simply, an unreliable narrator is a storyteller whose trustworthiness is questionable. An audience following a tale created by a compromised character is left unbalanced and questioning almost everything they see. POOR AGNES is told from the point of view of a delusional young woman (Burke) who has a less than firm grip on reality. She is vicious and cruel but oddly poetic in her personal philosophy. Through voice over and monologues performed to the camera we hear Agnes justify her indefensible actions. She kidnaps, kills, and rapes with no sense of remorse or regret. The only things she seems to feel are utter satisfaction and self-righteousness. She has pure conviction and lacks any self-doubt, a luxury not often granted to the emotionally stable.      Early in the film, Agnes crosses paths with Mike (Notman) a private investig...

21st EDITION – JULY 13-AUGUST 2, 2017 — Since its inception in 1996, the Fantasia International Film Festival is now recognized as the largest and most influential event of its kind in North America, a leader on the genre film scene and one of the country’s most popular film festivals. With a varied programming and an emphasis on the imaginative cinema of Asia, Europe and the Americas, Fantasia’s offerings range from unique and powerful personal visions to international commercial crowd-pleasers rarely seen in North America. As the festival gets started we want to highlight some of this years must see films. 78/52 2017 Directed By: Alexandre Philippe Screening July 20th An unprecedented look at the iconic shower scene in Alfred Hitchcock’s PSYCHO, the 'Man behind the Curtain', and the screen murder that profoundly changed the course of world cinema. 78/52 references the number of set-ups (78) and the number of cuts (52) in the shower scene from Alfred Hit...

21st EDITION – JULY 13-AUGUST 2, 2017 — Since its inception in 1996, the Fantasia International Film Festival is now recognized as the largest and most influential event of its kind in North America, a leader on the genre film scene and one of the country’s most popular film festivals. With a varied programming and an emphasis on the imaginative cinema of Asia, Europe, and the Americas, Fantasia’s offerings range from unique and powerful personal visions to international commercial crowd-pleasers rarely seen in North America. As the festival gets started we want to highlight some of this year's must-see films. DEAD SHACK 2017 Directed By: Peter Ricq Screening July 22nd On a weekend getaway at a rundown cabin in the woods, Jason, a cautious teen, his crude best friend Colin and his fearless older sister Summer are forced to work together, grow up and save their hard-partying parents from their predatory neighbor intent on feeding them all to her undead family...

2017 Directed By: David Berry Starring: Grant Davis, Davi Santos, and Ben Baur Young love is powerful. It leaves scars and helps to shape the people we eventually become. It can be empowering, crippling, and inspirational. Most people who fall in love in high school aren't able to make it a lasting love. We use those first feelings as guideposts of what we do and do not want.  We discover who we are in those emotionally turbulent years and see hints of what we might become. For Ben (Grant Davis) and Tim (Davi Santos) exploring their feelings is made all the more difficult by geography. They live in a conservative Texas community where being gay is still seen as something to mock and be ashamed of. SOMETHING LIKE SUMMER depicts Ben and Tim's relationship over the course of 12 years. It has ups and downs, like any relationship but only grows more complicated with time. At the start of the film, Ben is the only kid in his high school out of the closet. He has ...

2017 Directed By: Isaac Rentz Starring: Topher Grace, Anne Heche, Alona Tal, JC Chasez, Lauren Lapkus, Taye Diggs, Paul Scheer, and Rob Riggle A Stage Manager has one of the most difficult and underappreciated jobs in a theatrical production. Its a nebulous position where an individual acts as assistant to the director and production staff during the rehearsal period and then runs the production during the actual performance. Nick (Grace) is a former Broadway Actor turned Stage Manager who is running the opening night performance of "ONE HIT WONDERLAND." A musical that's something like A CHRISTMAS CAROL filtered through the artistic integrity of a THAT'S WHAT I CALL MUSIC vol. 16 CD. Nick best sums up this play when he says "who wrote this shit." Nick's inability to admit he is still in love with Chloe (Tal), a year after he broke up with her, and paralyzing stage fright have left him cynical and broken. He masks his fear with contempt ...

2017 Directed By: Daniel Peddle Starring: Mitchell Slaggert, Christene Marzano, Billy Ray Suggs Jr. The transition from adolescence to adulthood is an awkward time. While the physical transformation has occurred the emotional side of things tends to lag behind. We often wear the suit of a man before becoming one. Maturity is a non-linear path with many detours and regressions. Or as Mary (Marzano) would say "once a child, always a child." On his 18th birthday, Moss (Slaggert) is ready to leave home and start a new life. He hopes to escape from what he sees as the oppressive watch of his father(Suggs). He lives in an isolated southern community where there are more Alligators than Starbucks. While life in no way appears to be easy for Moss, there is an inherent beauty and simplicity to his existence. Moss and his friends don't have much in the way of worldly possessions but they do have a generosity and sense of calm that's lacking in suburban America. In...

2107 Directed By: Trevor White Starring: Rich Sommer, Clifton Collins Jr., Joanne Froggatt, Amanda Crew, Ed Harris Producers: Jason Potash, Paul Finkel, Tim White, Wayne L. Rogers Sales: CAA Ambition is a powerful drug that can inspire positive change. It can force you outside of the comfortable boxes you place yourself in. It asks you to stretch and reimagine not only the person you are but the person you could be. Most great men and women have a deep relationship with what they see as their purpose. This is a personality trait never driven by or limited to the pragmatic and there in lies the problem. Logic be damned, when a sense of determination is your north star.  Michael Vaughn (Sommer) is an ambitious psychic on the road promoting a book that no one is buying. Using parlor tricks and audience plants Vaughn helps people "connect" with loved ones who have passed on. Somewhere in between a traveling preacher and a low-rent John Edwards he...

2017 Directed By: Savannah Bloch Starring: Tania Nolan, Rachel Crowl, Mary Holland, Karan Soni, John Kassir, and Anne Gee Byrd Alyssa (Nolan) wakes up to find her home pillaged and her husband missing. The burglars have taken everything, down to the photos of her husband. The police offer little help so she turns to a friend of the family Eve (Crowl) for assistance. The film is less of a "who done it" and more of a "what happened." The prolonged second act of the film focuses on the relationship between Eve and Alyssa. The suspense of the film lingers in the background while their relationship grows. In fact, clues of what is to come are clearly laid out in a way that allows the viewer to see where the film is headed before it gets there. I'm not sure if this is by design but the effect of having the stories trajectory clearly laid out gives the audience permission to accept this blossoming relationship. Nolan and Crowl both give stunning performa...

2017 Directed By: Dominique Able, Fiona Gordon Starring: Dominique Able, Fiona Gordon Written By: Dominique Able To say LOST IN PARIS is a throwback is an understatement. To say that LOST IN PARIS is a throw WAY back is probably a more accurate assessment. This is a film that shares more DNA with the silent comedies of the 1920's than modern films like ROUGH NIGHT, OFFICE CHRISTMAS PARTY, or FIST FIGHT. Fiona (Gordon) lives a simple Canadian life that is disrupted by a letter of distress from her 88-year-old Aunt Martha (Emmanuelle Riva) who is living in Paris. Fiona hops on the first plane she can and arrives only to discover that Martha has disappeared. In a cavalcade of slapstick errors, she encounters Dom (Abel), the affable, but annoying tramp who just will not leave her alone. Gordon gives a brilliant performance as Fiona. She has a Carol Burnet like quality unlike any other actor working today. Part Pepe Le Pew part Tramp Abel plays Dom with an alluring char...

SWEET PARENTS review 2017 Directed By: David Bly Starring: David Bly and Leah Rudick Written By: David Bly and Leah Rudick Moving to New York City with ambitions of making it as an artist is an uphill battle. Hell, moving to New York with ambitions of breaking into fast food is an uphill battle. Exorbitant rent makes it difficult if not impossible to get a temp job while you audition, paint, write, or sculpt. And paying $28 for an artisan PB&J not only has a heavy tax on your pocketbook, over time it can carry a greater burden on your soul. Spending tons of money to only feel like you are barely keeping your head above water is a crushing way to exist. SWEET PARENTS is the story of a young couple who have been living the artists struggle in NYC for close to 8 years. Will has dreams of making it as a Chef and Gabby wants to become a professional sculptor. Both start side relationships, as last ditch efforts to support their careers, in what becomes a choice between ...

2017 Directed By: Michael Clayton Stars: James Carpinello, Dawn-Lyen Gardner, and Nicoye Banks Out of a job and newly single Connor Ryan heads home to Atlantic City with the hopes of rebuilding his life. The foundation for this change is the only source of income that he has – a couple (less than luxury) apartments located in the shadow of the Atlantic City Boardwalk. The only problem with this plan, Connor’s tenants do not want to pay their rent. Whether it's a famous rapper who likes to... well... shall we say "have fun" at a volume so loud the neighbors can't sleep, Eastern European animal trainers with interesting bedroom activities, or a tenant who needs the AC fixed, none of his occupants want to hand over the money. Clayton based his screenplay for THE DUNNING MAN on a critically acclaimed short story by Kevin Fortuna. The dialogue in the film is peppered with enough f-bombs to make THE WOLF OF WALL STREET blush. But the humanity of the performances...

The animated prequel to the surprise hit TRAIN TO BUSAN and the latest from director Yeon Sang-ho, SEOUL STATION establishes a franchise of films that continually turns the modern zombie movie on its head. While the tradition of social commentary in Zombie films has been around since their inception the sheer volume of undead films/shows/books/comics... has lead to fatigue and its hard to care about the message any of these properties might be exploring. I heard great things about TTB right from the get go but I had no interest. I was done with the genre and needed a break. Kind of like SKA in the mid 90's. I loved it in small doses because it felt special, but once it was everywhere, I needed to pump the breaks. Eventually, I gave into everyone's recommendations and watched TTB. I was floored. I'm fairly certain it was the first time a zombie film made me cry. Continuing in a visual style director Yeon Sang-ho established in THE FAKE and THE KING OF PIGS, SEOUL STA...

2017 Directed by: Stanley Jacobs Starring: Grinnell Morris, Sid Veda and Paul Statman Dr. Jack Sutree (Grinnell Morris) is a biochemistry professor whose life is turned upside down when a lab accident gives him the ability to visualize his olfactory. If he looks at a flower, its fragrance is represented by a colorful cloud. Oddly though, when he looks at a person he is able to see their true motivations. He can see their innermost thoughts and secrets. It's a powerful and frustrating gift. With the assistance of a homeless musician named Bazemint, Jack hopes to unlock the mystery behind his powers and stop big pharma from using Jack's discovery for nefarious purposes. 96 SOULS fits in nicely with science fiction exploitation from the 50's and 60's. The science isn't very sciency and the fiction is super fictitious. The saving grace of most exploitation films is in the themes they explore. The reason a film like INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS tr...