FOLLOWING FILMS

Directed by: Jack C. Newell Written by: Stephanie Mickus Cast: Mia Rose Frampton, Stony Blyden, Juliette Angelo, Beau Brooks High school is a strange time. For me, I like to frame that period as fraught with anger and rebellion. I tell myself that I was an artist trapped in a small town, a poet searching for his muse. The time when I was politically and emotionally alive. But then I look at the photos. Read some of the writing. And, oh boy, the truth crashes over me like an unwelcome but humbling wave of reality. The smoking without inhaling, the clothes from Structure (Burroughs didn't spend his paycheck at the mall), and the many, many, many configurations of embarrassing facial hair and coiffures, I was in desperate need of an identity. On the surface, it might not sound like I would have a lot in common with a teenage girl dying of cancer, but HOPE SPRINGS ETERNAL showed me otherwise. Hope Gracin (Mia Rose Frampton) has fully embraced her identity as the gi...

Director: Sasha Louis Vukovic Writer: Sasha Louis Vukovic Stars: Teresa Marie Doran, Dan Lin, Sari Mercer The 1920s are often referred to as the "roaring 20s." A time when the automobile boom had started to kick in, radio was the most popular form of mass media and telephones began to connect millions of homes. This was a good time for (white, heterosexual, male) Americans that didn't mind going to a speakeasy for a cocktail. For minorities and women? Not so much. Women were granted the right to vote in 1920 and Jim Crow laws were looming in the not too distant future. FLORA   is set somewhere in a North American forest during the summer of 1929. A group of students has been sent out to examine and catalog the native plant life of a remote wooded location. Where the junior botanists uncover a deadly mold that kills almost everything it comes in contact with.    While not overtly political, Sasha Louis Vukovic uses FLORA s time period as a sali...

Directed by: Robert D. Krzykowski Starring: Sam Elliott, Adrian Turner, Caitlin FitzGerald, Ron Livingston, and Larry Miller The 22nd edition of Montreal's Fantasia International Film Festival was the site for the world premiere of Robert D. Krzykowski's THE MAN WHO KILLED HITLER AND THEN THE BIGFOOT on July 20th, 2018. The film has easily one of the best titles I've seen in years and somehow manages to subvert the expectations of a name like that and deliver something far more interesting and sober. Calvin Barr (Elliot) is a legendary World War II veteran who has the distinction of being the man who secretly assassinated Adolf Hitler. An act that has left him with remorse and regret. He quite possibly saved millions of lives but he killed a man, no matter how justified, at the end of the day he still carries the weight of that one moment. Killing Hitler forever changed the course of history and in turn destroyed his life. As we meet Calvin he is in the twilight ...

Somewhere in between THE A-TEAM and ESCAPE FROM ALCATRAZ lies the Sylvester Stallone prison break for hire franchise, ESCAPE PLAN . In the latest installment,  ESCAPE PLAN 2: HADES,  structural engineer Ray Breslin (Stallone) teams up with former rival Trent DeRosa (David Bautista) to rescue his team. When Ray discovers where his team is being held he reaches out to Trent, a mercenary working in hostage recovery and Bug (Pete Wentz) a notorious weapons dealer to rescue his comrades and save Yusheng. In order to complete the mission, Ray must break into Hades a prison known as the Land of the Dead. Director Steven C. Miller is easily one of the most prolific filmmakers working in the action genre today. With 15 credits to his name in 6 years, he is consistently turning out throwback spectacle that would have felt cozy on the shelf of any Blockbuster in the late 80's. With ESCAPE PLAN 2: HADES Miller has infused the action tropes of the 80's with styli...

2018 Directed by: Joel Potrykus Starring: Joshua Burge If you take Ven diagram of David Lynch and Kevin Smith, then divide the result by Castaway, you get an idea of what Joel Potrykus has done with his latest effort, RELAXER . Abbie (Joshua Burge) is an impossibly sedentary 90s slacker dedicated to concurring Pac Man without leaving the couch. Set in the days and months leading up to Y2K,  RELAXER presents a slightly augmented version of history through the eyes of its singularly motivated protagonist. For a film set in one room and primarily focused on a single character, RELAXER moves through an impressive number of tones and visual styles. One of the biggest challenges with limited storytelling is in the cinematography. Potrykus manages to keep the film interesting from that perspective by shifting through distinct techniques for each of the film's 3 acts. At times warm and inviting, at others disgusting and uninhabitable, the apartment at the center of the fi...

Mike Diana is an outsider artist working in comic books. Unlike what most would associate with the medium, Diana uses his funny books to tackle subjects like the environment, consumerism, and pedophilia. Through graphic depictions and dry social commentary Diana pushes the boundaries of acceptable speech and taste so much so he has the distinction of being the first person to be convicted of artistic obscenity. BOILED ANGELS: THE TRIAL OF MIKE DIANA opens with the following: "The uncensored art shown in this film is deliberately and aggressively NON PC. It is meant to provoke, disturb, shock, offend, and confront the viewer. If graphic depictions of sex and violence disturb you, STOP watching the film NOW." It's the perfect way to open the film as it contains imagery that will make many viewers uncomfortable. And if you are unable to get past that imagery to see the tragedy of Diana's story, the film has no interest in speaking to you. The film mirrors its su...

Depression is often marked by sadness, despair, and hopelessness. The sense that things will not get better is something most of us pass through at different points in our lives. But depression is something more than that. It’s not just a temporary feeling, it’s a debilitating emotional state that you can’t simply pull yourself out of. The angry outbursts, irritability, and frustration that come along with depression can isolate individuals suffering from this condition and push them deeper into their own thoughts. Everyone needs to be heard and sometimes those who can’t express themselves in traditional forms find their voice in art. Edvard Munch wrestled with agoraphobia and frequently had hallucinations, one of which inspired THE SCREAM, a painting so iconic that even the most casual art enthusiast is familiar with the piece.  Sylvia Plath took a more direct approach with THE BELL JAR and laid out the details of her depression with brutal honesty. Briana Dickerson a w...

2018 Director: Karl Jacob Stars: Bijou Abas, Karl Jacob, Anna Klemp, and Hedi Fellner The transition from adolescence to adulthood is marked by several physical and emotional shifts that are both subtle and overt. How individual cultures recognize that metamorphosis is as varied as people themselves. While most of us do something to mark the occasion, very few of us do exactly the same things. Be it a Bar Mitzvah, Quinceaneras, or an Inuit Hunting ritual most of us chose to recognize this incredibly awkward time with a rite of passage that underscores our youth while inching us closer to masculinity or femininity.    In COLD NOVEMBER , 12-year-old Florence (Bijou Abas) is eager to undergo the traditionally male rite-of-passage in killing her first deer. Passed down through many generations of women in her family, the act of hunting symbolizes her transition into adulthood. Moments before her first period Florence is seen playing with a Matchbox car. A powerful...

Alexander (Erland Josephson) the well to do patriarch of a Sweedish family is celebrating his birthday on a remote island when news of a new World War breaks. The previously relaxed and cheerful mood of the family morphs to terror. They immediately begin to spiral out of control, devastated by the catastrophic news. The film's masterful cinematography by Sven Nykvist (Ingmar Bergman's longtime collaborator) underscores the emotional state of the family through its color palette and movement. The arresting choice of color displays a bleak landscape around the families home. Painfully long shots evoke the sheer dread and anxiety that has engulfed this once carfree tribe. Alexander, philosophical in nature, is deeply worried about man's lack of spirituality. Faced with man kinds inevitable annihilation he is compelled to enter an agreement with God. The director's last film, made as he was dying of cancer, The Sacrifice is Tarkovsky's persona...

2018 Directed by: Brooke Purdy and Doug Purdy Starring: Brooke Purdy, Doug Purdy, Maxwell Purdy, and Mo Gaffney "I'm not on the PTA, I'm not even a booster...  I used to be punk rock" In 2008, Brooke Purdy was diagnosed with DCIS, a non-invasive form of breast cancer. She and her husband, Doug, had two small children and fought the disease with the weapons that most of us use in times of personal crisis, friends, family, and (quite possibly) most importantly a shared sense of humor. This life-changing experience was the catalyst that inspired QUALITY PROBLEMS, a semi-autobiographical take on their family’s survival. Brooke, Doug, and their two children, Max and Scout, star in the film, "a final chapter in their healing – and a vehicle for hope for families dealing with a diagnosis." Bailey (Brooke Purdy) and Drew (Doug Purdy) are a 40-something couple piecing together a suburban existence that many of us can relate to. Birthday parties, side j...

1916 Directed by: Allan Dawn Starring: Douglas Fairbanks, Alma Rubens, Sam De Grasse, Jewel Carmen THE HALF-BREED starts with a short encapsulation of Lo's early life, his Indian mother discovers that her white lover has crossed her and she commits suicide, abandoning her child with a white townsman who in turn becomes the only father he knows. Unwelcome in the nearby community when his father passes on, Lo picks a redwood tree and sets up house in its trunk. He keeps up his connections with the town, but animosity towards him ratchets up when he becomes romantically involved with Nellie (Jewel Carmen), an evangelist's girl, inspiring envy in the racist Sheriff Dunn (Sam De Grasse), who's been pursuing her. When Teresa (Alma Rubens) assaults her adulterous lover and the sheriff with a blade she flees to the forest and moves in with Lo. Nellie visits the woods to reconnect with Lo, yet comes back to town after deciding she can't settle down with a half-breed. ...

1988 Directed by: Stephen Chiodo Starring: Grant Cramer, Suzanne Snyder, John Allen Nelson, and Christopher Titus Runtime: 86 minutes Sold with one sheet of concept art and a title, KILLER KLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE was never destined to be aligned with the slasher films of its era. Instead, it was a strange hybrid of science-fiction, horror, and comedy that was very much of its time but singular in its execution. Armed with popcorn guns, cotton candy cocoons, and... shadow puppets the clowns in this film are deadly alien invaders hell-bent on terrorizing a small college town. Mike and Debbie caution the neighborhood police that something strange is happening in their modest municipality. Specifically, a spaceship that looks like a giant circus tent has touched down and alien clowns are kidnapping the townsfolk. The cops are understandably doubtful. But after a short period of time, reports come rolling in from multiple citizens with similar stories, they have all experien...

2107 Directed by: Ryuhei Kitamura Starring: Kelly Connaire, Stephanie Pearson, Anthony Kirlew, and Rod Hernandez Kitamura wastes no time in DOWNRANGE . The tension in the film starts almost immediately and never lets up. I felt like I was holding my breath for 89 minutes, this film is utterly relentless. Six college-aged students are taking a cross-country trip when they have a blow out on one of their tires. In the middle of changing that tire, they happen across the shell casing from a long range rifle and realize, it wasn't a blowout. The tire had been shot. Within moments bullets are flying towards the young travelers and they are pinned down. Unable to move out from behind the vehicle, the elusive sniper unloads a barrage of fire. On an empty rural road, in the middle of nowhere, with inconsistent cell service, they are alone with this determined assassin. Their only hope seems to wait him out, to see if another car happens along their path. The marksman is frustrati...

2018 Directed and Written By: Maurice Haeems Cinematographer: David Kruta Starring:  Henry Ian Cusick, Kathleen Quinlan, Jenna Harrison, Karishma Ahluwalia, and Erika Ervin Films are often gateways to curiosity. Entry points for abstract concepts and a way for opaque theories to be presented in a palatable format. Science Fiction lives in the world of our collective imaginations and introduces us to the "what if's" we have yet to conceive. In CHIMERA director, Maurice Haeems has taken years of real-world research from labs and universities around the planet to contemplate the next major breakthrough in medical innovation, stem cell research. This contentious area of work presents one of the most controversial and potentially significant therapies introduced in generations. Quint (Cusick), an equally ingenious and desperate scientist pushes (and crosses) the borders of ethical behavior in an attempt to save his children. The good doctor first experiments with...

A religious radical prowls the streets of Vienna, removing the skin of Muslim sex workers while they are still alive before compelling them to drink bubbled cooking oil. A young lady drives a taxi, as the night progresses, every iteration of a terrible human being passes through her cab, each one inching her closer and closer to a rage-fueled breakdown. The film explores the parallel stories of these two individuals whose lives will eventually crash into one another. The most recent film from Oscar-winning Austrian movie producer Stefan Ruzowitzky (The Counterfeiters), Cold Hell (Die Holle) is a merciless tale that wallows in savagery. Özge Dogruol (Violetta Schurawlow) is the cabbie, whose history of abuse has turned her into a survivor. She continually pushes ahead regardless of what life gives her. She trains at her ex's Thai boxing gym until she gets kicked out for beating the snot out an opponent who throws a sucker punch. She can handle herself and has a strong sense ...

Science fiction is a speculative form of storytelling that's often concerned with what it means to be human. In that vein IMITATION GIRL is a brilliantly crafted philosophical journey that gives viewers far more questions than answers. Imitation (Lauren Ashley Carter) is an alien who falls from the sky and lands somewhere in the southwestern United States. She finds an image of Julianna (Lauren Ashley Carter) an adult film actress and takes on her form. The film is the parallel stories of two individuals trying to figure out exactly who they are.  Imitation is somewhat devoid of self-awareness and has no idea where she is. Each piece of information she gathers is a revelation as she acclimates to her new body and environment. Saghi, and his sister, Khahar, take in Imitation. They perceive her to be a harmless simpleton. Gesture-based communication and pieces of sustenance are their lone methods of communication. However, Imitation is exceptionally responsive ...

About The Film After an F-11 gets shot down over the Mediterranean Sea, The United States government cannot afford to lose the top-secret laser tracking device that was on board. But unfortunately, the KGB team, lead by the infamous Andrei (Jean-Claude Van Damme, The Expendables 2, Universal Soldier), are beating the CIA in the race to find it. The CIA has no choice but to call in their best man, master martial-artist Ken Tani (Sho Kosugi, Ninja Assassin, Revenge of the Ninja), code name... BLACK EAGLE . In response, the KGB resorts to an all-out war, with powerful Andrei matching Ken blow for blow. From legendary action director Eric Karson (The Octagon), Black Eagle also stars Doran Clark (The Warriors), Bruce French (Jurassic Park III) and William Bassett (House of 1000 Corpses). BLACK EAGLE is one of my favorite JCVD vehicles and this MVD release gives it the kindest treatment the film has ever received. Between the limited throwback, VHS inspired slipcover and the...

LORDS OF DOGTOWN tells the unbelievable but true story of three teenagers from California who took skateboarding to heights that hadn't previously been imagined and changed the sports world forever. Stacy Peralta (John Robinson), Tony Alva (Victor Rasuk) and Jay Adams (Emile Hirsch, Into the Wild) are the Z-Boys, a bunch of nobodies until they join board designer Skip Engblom (Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight) to create a new style of skateboarding that becomes a worldwide phenomenon. But when their hobby becomes a business, the success shreds their friendship. Directed by Catherine Hardwicke (Thirteen, Twilight) and featuring an all-star cast including Michael Angarano, Nikki Reed, Rebecca De Mornay, Johnny Knoxville, America Ferrera, and Mitch Hedberg. The stand out performance in the film comes from Heath Ledger. I'm not sure if his turn as Skip can fully be appreciated without seeing the man himself. Once you dig into the special features it becomes clear that Heath Led...

Werewolves? Check. The plague? Sure. Pagans selling their souls? Absolutely. NOVEMBER is set in an Estonian village where the batshit crazy supernatural leanings of director Rainer Sarnet are allowed to run free. The film is essentially a twisted fairy tale about unrequited love or what a Lars Von Trier romantic comedy might look like. In NOVEMBER , the villagers' fundamental issue is how to survive the frosty, dull winter. Nothing in this bizarre universe is unthinkable. Individuals take from each other without regard, from their German house rulers, from spirits, from Satan, and Christ himself. The only moral compass is self-interest. A youthful farmgirl Liina (Rea Lest) is miserably infatuated with Hans (Jörgen Liik), a close-by farmhand, whose heart she loses to the little girl of the German estate master. Keeping in mind the end goal to recover his affection, Liina is willing to do whatever it takes, regardless of whether that implies taking advantage of the dark enchant...

THE STAR arrives on Blu-ray + DVD + Digital today February 20 from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. The simple but effective animated comedy tells the story of a donkey named Bo (Steven Yeun, “The Walking Dead”), who sees himself as destined for greater things. The daily grind at the village mill leaves him feeling incomplete and longing. His ill at ease nature eventually pushes to the point where he decides to break free and follow his heart. In the same way Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead is a retelling of Hamlet through the eyes of ancillary characters, THE STAR is a retelling of the nativity through the eyes of the animals that were there that night. The human characters take a backseat to a donkey and his barnyard buddies. Along his way, Bo teams up with Ruth (Aidy Bryant, “Saturday Night Live”), a sheep who has lost her flock and Dave (Keegan-Michael Key, “Key and Peele”), a dove with lofty aspirations, along with three camels voiced by Tracy Morgan (“30 ...