Reviews

This is not an easy watch, but it captures you and doesn't let go. Beautiful cinematography and a compelling score accentuate this twisting tale that leaves the viewer with a deeply heart-wrenching but powerful message. Highly recommend.

Super intense and entertaining film, had me gripped from start to finish. Great story line, excellent production values, great acting. Some gory parts graphically done with such believability that I had to close my eyes. interesting to have such an exciting heist movie take place in Kansas City, but I liked the change! Would absolutely recommend.

This is a gorgeous film on all levels. Set in the late 90s with a perfect mise en scène set amidst desolate Ohio through all four seasons. It follows Huckleberry, convincingly acted by Daniel Fisher-Golden, as a transgender youth finding his way in a conservative town. He's in love with his classmate, Jolene, played by a luminous Sarah Ulstrup, and he ultimately proves he will do anything for his love. Every aspect of this film is well-executed, from the score to the story to the acting to the cinematography to the double-edged ending. Loved it and highly recommend!

Holy what. This film was amazing. What a wild ride. So smart, well-acted, taught with tension, excellent score, excellent-production value, and most importantly, highly original. One of my favorite recent films and I don't say that lightly. Huge kudos to writer/director Erik Bloomquist!

I gave this nine stars simply because there is such a criminally incorrect scoring going on here. This film was compelling from start to finish, which is saying a ton as it was confined to such a tight space. The story line was nonlinear and inventive, and, for me, fun to track. The acting was great, the suspense leading towards the end was well developed and the end was perfect for me, because even then it left me with a sense of anticipation, wanting more, and I think that is a great way to end. And I also must say, great score! Excellent job to writer/director/producer Glenn Payne!

I don't usually watch slasher horror, but watched this with a friend and wanted to write a review because I found it to be pure fun. I was entertained throughout and kept at the edge of my seat. The actress who played Emily was great and I was happy that her boyfriend got his due. Definitely recommend!

Excellent job by writer/director/producer/actor, Chester Jones III. He put his heart and soul into this and it shows. I loved the transformation of the main character, Max (Jones), and the fact that what he was looking for was always inside, he just had to discover it. I also think he can really stick out his stomach! Great characters with humor and dimension, great acting and directing. Highly recommend!

This was a beautifully executed film about Ahmad Zakii Anwar, an extremely talented painter, who also runs a shelter to reduce harm amongst the addicted population of his hometown in Malaysia, a twist in the story that was unexpected and touching. The visuals of the film are beautiful, the score excellent, and the story intriguing, educational, and entertaining. Truly enjoyed and absolutely recommend!

I really enjoyed this inventive picture. It imaginatively contends with immersive VR and nanotechnology, topics I think about often. Artistic visual effects, compelling score, and strange and intimate scenarios merging animalistic human tendencies with futuristic technologies create a unique and wonderful ride of a film!

Unlawful Justice doesn't hold any punches as it follows its main character, Remy (Emmanuel Vega), an LAPD officer trying to fill his father's shoes and take care of his sick infant daughter's hospital bills. We watch as he unravels from all of the pressure. Vega shines more brightly the more his character falls apart. A series of missteps leads to a tragic end, but there is redeeming justice in the honest, but difficult choices of another central character, Drew. Very intense and raw, but a valuable and well-executed look at the both sides of the cop story.

I love this film. Perfect comedic timing, but great tension and suspense as well. Great pacing throughout. Walter Franks who plays the lead, Brian, is hilarious and has such presence on screen. I loved watching him. Definitely check this out!

Great lighting, great camerawork, interesting story that leads to an unraveling of the female lead and her family's growing concern/fear, but anxiety about even broaching the matter. I actually felt deeper family dynamic threads coming through, though I am not sure if that was intended. For me it was a fascinating study of the family tension that occurs when the mother is for some reason not present in her role, in this case because she was possessed. Possibly an unintentional metaphor, but one that stood out to me and I appreciated it!

Heralding from a land of legal weed myself (Portland, OR), The Greenroom and its caricatures and idiosyncrasies really hit home! I love how it pokes fun at itself while also imparting thoughtful information about cannabis and its benefits. It is a bright and fun show that got better as it went along. I love the "next level" musicians that stopped Patrick on his way to his new job, very funny and shot creatively. Would definitely recommend!

This was a truly fun and entertaining film. I was captivated the whole way through and didn't want it to end. It was quirky, absurd, funny and also had deeper layers of real life and truth all delivered in inventive ways. The acting was top-notch, the production values high, and the tone of the film was solid. You can feel the sure and confident hand of the director, Brian Gianci, and simply relax into a well-told, entertaining story. Highly recommend!

A bizarre, campy, fun anthology that travels through the various colorful rooms and stories of the horror hotel! A very entertaining viewing with a nostalgic feel and wild, whimsical concepts. Great watch!

This was a great gem to stumble upon. I watched all 13 episodes of the first season in one viewing. The episodes are compact and pithy. The central theme of a contest to win billions is used brilliantly as a device to weave together stories from around the world. Each story feels authentic and true to the culture in which it exists. The drive for cold hard cash quickly leads into much more poignant topics of passion, survival, sexuality, homelessness, sex-trafficking, free-will or the lack thereof, relationships, trust, and death. No stone is unturned in this ambitious drama, which not only reaches far, but does so with humor, verve, and excellent production value. Great writing, excellent performances, and wonderful views into cultures from around the world, and the themes that unify us all.

Not knowing much about this film going in, I was pleasantly surprised to have stumbled upon something that satisfies my peculiar sentiments. A bizarre fusion of dark comedy, philosophy, and science fiction, Nothing Really Happens hits a chord that reflects the absurdity of life. It explores philosophical concepts and essential psychological truths without becoming preachy in any way. It also stretches and plays with the mores of the cinematic medium, which I find refreshing. All this done with great fun; eccentric characters; offbeat scenarios and dialogue; lovely cinematography and score; and excellent acting. Looking forward to what writer/director, Justin Petty, creates next.

This is a tightly written and expertly executed suspense from writer/director Seaton Lin. I was thoroughly engaged for its entirety. The female lead, while maybe not likable to some, was a refreshing change for me, because she just is who she is and is doing her job without apology. It had strong performances all around and lovely cinematography. The edits were invisible, not used stylistically, but strongly in service to the story. And the story reins supreme here, it had me at the edge of my seat. Excellent feature debut!

This film is a wonderfully heart-felt but gritty, cinéma-vérité style look into the world of Ekaj, a young, homeless, wandering soul. We experience his NYC vagabond life with no-holds-barred in this honest portrait of street life for a young gay man who is trying to find love and find himself. His friendship with Mecca (played amazingly by Badd Idea - my favorite performance in the film), a gay man dying from AIDs, was poignant, beautiful, and tragic. This is definitely a film to watch.

Not only is this a tightly woven walk through the dark side of the film industry, but a cinematic walk through the hierarchical ranks of corporate America, as shown through the protagonist, "Angela's" viewpoint. Though limited to a small space, the story casts a broad and sweeping net of meaning and moral. The end provides a satisfying twist and a redemptive exit. We are left with an allegory told by powerful performances and worlds imagined through colorful dialogical storytelling. A real gem!

This a performance and dialogue driven story, and in that it excels. Both lead actors are fully committed and it translates to the viewing experience. It is taut with performative tension and the story's reveal, while not surprising, was satisfying. I was taken into a cold, dark, claustrophobic world (though at times strangely cozy and familial, and we later learn why) and though an unusual choice of movie for me, I was happy to be there.

Watch this film to be absorbed in the not-oft explored word of olive oil production, and its purity or lack thereof. What starts as a twisting curiosity turns into a dark and violent suspense. I must say I felt happy when the main character, played by Ted Harvey, got what he deserved. He was a selfish, cruel man and the performance by Harvey was absolutely committed. The film twisted into territories I didn't expect and I appreciated that. And I really loved the score. Definitely worth a watch!

This is an unusual movie choice for me, but I truly enjoyed it. It brought me to tears at one point. There are some very real issues being touched upon in this film, the ones that really hit home for me were the ones revolving around family. Rockey Black gave an incredible performance as coach Dylan, he was heartfelt, open, and believable. All the actors were committed. I especially liked the actor's performance who played Mo. Very touching film. Highly recommend!

This is an honest film, in a way that may make you uncomfortable if the subject matter hits at all close to home. The lead character, played by a committed Ricky Mabe, is believable: a soft, kind-to-a-fault, struggling screenwriter, who is looking for love in all the wrong places. His wild-haired fantasy to be forced into a committed relationship comes to fruition when a beautiful homeless girl, Kat, infiltrates his life and finally his heart as they drive each other mad in a cabin-fever frenzy of clashing personalities. I was triggered by Kat, which is a testament to the performance of Jordan Monaghan, who fully embodies a wild, uncouth, ill-mannered, alcoholic girl with a traumatic past.

The consistent tone of the film, edits, and cinematography are all top-notch and seamless. The writing feels personal and revealing. It is a heartfelt look into love, lost souls, artistic yearning and artistic blocks, and the ever-confounding struggle to meld two lives into one, all taking place within the fitting backdrop of La la land. A beautiful gem of an indie film!

This expertly crafted documentary had me gripped from beginning to end. The adrenaline was real. The competition drove the story forward, but the heart of the film was the love, the passion, and the relevance of this story about horse racing to all of our own personal passions and drives. For anyone who has experienced the wild throes of being taken by your passion and ambition this story speaks to that-to that desire to win, to that potent potential of losing, and to the drama of the race towards. I found myself feeling my own personal story embedded in this. And it took me all the way, all the way along Kingsdale King's journey and all the way within to the heart of my own journey.