Strong acting by a trio of leads and much astute writing and directing from Mark Anthony Galluzzo, in his feature debut, can't keep the well-intentioned "Trash" from self-destructing during its final reel. The low-budget indie bows locally Tuesday as part of the second annual Method Fest, a minishowcase of "breakout acting performances," at Laemmle's Playhouse 7 in Pasadena.
Talk about breaking out. While it never quite penetrates his thick skull long enough to avoid a tragic denouement, headliner Jeremy Sisto's rough-and-tumble character, Sonny, needs to immediately flee the small-town poverty that he has always known. Car mechanic Sonny's best friend, Anthony Eric Michael Cole), is a ready companion for the usual pressure-releasing activities -- fighting, drinking, joyriding with girls -- but this quieter, more introspective "cracker" just may have a knack for writing.
Filmed in Florida and surprisingly accomplished in all technical aspects, "Trash" knowingly collides with some cliches and avoids others. Underscoring the loosely plotted story of Sonny and Anthony's struggle to find a better life or be content with the one they have are the repressed emotions both have for the accidental death of another friend while hunting in the woods, a bloody event that occurs in the effectively unsettling opening.
Employing a nonessential narration and other none-too-
revolutionary techniques, including too much slow-motion in crucial sequences, Galluzzo is, overall, successful in creating believable "poor white trash" leads, including CJ (Jaime Pressly), a "rich girl" who takes a liking to Anthony.
The seemingly mismatched romance is a counterpoint to the simmering resentment of Sonny toward anyone who claims to be better than he and his ilk. But the truth is always more complex than it first appears in Galluzzo's often sparkling script.
Although his school principal gushes that he could be a prodigy, Anthony's no genius. He does know how crummy Sonny's home life is and earnestly tries to get them both on their way to college. But Sonny and Galluzzo take the easy way out, and the violent, flawed finale exists mainly to provide Sisto (CBS' "Jesus") with an opportunity to exercise his considerable thespian talents.
Jonathan Banks as CJ's protective father and Grace Zabriskie and Veronica Cartwright in minor roles are momentarily reassuring presences. But it's not hard to pick up on this project's sternly dramatic arc, which starts and ends violently and rarely lightens up in its sympathetic portrayal of all-too-human "Trash".
TRASH
Dancing Babies Entertainment
A Todd Feldman production
Screenwriter-director: Mark Anthony Galluzzo
Producer: Todd Feldman
Executive producer: Gary J. Miller
Director of photography: Thom Stukas
Editor: Adam P. Scott
Music: Michael Muhlfriedel
Color/stereo
Cast:
Sonny: Jeremy Sisto
Anthony: Eric Michael Cole
CJ: Jaime Pressly
Judge Callum: Jonathan Banks
Running time -- 95 minutes
No MPAA rating...
Talk about breaking out. While it never quite penetrates his thick skull long enough to avoid a tragic denouement, headliner Jeremy Sisto's rough-and-tumble character, Sonny, needs to immediately flee the small-town poverty that he has always known. Car mechanic Sonny's best friend, Anthony Eric Michael Cole), is a ready companion for the usual pressure-releasing activities -- fighting, drinking, joyriding with girls -- but this quieter, more introspective "cracker" just may have a knack for writing.
Filmed in Florida and surprisingly accomplished in all technical aspects, "Trash" knowingly collides with some cliches and avoids others. Underscoring the loosely plotted story of Sonny and Anthony's struggle to find a better life or be content with the one they have are the repressed emotions both have for the accidental death of another friend while hunting in the woods, a bloody event that occurs in the effectively unsettling opening.
Employing a nonessential narration and other none-too-
revolutionary techniques, including too much slow-motion in crucial sequences, Galluzzo is, overall, successful in creating believable "poor white trash" leads, including CJ (Jaime Pressly), a "rich girl" who takes a liking to Anthony.
The seemingly mismatched romance is a counterpoint to the simmering resentment of Sonny toward anyone who claims to be better than he and his ilk. But the truth is always more complex than it first appears in Galluzzo's often sparkling script.
Although his school principal gushes that he could be a prodigy, Anthony's no genius. He does know how crummy Sonny's home life is and earnestly tries to get them both on their way to college. But Sonny and Galluzzo take the easy way out, and the violent, flawed finale exists mainly to provide Sisto (CBS' "Jesus") with an opportunity to exercise his considerable thespian talents.
Jonathan Banks as CJ's protective father and Grace Zabriskie and Veronica Cartwright in minor roles are momentarily reassuring presences. But it's not hard to pick up on this project's sternly dramatic arc, which starts and ends violently and rarely lightens up in its sympathetic portrayal of all-too-human "Trash".
TRASH
Dancing Babies Entertainment
A Todd Feldman production
Screenwriter-director: Mark Anthony Galluzzo
Producer: Todd Feldman
Executive producer: Gary J. Miller
Director of photography: Thom Stukas
Editor: Adam P. Scott
Music: Michael Muhlfriedel
Color/stereo
Cast:
Sonny: Jeremy Sisto
Anthony: Eric Michael Cole
CJ: Jaime Pressly
Judge Callum: Jonathan Banks
Running time -- 95 minutes
No MPAA rating...
- 6/19/2000
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
This anthology of short films dealing with gay themes is the sequel to the highly successful previous installment and once again serves as a valuable vehicle for films that would otherwise receive little or no theatrical exposure outside of the festival circuit.
Containing one Oscar winner ("Trevor") and featuring such well-known performers as Vincent D'Onofrio and Mary Beth Hurt, this collection should do well in art house venues and enjoy a long life on video.
"Trevor", the best of the four, is a funny, whimsical look at a 13-year-old boy's growing realization that he's gay -- his obsession with Diana Ross being one major clue. The film starts out as a sort of adolescent "Harold and Maude", with Trevor staging a series of mock suicide attempts in an effort to get some attention from his blase parents. Eventually, he becomes more concerned with his growing attraction to a male friend. He tries to counter his feelings by kissing a girl, bringing no joy. Depressed because of the taunts of his friends and classmates, he tries to commit suicide for real with an overdose of aspirin. However, he gets a new will to live from the encouragement of a gay male candy-striper. Told in the first person, the film is a delicious blend of comedy and angst.
The atmospheric "Alkali, Iowa" benefits from the unusualness of its setting, a farm in America's heartland, where Jack (J.D. Cerna), a young farmer with doubts about his sexual identity, comes to learn the truth about his missing father. The film uses tantalizing hints and skillful technical touches to make its points.
The flashier "Nunzio's Second Cousin" is a strong, sometimes hilariously funny vignette about a brusque gay cop (D'Onofrio) who brings home a would-be "fag basher" to meet his dotty mother (Eileen Brennan). D'Onofrio is convincing in this surprising tale.
The weakest entry is "Must Be the Music", a slight tale about romantic rivalries among boys disco-hopping in L.A. that plays like a gay afterschool special.
BOYS LIFE 2
Strand Releasing
"Must Be the Music"
Director-screenplay Nickolas Perry
Producer Rafi Stephan
Director of photography Steve Adcock
Editor Craig A. Colton
Cast:
Eric Michael Saucedo
Kevin Justin Ulrich
Dave Travis Sher
"Nunzio's Second Cousin"
Director-screenplay Tom DeCerchio
Executive producer Camille Taylor
Director of photography Steve Poster
Editor Mike Murphy
Music Robert Folk
Cast:
Sgt. Tony Randozza Vincent D'Onofrio
Jimmy Miles Perlich
Mrs. Randozza Eileen Brennan
"Alkali, Iowa"
Director-screenplay Mark Christopher
Director of photography Jamie Silverstein Editor Gloria Whittemore
Music Julian Harris
Cast:
June Mary Beth Hurt
Jack J.D. Cerna
Blondie Kent Broadhurst
"Trevor"
Director Peggy Rajski
Screenplay James Lescene
Producers Peggy Rajski, Randy Stone
Director of photography Marc Reshovsky
Editor John Tintori
Music Danny Troob
Cast:
Trevor Brett Barsky
Father Joe Stephen Tobolowsky
Trevor's mom Judy Kain
Trevor's dad John Lizzi
Color/stereo
Running time -- 74 minutes
No MPAA rating...
Containing one Oscar winner ("Trevor") and featuring such well-known performers as Vincent D'Onofrio and Mary Beth Hurt, this collection should do well in art house venues and enjoy a long life on video.
"Trevor", the best of the four, is a funny, whimsical look at a 13-year-old boy's growing realization that he's gay -- his obsession with Diana Ross being one major clue. The film starts out as a sort of adolescent "Harold and Maude", with Trevor staging a series of mock suicide attempts in an effort to get some attention from his blase parents. Eventually, he becomes more concerned with his growing attraction to a male friend. He tries to counter his feelings by kissing a girl, bringing no joy. Depressed because of the taunts of his friends and classmates, he tries to commit suicide for real with an overdose of aspirin. However, he gets a new will to live from the encouragement of a gay male candy-striper. Told in the first person, the film is a delicious blend of comedy and angst.
The atmospheric "Alkali, Iowa" benefits from the unusualness of its setting, a farm in America's heartland, where Jack (J.D. Cerna), a young farmer with doubts about his sexual identity, comes to learn the truth about his missing father. The film uses tantalizing hints and skillful technical touches to make its points.
The flashier "Nunzio's Second Cousin" is a strong, sometimes hilariously funny vignette about a brusque gay cop (D'Onofrio) who brings home a would-be "fag basher" to meet his dotty mother (Eileen Brennan). D'Onofrio is convincing in this surprising tale.
The weakest entry is "Must Be the Music", a slight tale about romantic rivalries among boys disco-hopping in L.A. that plays like a gay afterschool special.
BOYS LIFE 2
Strand Releasing
"Must Be the Music"
Director-screenplay Nickolas Perry
Producer Rafi Stephan
Director of photography Steve Adcock
Editor Craig A. Colton
Cast:
Eric Michael Saucedo
Kevin Justin Ulrich
Dave Travis Sher
"Nunzio's Second Cousin"
Director-screenplay Tom DeCerchio
Executive producer Camille Taylor
Director of photography Steve Poster
Editor Mike Murphy
Music Robert Folk
Cast:
Sgt. Tony Randozza Vincent D'Onofrio
Jimmy Miles Perlich
Mrs. Randozza Eileen Brennan
"Alkali, Iowa"
Director-screenplay Mark Christopher
Director of photography Jamie Silverstein Editor Gloria Whittemore
Music Julian Harris
Cast:
June Mary Beth Hurt
Jack J.D. Cerna
Blondie Kent Broadhurst
"Trevor"
Director Peggy Rajski
Screenplay James Lescene
Producers Peggy Rajski, Randy Stone
Director of photography Marc Reshovsky
Editor John Tintori
Music Danny Troob
Cast:
Trevor Brett Barsky
Father Joe Stephen Tobolowsky
Trevor's mom Judy Kain
Trevor's dad John Lizzi
Color/stereo
Running time -- 74 minutes
No MPAA rating...
- 3/12/1997
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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