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Reviews
Head Case (2007)
unique and disturbing horror movie
I have been following Anthony Spadaccini's work over the past few years and watched him grow as both a filmmaker and a storyteller. His previous work has covered such hard topics like hate crimes, depression, suicide, guilt, etc. I've also seen some of his funnier stuff like his two silent films and it's clear that this is a filmmaker who likes to work in many different genres and be one of a kind. So when I read on his Myspace page that he was making a horror film, I couldn't wait to go see it. I had an opportunity on Sat night at the Newark FF world premiere to check out his newest film Headcase. It's very different from his other movies. It is a collection of home videos shot by a married couple who have two kids, but also like to kill people on the side and film their crimes. I've never seen a horror movie quite like this before. It's longer than the typical one, it moves slower than your average one, but in this case that's a very good thing. It allows us the viewers to learn about who these people are and connect with them, which is really pretty sick considering how truly sick they are. There are many surprising plot twists, including a really disgusting and stunning one about midway through the movie that changes everything for the characters. I thought the acting was very very good (Paul Mccloskey and Barbra Lessin were very very realistic), the movie has plenty of blood and gore, lots of disturbing moments, and a surprising ending that is also atypical of a horror movie. I also liked how not everything was explained, it allowed us the viewers to draw our own conclusions (like whether or not the son Todd knew about what his parents were doing and what happened to him after the conclusion of the film, or what the meaning of the scene at the abandoned house really meant). I highly recommend Headcase to anyone who is tired of the horror genre and looking for something unique and different and really really disturbing.
Monday Morning (2005)
Funniest short I've ever seen
Monday Morning is the funniest short film I've ever seen. Period.
A guy wakes up late for work and his struggles to make it to work before he's fired are all played for slapstick comedy and it really, really works well. The guy who plays the lead is an amazing actor and I wish he were in more.
This is one of those films that you can't wait for it to be on DVD to see how they made it and to own a copy. I was disappointed that this film was not on DVD yet, but luckily I did find it on YouTube and was able to enjoy it again.
The director and star did a small Q&A at the Del. Valley Film Festival and both seemed like they really enjoyed making the film.
The Azure Sky (2006)
Good idea, so-so execution
Azure Sky is one of several films I saw at the Del. Valley Film Festival last month in Hatboro. I was impressed with several of the films. Some were great, some were good, some were so-so, some were awful.
Azure Sky falls somewhere in the middle. An early effort from filmmaker Christopher Fernandez, it tells the story of a man who builds a rocket and has a tough time letting go of his home.
Beneath the surface, the film (like so many others at the festival) is something we can all relate to. Greg Coale gives a pretty good, emotional performance as the lead role.
However, the film suffers from some technical issues, including some really sub-par CGI that completely removes the viewer from the story and becomes a distraction.
I applaud Mr. Fernandez for creating a film with some emotional power.
Bittercress (2006)
Moving film that packs an emotional punch
Bittercress was the closing film at the Saturday screenings for the Del. Valley Film Festival. It was the only feature flick that I saw at the festival and was looking forward to the film, since the story seemed very compelling and the opening few minutes had me hooked.
Director Tom Sims succeeds in packing in a lot of emotional punch into a movie that was shot for around $10k.
I can imagine how difficult it must be for a mother to allow her son's murderer walk free and not be able to do anything about it. As with all the films that I saw at the festival, this gave us a story we could really relate to and I was impressed by how moving the film was given the budget and limited resources.
Bittercress does drag on a bit towards the end and I thought the way the characters got out of their predicament was a bit of a cop-out (no pun intended, for those who have seen the film).
But I applaud the work of Tom Sims and hope to see more from him soon!
Unstable (2005)
Sad, realistic film
Having already seen Anthony Spadaccini's short films Emo Pill and Monday Morning @ the Del. Valley Film Fest last month, I decided to check out a few of his other films.
One of the films I received in the mail was Unstable, a full length movie telling the story of homophobia on a camping trip. Everyone in the film plays themselves and the movie is very sad and realistic. It plays almost like a reality show of sorts, except there are not any talking heads. From what I've heard, the movie was done by improvisation, meaning no script. This really made the movie realistic.
My only criticism is the lighting in some of the scenes towards the end, though I understand why the director chose to do it this way. If someone's friend is dead, he's not going to be too concerned about lighting.
I saw both the first version already on DVD and also the extended cut, which is 9 minutes longer and is all in black and white. The shaky camera style is very different from the style in Emo Pill and Monday Morning, which just shows the versatility of the filmmaker.
Emo Pill (2006)
Lovely, emotional short film
Emo Pill is a lovely, emotional short film, one of the best films that I saw at the Del. Valley Film Fest a few weeks ago. It is definitely not a film for anyone, but I didn't find it pretentious or self-congratulatory at all (sorry filmjunkie, I think you're the minority). In fact, I found it to be quite the opposite. As many other reviewers have said, the film is a moving canvas, a work of art. The lead character's journey from suicide attempts to total utopia back to suicide is a painful one to watch. I think we've all been there at some point in our lives and it's a hard thing to overcome. Especially in the teenage years (it wasn't that long ago for me, I must admit). The main character in Emo Pill is one that anyone can relate to, even though some situations are extreme.
The images and cinematography is top-notch (maybe the lighting in some scenes is dark, but I'd rather have that and an emotional story than a film that's well-lit by technical standards but has a story that blows chunks). The music is awesome. It's an original score from what the credits say.
So, while the movie is not for everyone (obviously), it's one that's hard not to relate to. I recommend checking out Emo Pill at the next indie film festival!