Movie Review: All American Bully (2015)

 

I suppose in this day and age, I should consider myself lucky that I was never the victim of bullying when I was in school. I got along with everybody and was friends with people on both ends of the social spectrum, so to speak. I never even really witnessed any kind of bullying that I can remember, though I have no doubt that it occurred. This has become a very serious issue of late, and this film, All American Bully, takes a very respectful and smart approach to the issue.

Devon, Garrett, and Becky are three close high school friends who enjoy their own little world of video games and comic books. One day Devon is attacked by a bully, and when coaxed by Becky, reluctantly decides to fight back. But their plan for blackmail goes downhill immediately, and finally culminates in a series of violent events where it's hard to tell who is the real victim.

All American Bully was presented to me as a film with a rare appearance by Adrienne King, the famous final girl from Friday the 13th. She plays the high school principal with some personal issues that prevent her from being totally sympathetic to our main characters, and she does a fine job with the role. However, it is a small role that isn't fully fleshed out, so while it's nice to see her in this movie and supporting an indie like this, she's not really the biggest selling point of the film. The story ends up shining a lot more than I expected it to, and went to far more serious places than I saw it going.

I would say that the most important component to a story like this is the characters. All American Bully checks this box on both sides of the issue: the victim and the bully. The victim, Devon, is a kid that I probably would have hung out with in high school. He has close friends but is still very shy and insecure, which partly stems from the non-support that he gets from his father. Devon's father thinks he is helping Devon by suggesting he be a little more "normal" and go out for sports. He knows that being into video games and comic books will bring his son ridicule, and I truly believe that he was just trying to protect his feelings, but that kind of advice never helps. At all.

Another person who tries to be helpful but really is not at all when you think about it is that one sympathetic teacher, Mr. Taylor. He is nice and encouraging to Devon about his artwork. But I still have a problem with his character. He keeps telling Devon to stand up and fight back, maybe not physically, but be smart about it and don't let them get to you. Sounds like sage advice. But my problem with this whole type of situation is the chastising of the victim and not so much the bully or bullies. Sure, he yells at the class when they laugh at Devon and punishes them with a pop quiz. Seriously, fuck that. Instead of teaching victims to stand up for themselves, why not teach bullies NOT TO BULLY? There are also some bad vibes between Taylor and the principal, too, and I was a bit disappointed that this wasn't explored further than it could have been.

Devon and those closest to him, especially Becky, are innocent victims in more ways than one when it comes to the bully of the movie, John. I love what the filmmakers did with this character. John is not your typical one-dimensional high school jock who bullies the nerd just because he can. There is a deep, dark story behind John's tough demeanor, and he and Devon were actually friends when they were younger. Becky uses something from this old friendship to get back at John for beating up Devon, even though Devon is incredibly reluctant to blackmail him. This was another thing that I liked, where even the victim of the bullying had some reservations about why the bully was taking out his anger on somebody else. And though John does some completely reprehensible things in the movie, there is still that side of you that understands that he is a victim, too.

Speaking of completely reprehensible acts, we do need to talk about something there. To spoil everything that I just alluded to in the previous paragraph, John was sexually abused by his mother. He admits that (it's a secret that he's never shared - not the thing that Becky and Devon try to use to blackmail him), and then is goaded into raping Becky to prove that he is not a "momma's boy." The rape scene is tough and brutal and in-your-face real, especially because of the way it was shot. It's hard to watch, and goes on way longer than some people might be able to handle, but it is that penultimate moment where everything becomes very real and very serious. It makes you realize that none of the stuff that happens in this movie, or any movie like it, should be taken lightly because this is what can (and does) happen.

All American Bully is a movie with a good story, and well-developed characters with their well-developed backstories that actually has something interesting and poignant to say about the topic of bullying.

Movie Review: Avenged a.k.a. Savaged (2013)

 

Yet another surprisingly good little flick that came to me courtesy of October Coast Publicity! They really have some good stuff over there. Avenged is essentially a rape-revenge movie, but it is one that is unlike any other that you have probably seen before. It will be in theaters and on VOD on March 6, 2015, with a DVD release on April 21.

Young deaf-mute Zoe is travelling through the desert to meet up with her fiancé when she is kidnapped, raped, and killed by a group of local hooligans. A Native American finds her body and brings her back to life, not knowing that the spirit of a slaughtered chief has also possessed her at the same time. Using this power, Zoe sets off in her quest to punish her attackers one by one.

If that premise makes you furrow your brow a little bit, please do not be fooled. The film's biggest success is that it sets up just the right tone for itself, and wonderfully carries it through all the way to the end. Avenged never once feels like an exploitation film, never feels cheesy or silly, and never really goes over the top (even when it comes to the gore). Instead the film is moody and sad, slightly depressing but also strangely uplifting at the same time, just because it's always nice to see justice served.

Though at times a little stilted here and there, the acting by the entire cast is impressive. The two standouts for me were Rodney Rowland as Trey, and of course Amanda Adrienne as the lead character Zoe. She does an absolutely amazing job with a role that is entirely physical, having to convey all her emotions and create an entire character through facial expressions and body movement. Even after being reanimated, Zoe retains her humanity and is still in pain over what happened to her - and what is continuing to happen to her - and over the fact that she knows that she will never be with her fiancé again. Again, Adrienne conveys all these things beautifully. Rowland plays the lead bad guy Trey. While his actions against Zoe are despicable, I really liked his acting and his approach to the character. Trey is your average backwoods jerk, and Rowland never tries to make him any more than that - not as a criminal mastermind, or ultra-evil superhero villain.

The only time that the movie shows it's low budget is in a couple of scenes where the CGI is not exactly up to par with bigger budget films. There is a particular bit with a TV that really does not look all that great. Other than that, Avenged is filmed absolutely beautifully with perfect colors and lighting that match the film's mood and tone. The gore is a mix of mostly practical effects with some CGI, and they all look great. Zoe's first revenge kill involves treating a guy's intestines like a length of rope, and things don't let up from there. The makeup on Zoe's deteriorating body is equally impressive as the gore, and I loved her ingenious use of duct tape to (literally) keep herself together. There are also some scenes that involve effects of a supernatural nature. Once again, this material is handled in a respectful, serious way and does not come off as silly.

Writer/director Michael Ojeda's Avenged is an impactful, striking revenge tale that hits all the right notes. It is bloody enough to satisfy all those gorehounds like me, but also has a lot of heart and fantastic group of actors playing equally fantastic characters.

Movie Review: Stress Position (2013)

 

Stress Position came to me courtesy of Brink Vision as a screener (along with another screener that I will hopefully be getting to shortly) and it was a movie that I really, really wanted to like. Every time I read the description, I would get all these different ideas in my head about cool things I thought the movie would do. And I was enormously disappointed with what I got.

Stress Position is a sort of experiment between two friends, AJ and Dave, after a conversation they have about how well they could survive the torturous conditions of a place like Guantanamo Bay. They decide to put that to the test, and let one person have control of the other for one week and let them implement what torture they can come up with either until the end of the seven days, or until they break down and reveal the code that will give the torturer access to a bank account that holds $10,000. The only rule is that they can't do anything that will cause physical harm.

The movie is impressively and beautifully filmed in a way that is very eye-catching and appealing. The stark whiteness of the torture room and the torturers' costumes may seem bland, but it really serves to make you focus more on the characters and what is being said and done. Even the food and drink that AJ serves to David when he is in the room is white - milk comes out of a small spout in the wall and the food is The only thing in the room is a huge abstract metal structure that makes both the torture victim and the audience very uncomfortable, especially when one of the men is tied to it and you can see how painful it must be. The very first scene is interesting because it is just a five-minute conversation between AJ and David that introduces the tension in their friendship and sets up what the movie is about.

But that's really where the positives stop. The execution of the movie's interesting premise is, frankly, incredibly lame. The "torture" that AJ inflicts on David is more like just random annoying shit that has no effect on David whatsoever. AJ actually uses tickling as a torture method! He even strips David down to his underwear and brings in three hot chicks when he's trying the tickle torture in order to embarrass him more, but this turns out to be all for nil because... David is not ticklish. How boring. David is also forced to make a self-portrait out of his own hair in order to be able to go to the bathroom, and then he's ut of his own blood - it's not at all as interesting as it may sound.

When the tables are turned and AJ becomes the victim, things are completely unbalanced. While AJ's torture methods never really went beyond the psychological, one of the first things David does is freaking waterboard AJ. Um, how is that not against their previously agreed upon rules? In truth, AJ's acting like a bit of a dick during his week with David kind of makes the audience want him to get his comeuppance, and so he does. The ending seems to suggest that the whole movie was really about AJ or at least leading up to his big reveal from the torture, and it is totally anticlimactic and again, lame.

After watching the film, I still had many questions and was happy to see that the DVD included a commentary track from both director AJ Bond and actor David Amito. However, listening to it confused me a lot more than I already was. If I understand correctly, Stress Position is not exactly a fictional film. Bond and Amito really had the conversation about Guantanamo and really did decide to do this experiment with each other and film it and make it into a movie. The film was not necessarily scripted - they just came up with ideas and then shot them. So they were playing themselves in a way and they really did torture each other, but it's still sort of a fictional film. I don't know how they made this whole idea work for themselves because it did not work at all for me.

It's an interesting but completely confusing and messed up idea for a movie that really isn't as cool as they think it is. Someone else could probably take this story and make it much more complex and a much better character study than what these guys came up with. It is too specific to their personal lives and therefore does not have as big an impact on a general audience. Stress Position looks pretty and is executed well, but the story is very weak and hard to understand for people that were not involved in the project.

Movie Review: Motivational Growth (2013)

 

I hate to constantly use the phrase "this movie was not what I expected it to be" but... this movie was not what I expected it to be. In fact, Motivational Growth was much better than I could have hoped for. There have been a couple times now where movies with the dumbest premises ever have turned out to be brilliantly done, and I seriously love movies like that.

Motivational Growth is the story of Ian Folivor, a young man who is obviously depressed and has not left his apartment in over a year. After the death of his television set Kent, he tries to kill himself in his bathroom but fails - and begins to turn his life around by taking advice from a chatty growth of mold in his gross bathroom. The Mold claims to want to help Ian, but are its intentions really good, or evil?

With its small but dynamic cast and limited location, Motivational Growth is truly a brilliant film - it just chooses to deal with its subject matter in a very unconventional way, which can often lead to something much more intriguing than just a straight drama or comedy film. Though Motivational Growth was much more serious than the trailer led me to believe, I found myself really enjoying the fact that it was more than just a goofy comedy, and even more enjoying how beautifully filmed and acted the movie was. Even Ian's disgusting apartment is somehow beautiful to me because of the talent it shows for set design. In fact, there are many different talents at work in Motivational Growth, both on and off screen, and I know that this review is not going to do them all justice.

The dialogue is really the shining star of Motivational Growth. Its dry wit and cultural references made it possible for the writer to sneak in humor all throughout the film, even though the premise of the film itself should have provided enough humor. Ian serves not only as the film's main character but also as its narrator, as there are several times when he breaks the fourth wall to give some more direct character insight to the audience. He also provides some great lines of dialogue that truly made me laugh out loud - "If it wasn't for the sores, I don't think I'd have a reason to get up at all,"  "Panic is a weird state. Not like Wyoming is a weird state, either..." Each character that comes into Ian's life has their own crazy personality that is accentuated and expressed through their speech, and they were all awesome to meet.

Actor Adrian DiGiovanni couldn't be more perfect as Ian; he not only looks the part, but he plays him as so wonderfully lovable and pitiful at the same time. Genre favorite Jeffrey Combs provides the voice of The Mold, and he expertly and hilariously delivers every run-on, rambling line of dialogue that The Mold spews out. Seriously, I lost track of what he was saying half the time but it was still fun to listen to him talk. Danielle Doetsch is ridiculously cute as Leah, the object of Ian's affections, and her upbeat acting will just bring a huge smile to your face. My favorite character was actually Vanessa the grocery delivery girl, with her no-nonsense attitude and pink hair highlights. Two television repair men, a nice but scary landlord, and some very interesting fake television stars round out the rest of this oddball group of characters.

The ending of Motivational Growth is a hard one for me to figure out. The biggest reason for this is because it seems to have about three different endings at the same time so I am totally at a loss as to what really happened with Ian. (Here, I'll reluctantly give a SPOILER warning.) The emotional side of me wants to believe that The Mold and all the strange occurrences were maybe just all in Ian's head and that it was his own willpower and the inspiration of Leah that made him turn his life around and get the girl in the end. However, the logical side of me has me more believing that Ian's suicide attempt was actually successful and that that vision of his liquefying body on the bathroom floor was real. But whatever the vehicle - dream or not or whatever - Ian still walks out of his apartment at the end of the film, hand in hand with Leah, and that's really all you want to see for the character throughout the movie. And I thank the filmmakers for giving that to me.

It doesn't matter whether you get a deep message out of Motivational Growth or if you just watch it to laugh your butt off listening to Jeffrey Combs's voice coming out of an animated mold puppet thing. There are few films that can compare with the uniqueness of Motivational Growth and that is no doubt its strength and what will draw a lot of curious movie-watchers to it. Just remember: The Mold knows, Jack. The Mold knows.

Thanks to October Coast PR for the screener! Motivational Growth will be available on VOD on September 30, 2014 and its US DVD release is October 7, 2014.

Movie Review: Mine Games (2014)

 

When I chose to click on the link to watch Mine Games, I was sort of expecting that I would be turning it off after a few minutes. I didn't have much hope for it, mostly based on the slightly cheesy title, the uninspiring poster art, and the familiar-sounding plot. But though the basic idea behind Mine Games is not the most original, this simple film is wonderfully executed and not as run-of-the-mill as you might think.

A group of friends who have just graduated college travel deep in the woods to spend the weekend at an uncle's house. They discover an old abandoned mine and decide to go exploring, which sets off a series of strange events that has them seeing and experiencing odd things that they have to figure out in order to get out of the woods alive.

Things start off nice and quick with the familiar setup you've seen a thousand times over. However, this is definitely a case where you really have to stick with the movie and give it a chance because by the time things really get started, neither the plot nor the characters are at all like what they started out to be. The editing in the first 20 minutes or so is sometimes a bit choppy with too-quick transitions, but eventually the movie finds its flow. The time loop angle of the plot (think Triangle, if you've seen it) is all about timing, and when to reveal and when to refrain from revealing certain things, and they really got things like that right in this film.

Easily the most accessible and respectful thing about Mine Games is the characters and how they change as the story goes on. The group of hot young things in this flick are both typical and not-so-typical of similar "cabin in the woods" stories - there's a hippie chick, a kind of ditzy girl, and my least favorite, a douchebag whose focus for the weekend seems to only be on drinking beer, plus some others. Once the interesting stuff really starts, though, all of these characters completely flip from my initial reaction, and actually my least favorite character in the beginning ended up being my favorite character - Lex.

In that same respect, I have to give a lot of kudos for the actors for the way they handled the material. Joseph Cross (another Law and Order: SVU alum that I recognize! I need to stop with the reruns of that show, seriously) plays the role of Michael, which was probably the most difficult one to do. A couple of the other male characters are not featured as much, which makes them seem like random extras. Seriously, I don't even remember their names. The female characters are very likable and even relatable - though Rose was the only slightly irritating one because of her supposed supernatural affiliations and all the weirdness that comes from that. On the other hand, though, her character being able to see spirits brings about some of the movie's cool makeup effects so I guess that makes it worth it.

The movie handles the time loop aspect well, though the reasoning for the time loop is not fully explained, and it is mostly left up to the viewer to believe the explanation that works for them. They bring in a lot of different possibilities for what is happening without straight out saying which is responsible - the group sees an aurora borealis, they see references to the Ouroboros in the mine, one of the characters is schizophrenic. I'm still a bit iffy about how I feel about the twist, but at least it did make for a cool ending and pretty awesome final shot. The sound of the hissing snake was another cool thing the filmmakers did to go with the Ouroboros thing and make the mine feel even creepier than it already was.

Mine Games is a cleverly crafted film even with its somewhat difficult storyline. However, it is executed with a nice, subtle genius and doesn't have to do much to be effective for the audience. A very cool surprise from a movie I didn't know anything about five minutes before I watched it!

Mine Games is currently scheduled for a DVD release on October 21, 2014. Thanks to October Coast PR for sending me the link to the screener! Watch the trailer below.

Movie Review: Pieces of Talent (2012)

 

Thank you to Simply Legendary Publicity for sending me the DVD (with the beautiful cover art and signatures from the director and actors) for this indie horror flick, Pieces of Talent.

Charlotte is an aspiring actress whose not getting any work and has to deal with her freeloading mother living with her and stealing from her. One night she meets up with local filmmaker David, and they become quick friends when she takes care of him after a beatdown from the bouncer at the strip club where she waitresses. David is not your average filmmaker, though, and the inspiration he gets from Charlotte is of the very dangerous and bloody kind.

David Long is played by... David Long. Not sure what this is saying about the actor when he uses his own name to play a murdering psychopath, but surely he's not like that in real life, right? Anyway, Long is wonderful in the role, and easily plays equal parts adorable, curly-haired weirdo and obsessed nutjob. His cute smile and the infectious enthusiasm he has when making his movies can be read as either completely normal or completely psychopathic, and those are always the kinds of killers that are the most fun to watch and the most terrifying. The ones that can hide in plain sight are the ones to watch out for the most.

Kristi Ray is also adorable and completely natural and sweet in her portrayal of Charlotte. Her character is someone who is obviously kind-hearted and independent, but maybe not as strong as she needs to be to deal with her mother and the pressures of acting. I think perhaps her "friendship" with David will change that. Actually my favorite of the piece was Barbara Weetman as Charlotte's mom Mary. She felt the most real of all the characters to me - a woman who has scraped by with the bare minimum her whole life and is jealous that her daughter will do more with life than she ever did. Weetman is also able to pull off the dual roles of her character well, which includes a love for her daughter but also a resentment that allows her to take advantage of Charlotte in whatever way she can. Weetman does a brilliant job portraying all of this by giving Mary lots of believable and natural quirks - loved her.

The cover art above describes the film in the same way I described it after first watching it - beautiful horror. Perhaps no one but horror fans will ever understand what that means, and the makers of Pieces of Talent certainly do because the look of the film is impeccable and gorgeous throughout. It shows all the talent of a filmmaker who really knows what he is doing in terms of cinematography, coloring, and lighting. Actually, my favorite sequence is the little bit after Charlotte wakes up and realizes she's not alone in the house. Just the right amount of suspense with just the right amount of payoff. What did feel a bit out of place, though, was the title cards that say "the leech" and "the fox." The dialogue that goes with them are obviously about certain characters in the film (shouldn't Charlotte's mother have been the leech though?) and it is probably all a part of the movie that David is making, but that is not clearly stated in the movie so it all feels too random.

Obviously the most beautiful scene is David's fantasy sequence where he is covered in blood, with disembodied hands and arms caressing him. Both the visual and sound effects are amazing in this standout scene, and it is probably the thing that viewers will most remember. The rest of the gore is also bloody brilliant with nice effects and perfectly colored blood. The exploding head shot is most impressive!

By the film's conclusion, I couldn't help but feel a bit cheated out of something much more detailed and in-depth in regards to the story. Charlotte and David's interactions throughout the movie are meaningful, but not powerful enough for me. The more impressive scenes are the ones David has with his victims. The whole climax sequence is just as beautiful and well-filmed as the rest; however, it is a bit lackluster action-wise, and there is so much that is left open in regards to both main characters. The credit sequence does say that this story is "to be continued" so hopefully a sequel will happen that will explore these questions further.

Pieces of Talent is simplistic and intriguing, and with a charismatic main actor to follow, the straight dialogue scenes become just as interesting as the more exciting sequences with murder and mayhem; though this off-and-on pacing does slow down the film in a lot of places, which may underwhelm some viewers. Still, it's definitely one to check out for horror fans, who will love and appreciate the quality film work.

You can watch Pieces of Talent on Vimeo here.