The New Kid
I don’t know much about MyFrenchFilmFestival, but Rudi Rosenberg’s The New Kid has made me want to study up on the online global collective.
Dramedy
Sadie’s Last Days on Earth
Michael Seater’s sophomore effort Sadie’s Last Days on Earth solidifies him as a filmmaker to watch for. He’s still budding within his new career, and yet he’s already a master at generating tender authenticity.
Morris from America
There’s a scene in Chad Hartigan’s Morris from America where its title character Morris (Markees Christmas) asks his German tutor (Carla Juri) if she can teach him to be charming. That’s an ironic moment for the audience who fully understands just how damn charming the film is.
Little Sister
Zach Clark’s dramedy Little Sister could put a smile on anyone’s face. However, that happiness would be more than sporadic occurrences if the film’s quirkiness didn’t get in the way.
Inside Out 2016: ‘Other People’
There are different ways for a writer to tell a story while tapping into their own personal catharsis. Chris Kelly (co-writer of Saturday Night Live and Broad City making his feature filmmaking debut) has found a vessel in Other People to tell his own semi-autobiographical story by re-capturing snapshots of his ailing mother’s final months.
Demolition
Still hot off the success of his previous two accolade-winning films (Dallas Buyers Club [2013] and Wild [2014]), Jean-Marc Vallée explores similar themes in a less formulaic way with his latest dramedy Demolition.
Burnt
By: Trevor Jeffery Burnt is a dash of unabashed wet dream of a 40-something’s longing for the bohemian days of his twenties, with a hint of a decently entertaining film about a world-class chef and the intra-kitchen dynamics of a quality start-up restaurant in London. Sauté in quality performances for 100 minutes. In John Wells’ Burnt, Adam Jones (Bradley Cooper) is a former hot-shot chef who fell into the hard life, got clean, and wants…
People Hold On (plus a One-On-One with Director Michael Seater)
By: Addison Wylie Life With Derek’s Michael Seater gets his directorial feet wet with the ensemble dramedy People Hold On. It’s a good place for the budding filmmaker to start. The film itself is contained within few environments and doesn’t call for visual tricks, which leaves Seater a lot of time to draw characters and connect with his tight-knit cast. The filmmaker must’ve also felt another level of comfort and confidence knowing co-star Paula Brancati – whom…
The Skeleton Twins
By: Addison Wylie I liked Craig Johnson’s indie The Skeleton Twins, but it’s a stickler of a movie to justify. It hardly has a narrative except when it peppers in a loose story towards the final leg, and it’s a character study that’s light on characterization. To say it’s either one or the other doesn’t feel right. Without the film’s stellar leading performances, The Skeleton Twins truly would be floating. Johnson has recruited Saturday Night…