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Reviews
Growing Hair (2002)
solid micro-budget movie
Most of the time when a new filmmaker does his first film, it's an autobiographical piece of pretentious garbage. The characters speak not from themselves, but spout out filmmaker's views on the meaning of life and such. The jokes are only funny to filmmaker and his close buddies, where they can sit around when they're in their mid forties, drinking beer, laughing at themselves.
When I popped this movie in, I thought I was in for another one of these really awful 'Indies'.
It did take a while to get into it, and it also had some very slow parts, but all in all it's not a bad flick.
Three twenty something friends each struggling with their own addiction... video games, porn, and safety. I wouldn't initially of thought of safety being an addiction, but something that interferes with your life or goals in life, because of some compulsion, then it's considered an addiction. Some may call it fear, but at this point it's all semantics, so back to the movie.
The feel of the movie is something like Clerks, yet influenced by Swingers and maybe some 'slacker' movies. Most of the jokes aren't 'outrageously funny', but more amusing, and anecdotal. It may not in fact stand out at all from other Indies of similar theme, except it's ending is actually fulfilling and makes you glad you gave it the chance to payoff at the end.
Kisses and Caroms (2006)
Clerks with hot chicks
Take Kevin Smith's cult flick Clerks, change the convenience store to a billiard shop, and make the leading ladies really hot, and you'll end up with Kisses and Caroms. Oh yeah, make it in color too! Zack's problem comes almost right out of Chasing Amy. He doesn't feel experienced enough sexually to be in a committed relationship with his very hot ex-girlfriend, who for some reason adores him. Unlike Chasing Amy however she's willing to let him get 'experienced' with her a la menage a trois. Most of us can only wish to have his 'problem'. It's actually my only real beef with the movie, as I wanted to smack him around for being such a moron for breaking up with her in the first place! The movie is complete with its funny moments with annoying customers and such. My personal favorite is a 'small' joke when a midget comes in.
Basically, if you love Clerks, you gotta check out this homage to it. If you don't, go rent a movie about pizza or something.
Bullets Over Breakfast (2004)
fun cheesy spoof with lots of bullets flying
Lego my Eggo To The EXtrEme!
What do you do, when someone tries to steal your breakfast snack? You bust out pistols, machine guns, and in the end, some plastic explosives.
I have no clue what the inspiration was to make this eleven minutes of nonstop action, but it held my attention span, which usually gets lost in most 30 sec commercials.
The special effects aren't going to wow Lucas, Spielberg or anyone like that. But most of them look pretty good, even if not believable. The sad thing is that I've seen worse in some movies where millions were spent.
There's not much in the way of plot to talk about, this is shooting them up for the sake of shooting them up. But like I said, it's done in a fun spoofing sort of way, which made me smile.
God, Sex & Apple Pie (1998)
okay
It's not a bad movie, but there's nothing really engrossing about it.
Made in 1998, but it has a feel of a late 80s, early 90s movie, and maybe it's more of a movie for the generation before mine.
A few long and somewhat unnecessary montages take away from the story, and the individual character problems seemed to be wrapped up a bit too neatly at the end.
For me it just felt a bit lacking, in either story or in comedy. And a few scenes where you can hear the characters giving speeches about the writer/director's view on society, which is way too common in the independent film world.
The most disappointing thing is that is really just one step away from being something special. Maybe the script just needed one more rewrite.
On the Fringe (2001)
good, but a bit heavy
This low budget character drama uses alot of scenic imagery in conveying it's overall message. Solid performances throughout by the actors, with maybe only a hint of a stiffness, which usually permeates the real low budget indies.
This is a movie about relationships, mainly father-son, but also different friendships, and their unique perspectives of the world they live in.
I would compare it to Lost in Translation, in that it can seem slow in establishing the characters and the setting. So it's really the type of movie for those who enjoy and appreciate character studies.
My only real complaint is that parts seemed to be a bit heavy, or sappy, and while there are some, it didn't feel like there were enough light-hearted moments to balance it out.
So if you're only into popcorn flicks, or low budget fare that's laughably bad, then it's not for you. This one is for the character indie film lover.
Terrarium (2003)
not for the claustrophobic
Don't watch this with the expectation of incredible special effect bonanza. It's not that kind of movie.
This is low budget, like El Mariachi and Clerks kind of low budget. But like those movies, what Mike Conway has made is pretty impressive, considering he built the spaceship in his backyard (check out the special features on the dvd).
So as long as those are your expectation, you're sure to enjoy this movie. While not a comedy, the captain has some hilarious one liners. The story is pretty good, but early on in the movie, when the colonists are trapped, you might need to open a window to get some fresh air, as you begin to feel boxed in yourself.
Girl Fever (2002)
Not a good movie, but I couldn't shut it off
There's definitely something a little redeemable about it, but I'm not sure what. The storyline was awful. So maybe it was the acting? Not sure, I did laugh a few times, but I think those were mostly at the movie and not with it.
I didn't find the individual characters' preachy comments on men, women, relationships very witty. The ending was way too forced.
Perhaps the silliness of it all is enough to make it worth a viewing if you catch it on HBO.
Redemption (2003)
Overall a good film, but a bit preachy at parts.
This is one of the best urban drama's I've seen (that didn't have Denzel Washington in the credits). A solid cast from top to bottom, where actually I found Brian White to be the weakest, despite a good performance.
I've seen lots of positive reviews on Tracey Stone and T.J. Storm's performances, and while I agree, I personally thought Scottie Tate stole all the scenes he was in.
But a good film is not without it's flaws.
The opening titles with the timecode, I found very distracting from the scene. The soundtrack gets a bit repetitive and at parts doesn't seem right for the mood. There were several scenes where characters seemed to step out and preach about society. This could have been handled a little more deftly.
I'm not sure if you'll want to own this one as it is a bit depressing, but if you get a chance this is a movie that you should see at least once.