Stars: Alex Essoe, Amanda Fuller, Noah Segan, Fabianne Therese, Shane Coffey, Natalie Castillo, Pat Healy, Nick Simmons, Maria Olsen, Marc Senter, Louis Dezseran | Written and Directed by Kevin Kolsch, Dennis Widmyer
What would you do to be a star? If you look at modern society it seems that people will do anything to get their fifteen minutes of fame. Starry eyes is a film looking at the darker side of Hollywood, taking the audience into a fictional world where fame comes at a price that most would never dream of paying, but for those willing to go that far…the world is theirs.
Sarah (Alexandra Essoe) is an actress trying to get her big break in Hollywood, working in a dead-end job to make ends meet until she finally gets that chance though it seems a long shot. When the audition leads to a call back things seem to be going well,...
What would you do to be a star? If you look at modern society it seems that people will do anything to get their fifteen minutes of fame. Starry eyes is a film looking at the darker side of Hollywood, taking the audience into a fictional world where fame comes at a price that most would never dream of paying, but for those willing to go that far…the world is theirs.
Sarah (Alexandra Essoe) is an actress trying to get her big break in Hollywood, working in a dead-end job to make ends meet until she finally gets that chance though it seems a long shot. When the audition leads to a call back things seem to be going well,...
- 3/15/2015
- by Paul Metcalf
- Nerdly
Starry Eyes
Written and directed by Kevin Kolsch and Dennis Widmyer
USA, 2014
This film is at its very core a success story. A very demented, gory, horrifying and darkly comical success story – one with tinges of satanic cult horror wrapped in psychological terror. The plot follows a young aspiring actress, Sarah, as she is called back to audition for a horror film that is being produced by a mysterious production company that pushes her to her limits – a dark exchange for fame and fortune.
The film works as much as comedy as it does multiple kinds of horror. The well-executed pitch of heightened reality that co-writers/directors Kevin Kolsch and Dennis Widmyer achieve allow them to play each scene for maximum thrills, scares and laughs. Even at the most grotesque moments of body horror, you can’t help but laugh in shock at what you’re witnessing. You’re laughing because you’re horrified,...
Written and directed by Kevin Kolsch and Dennis Widmyer
USA, 2014
This film is at its very core a success story. A very demented, gory, horrifying and darkly comical success story – one with tinges of satanic cult horror wrapped in psychological terror. The plot follows a young aspiring actress, Sarah, as she is called back to audition for a horror film that is being produced by a mysterious production company that pushes her to her limits – a dark exchange for fame and fortune.
The film works as much as comedy as it does multiple kinds of horror. The well-executed pitch of heightened reality that co-writers/directors Kevin Kolsch and Dennis Widmyer achieve allow them to play each scene for maximum thrills, scares and laughs. Even at the most grotesque moments of body horror, you can’t help but laugh in shock at what you’re witnessing. You’re laughing because you’re horrified,...
- 11/17/2014
- by Dylan Griffin
- SoundOnSight
Eyes Without a Place: Kolsch & Widmyer’s Horrors in Hollywood
Madonna’s famed verse asks the hypothetical question of Hollywood, “How could it hurt you when it looks so good?” Directors and screenwriters Kevin Kolsch and Dennis Widmyer’s sophomore effort Starry Eyes asserts that it’s an indeed an industry that can. They’ve obviously met a struggling actor or two in the City of Angels. Grafting a supernatural angle onto the ravaged glitter of fame and fortune in the film industry not unlike David Cronenberg’s familial black comedy Maps to the Stars, an eerie set-up speaks to the promise of the duo’s inventive idea. Unfortunately, it becomes a grisly, exploitative Faustian romp in the second half, reduced to cliché and depending on a descent into violent gore. Had the devil any real wish to maintain a stronghold in the reputation compromised film industry, hijacking needy actors...
Madonna’s famed verse asks the hypothetical question of Hollywood, “How could it hurt you when it looks so good?” Directors and screenwriters Kevin Kolsch and Dennis Widmyer’s sophomore effort Starry Eyes asserts that it’s an indeed an industry that can. They’ve obviously met a struggling actor or two in the City of Angels. Grafting a supernatural angle onto the ravaged glitter of fame and fortune in the film industry not unlike David Cronenberg’s familial black comedy Maps to the Stars, an eerie set-up speaks to the promise of the duo’s inventive idea. Unfortunately, it becomes a grisly, exploitative Faustian romp in the second half, reduced to cliché and depending on a descent into violent gore. Had the devil any real wish to maintain a stronghold in the reputation compromised film industry, hijacking needy actors...
- 11/14/2014
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
A blood-soaked cautionary tale about the price of fame and sacrificing your own identity in the name of ambition, Starry Eyes is yet another fantastic reminder that the indie genre world is truly the best (and generally only) place fans can find ambitious and challenging horror tales these days.
Starry Eyes follows Sarah (Alex Essoe), a young actress in Hollywood struggling to find her first break in the business. As she goes on audition after audition, Sarah receives nothing but rejection from casting agents until she shows up for a part in a mysterious indie horror movie. After she initially thinks she’s blown her chance at her ‘big break,’ Sarah explodes into another one of her violent fits of rage, something that impresses the talent scouts and garners the fresh-faced talent a special second audition with the studio’s head producer (Louis Dezseran). After Sarah is asked to perform...
Starry Eyes follows Sarah (Alex Essoe), a young actress in Hollywood struggling to find her first break in the business. As she goes on audition after audition, Sarah receives nothing but rejection from casting agents until she shows up for a part in a mysterious indie horror movie. After she initially thinks she’s blown her chance at her ‘big break,’ Sarah explodes into another one of her violent fits of rage, something that impresses the talent scouts and garners the fresh-faced talent a special second audition with the studio’s head producer (Louis Dezseran). After Sarah is asked to perform...
- 10/10/2014
- by Heather Wixson
- DailyDead
Stars: Alex Essoe, Amanda Fuller, Noah Segan, Fabianne Therese, Shane Coffey, Natalie Castillo, Pat Healy, Nick Simmons, Maria Olsen, Marc Senter, Louis Dezseran | Written and Directed by Kevin Kolsch, Dennis Widmyer
Determined to make it in Hollywood, reluctant waitress Sarah Walker (Essoe) goes on countless casting calls in hope of getting her big break. After a series of weird auditions at the mysterious Astraeus Pictures, she lands her dream part. But with this opportunity comes with ramifications that will change her life… literally.
Part occult tale of ambition, possession and the true cost of fame and fortune. Skilfully and scarily showing the ways in which tarnished Tinsel Town can turn a sweet starlet into an ego-maniacal monster, this nightmarish tragedy reveals for all to see what it means when actors talk about putting their soul on the screen.
Yet another example of a slow-burning horror movie, Starry Eyes has a very old-school feel about it.
Determined to make it in Hollywood, reluctant waitress Sarah Walker (Essoe) goes on countless casting calls in hope of getting her big break. After a series of weird auditions at the mysterious Astraeus Pictures, she lands her dream part. But with this opportunity comes with ramifications that will change her life… literally.
Part occult tale of ambition, possession and the true cost of fame and fortune. Skilfully and scarily showing the ways in which tarnished Tinsel Town can turn a sweet starlet into an ego-maniacal monster, this nightmarish tragedy reveals for all to see what it means when actors talk about putting their soul on the screen.
Yet another example of a slow-burning horror movie, Starry Eyes has a very old-school feel about it.
- 8/23/2014
- by Phil Wheat
- Nerdly
Starry Eyes
Written and directed by Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer
U.S.A., 2014
Sometimes a person wants something so badly they are willing to go to extreme lengths in order to live their dream. It compels them, drawing them in like hypnosis. They feel incomplete and unfulfilled if they fail in their self-ordained mission to reach whatever goal they set their eyes on. Some things require more commitment than others. Visiting a coveted destination requires but some funds and a passport. Staying in shape is a little trickier because of the consistent demand of time and energy. Changing jobs can be another, but trying to land steady career in a field as treacherous and unsecure as acting is a whole different ballgame. In the latest American independent horror film Starry Eyes, from the directing duo of Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer, viewers are taken on a fantastical and nightmarish...
Written and directed by Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer
U.S.A., 2014
Sometimes a person wants something so badly they are willing to go to extreme lengths in order to live their dream. It compels them, drawing them in like hypnosis. They feel incomplete and unfulfilled if they fail in their self-ordained mission to reach whatever goal they set their eyes on. Some things require more commitment than others. Visiting a coveted destination requires but some funds and a passport. Staying in shape is a little trickier because of the consistent demand of time and energy. Changing jobs can be another, but trying to land steady career in a field as treacherous and unsecure as acting is a whole different ballgame. In the latest American independent horror film Starry Eyes, from the directing duo of Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer, viewers are taken on a fantastical and nightmarish...
- 8/2/2014
- by Edgar Chaput
- SoundOnSight
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