Blog | Film Reviews & Movie Trailers

The Kaos Brief indie film

Jul 4, 2017
3 min

The Kaos Brief indie film

★★ Directed by JP Mandarino Starring Drew Lipson, Charlie Patton, Marco DelVecchio, & Akanimo Eyo Indie Film Review by Phil Slatter Opening with a heavily stylised and deliberately glitched footage of a man in a mask warning us of government conspiracy, The Kaos Brief feels initially like a loud and oddly vibrant assault on the senses. However, we soon cut to Skylar (Drew Lipson), a 17 year old vlogger talking directly to camera about an upcoming trip in the mountains and it

OzLand indie film

Jun 23, 2017
2 min

OzLand indie film

★★★ Directed by Michael Williams Starring Zack Ratkovich and Glenn Payne Indie Film Review by Phil Slatter OzLand opens with a shot of two men – Emri (Glenn Payne) and Leif (Zack Ratkovich) walking through what turns out to be a desolate wasteland. It’s fair to say that this is largely what comprises much of Michael Williams unique post-apocalyptic film as there is little by way of plot development beyond the two characters main journey of survival. Yet while this makes deman

Night Kaleidoscope indie film

May 31, 2017
2 min

Night Kaleidoscope indie film

★★★ Directed by Grant McPhee Starring Patrick O'Brien, Mariel McAllan, Jason Harvey, Kitty Colquhoun, and Craig James Moncur Indie Film Review by Phil Slatter Delving into Night Kaleidoscope is in many ways like delving into the mind of lead character Fian (Patrick O’Brien) – a psychedelic drug-smoking psychic who is hired by an aloof character (whom we presume to be a policeman) to track down two murderers with a penchant for human flesh. Opening with a disturbing sequence t

Before the Fall indie film

May 21, 2017
2 min

Before the Fall indie film

★★★★ Directed by Byrum Geisler Starring Chase Conner, Ethan Sharrett, Carol Marie Rinn Indie Film Review by Phil Slatter Like many great works of literature, Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice has been adapted numerous times since the invention of the moving image. From multiple T.V. versions to extreme fayre like Burr Steer’s Pride and Prejudice and Zombies via Gurindha Chadha’s Bollywood inspired Bride and Prejudice to more traditional adaptations in the guise of Joe Wright’s

Jean Powe Stevens Johnson Syndrome Survivor documentary film

May 6, 2017
2 min

Jean Powe Stevens Johnson Syndrome Survivor documentary film

★★ Directed by Steven Laws Documentary Film Review by Phil Slatter That you may well never have heard of Stevens Johnson Syndrome (S.J.S) is in many ways the reason that Steven Laws' flawed but important documentary exists in the first place. It tells the story of Jean Powe who, following a mis-diagnosis, was prescribed medicine that would lead her to contract S.J.S, a severe allergic reaction to medication that causes horrendous inflammation of the skin which can lead to bli

Night Job indie film

Apr 18, 2017
2 min

Night Job indie film

★★★ Directed by J. Antonio Starring Jason Torres, John Torres, Robert Youngren, Bettina Skye, Lester Greene, Timothy J. Cox Indie Film Review by Phil Slatter Night Job opens with a black and white glimpse of New York, accompanied with an impressive soft jazz score that makes you feel as though you’re watching a film noir from the 50’s. However, we soon discover that this is the Manhattan of today as we meet James (Jason Torres), a doorman in a plush apartment covering the ni

Fragments of May short film

Apr 3, 2017
2 min

Fragments of May short film

Directed by Maria Pia Fanigliulo Starring Kelby Keenan & James Rallison Short Film Review by Phil Slatter Fragments of May is a short film that in a running time of little over twenty minutes, manages to pack in elements of horror, sci-fi, drama and mental health, mixing it with an appropriate amount of ambiguity and resolution. All in all it makes for a memorable and impressive piece of work. The plot is, as the title suggests, somewhat fragmented. We meet May (Kelby Keenan

The Rajini Effect indie film

Mar 28, 2017
2 min

The Rajini Effect indie film

★★★ Directed by Kuvera Sivalingam and Nelson Sivalingham Starring Hannah Farmer and Ramesh Vethanayagam Indie Film Review by Phil Slatter The Rajini Effect is a rather unique blend of indie documentary mixed with a quirky, slight comedy all wrapped up amidst themes of childhood dreams catching up with the reality of adulthood. For the most part, the movie from filmmakers Kuvera Sivalingham and Nelson Sivalingham, works well. The Rajini of the title refers to Rajinikanth, a T

29th Kilometer indie film

Mar 11, 2017
2 min

29th Kilometer indie film

★★ Directed by Leonid Andronov Starring Evgeny Chistyakov, Sergey Fedorov, & Andrey Karlyshev Indie Film Review by Phil Slatter Haven’t we all, at some point or another, dreamed of being a rock star? Much like being a professional athlete or A-List Hollywood star, it’s the sort of pipe dream to which many can relate but crucially that very few actually manage to achieve and it forms the basis of Leonid Andronov’s uneven but at times thought-provoking drama. Dubbed ‘The first

Cheerleader indie film

Feb 27, 2017
3 min

Cheerleader indie film

★★★ Directed by Irving Franco Starring Catherine Blades, Chris Bert, Rachel Beyda Indie Film Review by Phil Slatter Towards the end of American Pie 2, there is a scene in which hapless Jim (Jason Biggs) is trying to impress glamorous foreign exchange student Nadia (Shannon Elizabeth). As he recounts one of the many embarrassing stories that happened to him, he realises his true feelings actually lie with slightly-dorky band-geek Michelle (Alyson Hannigan). ‘I am a band geek

Savages in Foreign Lands documentary film

Feb 11, 2017
3 min

Savages in Foreign Lands documentary film

★★★★ Directed by Raphael Biss Starring James Beaumont Documentary Film Review by Phil Slatter Raphael Biss’s Savages in Foreign Lands is not the sort of documentary that would initially appear to an outsider. It examines the mythical tribe of the Guanches, primitives of the Canary Islands, and tries to uncover who they were, where they came from, what they did and what happened to them. To those with an interest in ancient tribes and archaeology, the interest is obvious, but

The Final Reel indie film

Jan 29, 2017
3 min

The Final Reel indie film

★★★★ Directed by Jonathan Blagrove Starring John Hurt Indie Documentary Film Review by Phil Slatter In this day and age we are surrounded by 24-hour entertainment. DVD’s and Blu-Rays, streaming services and hundreds of T.V. channels providing the latest entertainment shows and programmes with smartphones, tablets, laptops, macbooks and smart T.V.’s literally providing a world of entertainment at your fingertips to be enjoyed at home or on planes, trains and automobiles. So

The Happiest Place on Earth indie film

Jan 25, 2017
2 min

The Happiest Place on Earth indie film

★★★ Directed by John Goshorn Starring Jennifer Faith Ward, Tom Kemnitz Jr. Indie Film Review by Phil Slatter The Happiest Place on Earth opens with a series of children’s drawings showing projected glimpses of idyllic families while adult voiceovers speak about the American dream of a family, a dog and 2.4 children. It feels like a documentary but as we meet Jonah and Maggie, the fictional story sets in with some very real world problems lurking just around the corner. Life

The Trouble with the Truth indie film

Jan 18, 2017
2 min

The Trouble with the Truth indie film

★★★ Directed by Jim Hemphill Starring Lea Thompson, John Shea Indie Film Review by Phil Slatter Essentially a film split into three separate scenes and featuring only three meaningful speaking roles, The Trouble With The Truth is a simple yet effective drama that manages to invoke an awful lot of thoughts and ideas without much actually happening in it. The opening scene introduces us to Robert (John Shea) and his daughter Jenny (Danielle Harris) who announces that she has j

Wheeled Warriors: The Rise of Wheelchair Boxing indie film

Jan 3, 2017
2 min

Wheeled Warriors: The Rise of Wheelchair Boxing indie film

★★★★ Directed by Mark Brown Starring Colin Wood, Phil Bousfield, Paul Robinson Documentary Film Review by Phil Slatter There is something very slightly misleading about the full title of Wheeled Warriors: The Rise of Wheelchair Boxing; it isn’t really about the rise at all but the very birth of a sport you probably won’t have heard of. Taking a fly-on-the-wall approach, writer/director Mark Brown follows promoter Colin Wood in his attempts to stage the first ever wheelchair

One Minute / Sixty Seconds indie film

Dec 27, 2016
2 min

One Minute / Sixty Seconds indie film

★★ Directed by Mark Zampella Starring Katharina Daue, Steve McAllister, Ed Ericsson Indie Film Review by Phil Slatter One Minute / 60 Seconds is a science fiction film wrapped up in a drama about a missing person. It’s an odd blend and not an entirely successful one, even if the script does possess some original ideas and thought-provoking discussions. It opens with a lingering shot of the stars before panning down to the earth and then cutting to Danielle (Katharina Daue),

The Purpose of Apples short film

Dec 15, 2016
2 min

The Purpose of Apples short film

Directed by Michael Coulombe Starring Andrew J. McGuinness, Starr Gilliard Short Film Review by Phil Slatter The Purpose of Apples is a familiarly themed, if none the less sweet, tale of two contrasting love stories. It opens with Caden (Andrew J. McGuinness) walking through what we later learn is L.A. The impressive music sets the tone and the smart shot choices (including a good use of fades, birds soaring above and long shadows) create the necessary picture of Caden walki