★ Directed by: #GunelGadirova Written by: #GunelGadirova Starring: ##NatashaCampbell and #EleonoraCucciarelli Film Review by #AnnieVincent #ImagesofAbsence is a short docu-drama which follows a young researcher as she explores the topic of homelessness. It should be insightful, eye-opening, at the very least emotive, but the narrative fails to deliver and instead audiences will be left with a hollow series of clips which only touch on the surface of this significant issue. The thirteen minute film opens in classic docu-drama style, with our researcher conducting a street survey on attitudes towarss the homeless. This should have been a hard-hitting start, rooting the film in the emotional aspects of the topic, but the script has not considered basics such as the question order and so none of the survey responses really built on each other or gave us anything to consider: an important aspect of any docu-drama. And sadly, the film gets worse from here. What follows is a series of clips of our researcher hearing, in places, some heavily emotive monologues from homeless characters or their families, yet our researcher remains impassive and lacks any connection with the other characters. There are some brief nods to the private life of our researcher which suggest we're going to learn more about her and why she is researching a topic she clearly has little feeling for, but this isn't the case. The narrative, and indeed the film, ends. We've learnt nothing about homelessness beyond what we can already imagine about those it affects and our protagonist has zero motivation for the cause. You cannot help but wonder what the director's idea of a film really is and where the understanding of narrative arcs has wandered off to. What is most sad is that the characters surrounding the protagonist can clearly act and the writers can clearly deliver grit and heart in equal measure. It just isn't sustained and consequently leaves us almost as impassive as our protagonist.

★★★★★ Directed by: #ShaneRyan Written by: Shane Ryan Starring: #BreKapner, #OliverMorrison, #KaliyaSkyea and #AshleySmith Short Film Review by: Rachel Pullen I bring the jokes right? That’s my whole thing, not the best film critic sure but I might make you laugh, but sometimes, just sometimes, I am given a film that causes me to toss my jester’s hat aside, don my Rodger Ebert tortoise shell rimmed glasses, and be an actual professional. Filmmaker Shane Ryan brings such a movie to the table, a poetic and visually stunning piece that made me have real feelings inside my heartless soul...thanks Shane. Short film Paper Kids follows the lives of several teenagers, doing nothing more than going about their day-to-day lives, but their day-to-day lives don’t consist of dinners with the family and holidays to Disneyland [who would want that anyway, giant mice terrify me] but more of isolation, abuse, fear and confusion, these kids are not really living the dream. Each seems to be introverted in their own way, and this is held up by the fact that Paper Kids has no dialogue, it is just a free-flowing collection of clips that are accompanied by a series of instrumental pieces of music, and that is a bold move from the filmmakers. We are forced to look into the eyes of the subject and study their emotions on a deeper level. The young people on this film though are victims of that, none of them seem in trouble enough for anyone to act upon it, none of them are screaming for attention, they are just the kind of kids who get swept under the rug time and time again, be it by the authorities, family or even a school councillor. Shane, it seems, is asking his viewer to look a little deeper than the masks they wear in society. In typical Shane Ryan style this short is beautifully shot, visually stimulating and all done on a shoestring budget, the actors express so much visually you feel wrapped up in their world, a world none of us really want to be in. This is a short not to be missed, making the viewer uncomfortable yet compelled to not turn away, Paper Kids takes us on a ride through the lonely and isolating world of being a kid on the sidelines.

★★ Directed by: #AriSandel Starring: #AdamDevine, #AlexandraDaddario, #ShelleyHennig, #RobbieArnell and #AndrewBachelor Netflix Film Review by: Charlotte Little When We First Met is a 2018 American romantic comedy widely released by Netflix, this film was directed by Ari Sandel (The Duff) and starred Adam Devine, Alexandra Daddario, Shelley Hennig, Robbie Arnell and Andrew Bachelor. The film's premise is essentially the reimagining of Groundhog Day, but where the central character is stuck in the friend-zone, rather than stuck in time. After spending an evening with the girl of his dreams only to become nothing more than friends, Noah discovers the ability to use a vintage photo booth to travel back in time to change the course of history in his advantage. The story opens on 1st November 2017 where we see Noah (Adam Devine) at Avery's (Alexandra Daddario) engagement party. The audience is led to believe that these two are the happy couple after we witness a flashback retelling the night they first met. We watch their encounter at a Halloween party three years earlier, which led them to a jazz bar and a photo booth. It turns out that Avery is marrying a Hollister-esque model type called Ethan. Noah proceeds to drown his sorrows through the comfort of alcohol with Carrie (Shelley Hennig), Avery's best friend. Noah takes a trip to the aforementioned jazz bar in Carrie's attempt to take him home to sleep his drunkenness off. Noah stumbles into the photo booth to continue his pathetic pity party, and he transports back in time where he wakes up on the morning of 31st October 2014. USA Today reports on the Ebola epidemic, blueberry flavoured Red Bull hasn't been invented yet, and Noah still has the chance to confess his feelings to Avery. When We First Met takes us through a variety of rotations of the Halloween party, capturing Noah attempts to rectify his behaviour in the hope that Avery will fall in love with him. The dialogue alone should come with a spoiler alert, laying out the entire plot before the film is even halfway through. It's easy to guess how things are going to play out as soon as Carrie preaches to Noah that healthy relationships are built on mutual chemistry rather than one person's desire. Devine's substance carries the almost laugh-free film, but his talent has been put to better use in previous projects such as Pitch Perfect. His sarcasm and facial slapstick aren't to the taste of everyone's palette. I must admit that I did laugh out loud a few times during the 'stalker' scenes when Carrie and Avery attacked Noah with a house plant. Noah's narcissism is difficult to overlook; it's pretty hard to care about a character who suffers from self-pity syndrome so badly that he feels the need to continuously travel back in time to make a woman fall in love with him. Thirty minutes into watching this movie and you'll start to wonder why you're still watching it, and whether it's time to pick something more rewarding. This film is the epitome of unnecessary. I don't think the world needs a movie where a man retains the ideology that he is entitled to the 'woman of his dreams' and is willing to use time travel to manipulate someone into being with him. Forty minutes in and I was secretly hoping I would hear the low humming of the TARDIS. Time Lord Jodie Whittaker would shake some sense into Noah, condemning his abuse of time travel. #CharlotteLittle

★★★ Directed by: #TheoHogben Starring: #MarieThereseBjornerud, #MarenElineMarkussen and #JonFosmark Short Film Review by: #ShrubabotiBose What starts with a sweet romantic evening spent indoors watching an old black and white movie soon turns into a very disturbing tale about a pathological voyeur. Short film A Most Savage Beast cunningly transforms our cinematic experience into an act of voyeurism itself by trapping us in the role of passive viewers seeking pleasure from watching the film. In fact, it is not the violence or the blood and gore that horrifies us, we are hardly ever shown the actual murder or blood; but it is the way she nonchalantly manipulates the people around her to the extreme that she kills those who threaten to jeopardize her design. Director Theo Hogben leaves interesting visual cues for us to catch on the narrative easily without giving away the plot twist. We notice the polaroid camera lying on the floor, the sensual manner in which her fingers trail the black wall tracing its rough texture, the way she keeps biting her lips throughout the film, we realize their sexual undertones and yet we fail to expect what follows next. It is only afterwards, that things fall into place. The background music is deliberately misleading in the beginning, playing rhythmic melodies to keep up with the overall light mood of the opening scene and then suddenly shifts to a more sinister note at the point of conflict. Framing is important, the camera holds the composition still and watches it through the calculated framework as dictated by our protagonist like in her photographs, and in turn the cinematographer and director. She is a control freak. Everything is under her control, meticulously planned to happen the way she fantasizes about it. She exhibits impulsive rage and aggression as suggested by her facial expressions and involuntary crumpling of the newspaper she was reading when any slight variable occurs that has the potential to affect her grand scheme. Unfortunately, certain scenes especially the conversation between the second couple at the bar when the girl inquires about her missing phone and then again at the cafe when she starts crying while relating the death of her ex-boyfriend do not seem convincing. Perhaps, hiding her face behind her hair was an effort to salvage the shot at the last minute, however, the flawed acting fails to bring out the powerful impact that this scene is supposed to bring. As a result, their dialogue appears dragged and unrealistic. In contrast to that, the protagonist’s acting is so natural that her little gestures of impatience as she portrays it by closing her eyes and letting out a sigh has the desired effect on us. Simultaneously her vulgar acts of murder frightens us out of our wits because of the shocking unlikelihood of her actions in comparison to her usual self. One needs to admit that A Most Savage Beast brilliantly portrays the story of a sociopath while playing with the idea of voyeurism and teasing the audience with questions it leaves us to answer for ourselves.

★★★ Director: #AndreaDiStefano Starring: #JoelKinnaman, #RosamundPike, #CliveOwen, #Common, #AnadeArmas and #EugeneLipinski Film Review by: #BrianPenn For an actor who made his name in gentle, reflective pieces like Life of Pi and Eat Pray Love; Andrea Di Stefano is no shrinking violet as a director. His second directorial feature is The Informer, a brutal but frequently compelling thriller adapted from a Swedish novel. Pete Koslow (Joel Kinnaman) is a convicted felon on parole and informing for the FBI. Agent Wilcox (Rosamund Pike) has promised him closure if he can infiltrate a Polish drug gang led by the General (Eugene Lipinski). However, the final payoff is ruined when an undercover cop is murdered. The General orders Koslow to break his parole, enter prison and supervise his drug operation. He is caught between the proverbial rock and a hard place; but Wilcox forces him back inside to complete his mission. Meanwhile, NYPD Detective Grens (Common) is investigating the murder and confronted by duplicitous FBI boss Montgomery (Clive Owen). Koslow's feisty wife Sophia (Ana de Armas) and daughter Ana have also been targeted by the gang as insurance. The film puts the viewer into familiar even comfortable territory. Koslow is the flawed but essentially good guy trapped in a hole that just gets deeper. His golden haired wife and daughter are constant reminders of the happiness he craves; but who can he really trust? Joel Kinnaman wears his action man credentials with pride and looks like Arnie in training; not that his performance was any less effective for it. Rapper Common delivers an effective portrayal as inquisitive cop Grens while Ana de Armas has telegenic presence as Sophia. There is much to admire in the film’s overall construction and commitment to a transparent plot. The scene transitions are well executed; contrasting Koslow as the doting father and then the calculating FBI informer is a nice touch. But the film's underlying strength is also its weakness. The efficient plotting feels predictable and almost formulaic. The prison scenes are reminiscent of numerous film and TV productions and make The Informer feel dangerously anonymous. The climax although gripping, seems highly unlikely and stretches credibility to breaking point. Suspending disbelief doesn’t go nearly far enough; it requires immediate dismissal without notice. But hey, why let logic get in the way of a good yarn? For all that it’s still highly watchable with enough activity to hold the attention.

★★★★ Directed by: #GrantSputore Starring: #ClaraRugaard, #LukeHawker, #RoseByrne, and #HilarySwank Netflix Film Review by: Charlotte Little I Am Mother is a 2019 Australian science fiction thriller, widely released by #Netflix. Sputore’s directorial debut follows a girl living in a post-apocalyptic bunker. She is raised by an android, whose purpose it is to aid the repopulation of Earth and the restoration of humankind. Their relationship is tested when a wounded stranger arrives at the bunker. I Am Mother opens with a title card that reads “DAYS SINCE EXTINCTION EVENT: 001”. The audience is introduced to “Mother”, an android (voiced by Rose Byrne) who is raising a human child within the confinements of the post-apocalyptic bunker. Time jumps forward to introduce a teenager simply named “Daughter” (Clara Rugaard). Mother and Daughter live together in isolation, protected by the contamination and threat that still lingers on Earth’s surface after the extinction of humanity. Everything changes when an injured woman (Hilary Swank) arrives at their door, pleading for help. Along with Woman’s unexpected arrival, Daughter learns some disturbing truths about Mother. Despite the classic #scifi ‘evil robot’ trope, this film pleasantly surprises with an unpredictable and unconventional story. Early on, we learn that Daughter is being prepared for an exam. The film’s ending reveals that Mother had a far more insidious motive for Daughter’s testing as she attempted to raise the ‘perfect human’. Ultimately Daughter must prove that she and humanity are worthy of survival. It is later insinuated that Mother executed the extinction, to protect humankind from destroying itself. Daughter discovers that she wasn’t the first child raised by Mother, finding human bones in the incinerator. It is suggested that Woman also originated from an embryo within the bunker. After Daughter and Woman escape to the Earth’s surface together, Daughter quickly learns that Woman lied about living with a community of human survivors, admitting that she manipulated Daughter so that she could escape the bunker. Daughter abandons Woman, returning to the bunker to confront Mother and to raise her new brother, whose embryo she had previously chosen as Mother’s reward to her for her exam results. Daughter’s demonstration of her selfless determination to ensure the human race’s survival convinces Mother of Daughter's capability. Mother concedes to Daughter, as her purpose has been fulfilled. The android is no longer needed, assured that Daughter has proven herself as a capable guardian. Daughter sobs as she shoots Mother, who falls to the ground. Mother’s AI consciousness still exists in the other droids that roam the Earth’s bare surface, one of the droids visits Woman’s home and addresses her in Mother’s voice. "Funny that you’ve survived so long. As if someone's had a purpose for you. Until now." Mother had orchestrated Woman’s injury and arrival into Daughter’s life, catalysing Daughter’s curiosity and escape from the bunker. Once Daughter returned to the bunker and proved herself worthy of guiding humanity, Woman had outlived her usefulness. Followed by an ominous slam of the door, Mother carries out her final task. This #dystopian film is tense, intelligent and suspenseful. I Am Mother is an ambitious and well-acted science fiction story with a central psychological paradox that poses intriguing questions about motherhood and humankind’s reliance on technology. Newcomer Clara Rugaard has a dynamic presence on screen, lending substance to her role as a human that questions what it means to be human. The visual storytelling drives the film’s dystopic vision and imposes mecha-maternal sentiment as we witness the sweet moment of a head resting on a robotic shoulder. The downside of this film is that it can be easy to become lost in the plot’s details and twists, especially if you have a habit of checking your phone whilst watching movies. #CharlotteLittle

★★ Directed by: #SriKandula Starring: #AlexandriaStilley, #AustinPerkins Short Film Review by: #BenjaminSchofield From the outset, The Virtues of Solitude is oozing with self-importance. I mean, it’s called The Virtues of Solitude for Christsakes. Moody music plays. We see fancy serif white text over a black background: “a SRI KANDULA film” it reads, as though the name might mean anything to anyone. Then, “The spirit is not born, nor does it die at any time” – a quote that sounds vaguely good and bears little to no significance to the film we’re about to watch. We open on a library in black and white, shot upside-down. “Look how arty and sophisticated I am”, the film screams, “look at all these books and unconventional cinematographic devices, revel at my neoclassical piano score and my refusal to adhere to tacky technicolour”. Then, a close-up on an eyeball because, surrealism. “Look at me”, the film screams again, “I am Maya Deren, I am Luis Bunuel. Salvador Dali may kiss the ground I walk on, for I have presented you with this: an eye. Sigmund Freud’s theories have been actualised in this; I have tapped into the very deepest recesses of the human subconscious and presented them here, can you not see? This here is the window to the soul, the most vital and yet delicate human organ. Imagine, if you will, a world without eyes. What kind of pitiful world would that be? And yet, you may never have to see your fears and your darkest nightmares as our protagonist is about to witness. Yet, whilst she may see, she cannot act, she cannot escape. She is merely a spectator. Note too, if you will, that you, yes you, are too a spectator, watching these perils unfold on screen. May Lacan smite me down if I have not reflected his greatest theories of identification here within this one shot: this eye”. If this point hasn’t already been gotten across, we then see a close-up of both eyes, and many more eye shots throughout. The real problem arises when the film actually gets pretty good. The #cinematography, although it enforces the pretension atmosphere, is undeniably pretty, and sweeping camera movements as we follow a chase through the library are just brilliant. The film cuts between the two characters seamlessly, and we are left disorientated in this surrealist library chase. The use of the blur effect to hide faces is simple but effective, and the film manages to mimic dreamlike qualities in a fascinating way. Some moments are genuinely scary and dramatic. I certainly can’t deny the quality of the soundtrack – yes, I described it as moody earlier but it is honestly pretty brilliant. Alexandria Stilley’s performance is great until she starts to speak – not so much because she struggles to deliver the lines but because the dialogue is so trite and cliché that Daniel Day Lewis would struggle to get a good performance out of it. Just as the film starts to get good, it delivers more of the faux-deep quote from earlier, reminding you why you were so frustrated with the film’s opening, and towards the end all the good qualities seem to fade award and we’re left with awkward performances, flat cinematography, sloppy editing, but still some suggestion that what we’re watching is meant to be good. “Love me”, the film says, “because I can no longer love myself”.

★★ Directed by: #PascalAdam Written by: Pascal Adam Starring: #DominiquePerrin, #CliffKoma, #LirijeIbrahimi, #StephanieSlow Short Film Review by: Chris Olson A story of unrequited love in filmmaker Pascal Adam's short film The Writer. Exploring the marvel and wonder in the coming together of two people, it's a delicate tale of following your heart. Dominique Perrin plays the physical representation of a Server in a bar (voiced by Cliff Koma). Eagerly awaiting the arrival of a woman he adores (Lirije Ibrahimi, voiced by Stephanie Slow), our Server pens a note declaring his feelings towards her. The woman, when she arrives, is revealed to be a Writer, who drinks red wine and pens narratives as she sits at the bar. The nature and themes of her stories are distinctly similar to the longing felt by the Server. Poetic and tender, The Writer is a movie loaded with romance. Each nook and cranny of the filmmaking is arranged to showcase the emotional crux of each character, from the romantic mise en scéne to the gloopy musical score. The dialogue is heartfelt and at times whimsical, in particular during the brilliant animated sequences which were the highlight of the piece. If the decision to use two performances for each character (one voice one physical) was for artistic reasons, it sadly backfires. There is a strong disconnect between the two and whilst this may represent the disparity between our public persona and our inner monologue, the result for the audience is a jarring viewing experience that rendered the whole film feeling cheap. The lighting of scenes was too stark, especially for a film with such an intimate storyline. This was made even more apparent when the movie diverted into the animated sequence and then returned to the drab bar setting. The music was ladled on too thick, causing the piece to suffocate slightly from the emotive cacophony. For a five minute film, The Writer does well to grapple with such heavy themes. There is strong character development and had the short film been able to coordinate more of the various #filmmaking aspects consistently, this could have been an interesting journey into the fantasy and fiction of love. Had the filmmakers been able to spot the strengths of the film earlier on and honed in on those, this could have been a beautiful love story. As it is, however, we are presented with a disjointed and regrettably irksome movie that loses its potency amongst the saccharin and dull aesthetic choices. Much like the suffering of the characters, it fails to see what's great when it is right in front of them and opts to remain in the confusion. Watch the official short film trailer below.

Film Festivals > Press Releases Edited by: Chris Olson GRIMMFEST ANNOUNCE 6 EUROPEAN AND 17 UK PREMIERES AS PART OF THEIR FULL LINE-UP OF FILMS; ALL COMPETING FOR OVER £120K WORTH OF PRIZES Grimmfest, one of the UK’s leading cult and genre film festivals, is in its 11th year. The festival will take place at the Odeon Great Northern cinema in Manchester, UK, from 3 - 6 October 2019. In total the festival will host 21 feature films and 19 short films, which includes 6 European premieres, 17 UK premieres, 2 English premieres and 15 Northern UK premieres. European Premieres include Audrey Cummings' laconically brutal SHE NEVER DIED (the keenly awaited follow up to 2015 horror hit HE NEVER DIED), claustrophobic Argentinian thriller 4X4 and Australian WWII set creature feature, BLOOD VESSEL. UK Premieres include Hollywood cultist horror 1BR, Canadian mind bender DEAD DICKS, existential revenge drama EVERY TIME I DIE and Russian sleep experiments in QUIET COMES THE DAWN. English Premieres include Irish comedy horror and festival darling, EXTRA ORDINARY and UK director Adam Randall's devious, perception-challenging thriller, I SEE YOU, starring Helen Hunt. Northern UK Premieres include British self-help-through-slaughter satire, A SERIAL KILLER’S GUIDE TO LIFE and ferociously brutal Russian black comedy WHY DON'T YOU JUST DIE! 2019 sees the festival's strongest ever line-up of films from women directors, screenwriters or driven by strong female characters. The opening night offers three female-helmed features: Audrey Cummings' SHE NEVER DIED, outrageous splatter-satire SATANIC PANIC, from debuting director Chelsea Stardust and Fangoria films, and Abigail Blackmore's (FrightFest Screen Genre Rising Star Award winner 2019) droll UK comedy horror, TALES FROM THE LODGE, with cast and crew including Abigail and actress Kelly Wenham expected in attendance. The focus on women in horror continues with the guest line-up, which includes Pollyanna McIntosh (Jadis from THE WALKING DEAD), who will be presenting her directorial debut, DARLIN', follow up to the infamous THE WOMAN, and the Soska Sisters (AMERICAN MARY), hosting a screening of their much-anticipated reimagining of the Cronenberg classic, RABID. More festival guests will be announced over the coming weeks. There's also some top talent making a welcome return to Grimmfest. Millennials and Baby Boomers battle for the soul of America in the UK Premiere of black comedy TONE-DEAF, from Richard Bates Jr (EXCISION, SUBURBAN GOTHIC, TRASH FIRE, plus there's witchcraft and teen alienation in the Northern Premiere of THE WRETCHED from the Pierce Brothers (DEADHEADS) and trouble at sea in Canadian thriller HARPOON from Rob Grant (MON AMI, FAKE BLOOD, ALIVE). And if classic monsters are your thing, there’s werewolves in the UK premiere of LOOM, vampires in the UK premiere of THE SHED and the European premiere of BLOOD VESSEL, and to close the festival, Lupita Nyong'o (US, BLACK PANTHER, STAR WARS) takes on the zombie hordes in the regional premiere of LITTLE MONSTERS. As previously announced, this year all films in Grimmfest’s official selection will be competing for 14 awards including BEST FEATURE FILM, BEST SHORT FILM, BEST DIRECTOR, BEST SFX and BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY, with prizes that include over £120,000 worth of post - production support. The awards will be judged by a select jury headed up by actress and horror genre icon Barbara Crampton. Grimmfest Film Festival 2019 takes place 3 - 6 October in Manchester, UK. Full festival passes, day passes and individual film tickets will be on sale via the grimmfest.com website as of 9am on Monday 2 September.

★★ Directed by: #PetrusKristianto Starring: #Jap, #KevinSetyaWijaya, #MuhammadAfiffudinAlBadri Short Film Review by: #RyanMarsh Kevin (Jap, Kevin Setya Wijaya) is an online taxi driver obsessed with Iron Man. Afif (Muhammad Afiffudin Al Badri) is a university student who likes searching for mosquitoes. The reaction of “Huh? What did I just watch?” would be normal for What Times Mosquitos Are Sleeping? However, there is an almost ‘so bad, it’s good’ quality to the film. The characters are eccentric and quirky. Kevin is self-centred, vain, eschews responsibilities and possesses delusions of grandeur. Afif is no less preoccupied, ignoring advice from his mother and walking around with a small, transparent bag determined to find mosquitoes. The performances are fine, if slightly lacking. Exuding arrogance, delivering bizarre dialogue and making noises, Setya Wijaya understands the script’s humour. Unfortunately, he cannot scratch an unbearable itch convincingly. Co-star Al Badri believably delivers dialogue and looks distracted, but should appear more determined to find mosquitoes. There are slight comparisons to Wes Anderson in Kristianto’s and Prayitno Santoso’s script as characters behave in a unique manner. The script also effectively depicts the extrovert/introvert relationship and contains good cringe humour like when Kevin plays with his bootleg Iron Man figure. The bootleg quality does not necessarily extend to Fieqal Firman’s cinematography. He acknowledges the rule of thirds and the Kubrickian use of single point perspective when Afif is looking around motorbikes. Admittedly though, the cinematography is not brilliant, distinctive or adventurous enough when the top of someone’s head is cut off by the frame. This should have been reframed and reshot. The editing by Rofi Imartyan Hafiz consists of long gaps between cuts immersing the audience in the narrative and dragging out the embarrassment. It is used comically when Kevin is sunbathing and the film cuts to a different angle of him on top of a car. There are weird, unprofessional choices like the opening title flying in and out, but having the scenes of Kevin scratching himself edited together demonstrates rationale. In contrast, Fieqal Firman Hidayat’s score keeps repeating the same notes. In fairness, the minimalist, acoustic guitar is appropriately indie. However, it needs more as the score becomes boring, sinister and annoying which makes you want to yell “SHUT UP!!!”. The locations chosen by Hadi Rahman feel like places lived and worked in like the university Afif attends or Kevin’s house. The dark field that Afif finds himself in looks interesting and Kevin’s bedroom has the most personality with its miniature Iron Man shrine. Kevin’s fascination coincides with the film’s ideas of obsession such as his urge to scratch or Afif’s persistence to find mosquitoes. Disappointingly, the potential mosquito analogy is not fully explored as the film becomes so conceptually focused, the end result is impenetrable. The plot progresses and stops at a strange place which gives it a lack of narrative closure. Specifically, the last, quite Lynchian, scene is confusing and only makes sense to those behind the camera. The quirkiness of What Times Mosquitos Are Sleeping? is not going to be for everyone and might annoy some people, but at least others could laugh at it.

★★★★ Directed by: #AustinHillebrecht, #SeanParker Written by: Austin Hillebrecht, Sean Parker Starring: #AustinHillebrecht, #CoreyBrunish, #DavidLoftus, #DennisFitzpatrick, #TomWalton, #NomiSumma, #MichelleDamis, Indie Film Review by: Chris Olson Indie film Coup de Cinema, from #filmmakers Austin Hillebrecht and Sean Parker, feels a little like if The Room were a heist movie. A plucky story of one man's dream to get a movie made, even if he has to steal it from underneath another director. Miles (Hillebrecht) reaches his breaking point applying to (and being rejected from) countless production companies, desperately looking for a chance to be in the movie business. After shoehorning himself in at a mysterious company called Bourgeois Pictures, Miles thinks his troubles are over when he blags a job as a production assistant. However, he soon realises that a role as part of the crew is not enough, especially when the output of the studio is as turgid as the movies being released by Bourgeois. Taking matters into his own hands, Miles becomes the ringleader of a cinematic coup whereby the rest of the jaded filmmaking cast and crew help him make a better film on the sly. Valiant and stout of heart, Coup de Cinema is a love letter to the art of film. By exploring so many facets of the process and using a warts and all approach, the filmmakers are keen to shed light on the arduous journey that is making a movie. The major theme running through the piece is the friction between film as an artform and film as a business and the unhappy coexistence they endure. So many of the men and women working on the latest schlock piece for the production company have lost their passion for filmmaking, doing the bare minimum to get the movie made rather than taking risks and pushing the envelope. Most are simply concerned with where they can get the best wifi. From a production value perspective, Coup de Cinema is scrappy but enjoyable. Fun flavour is injected wherever possible yet the piece never forgets to tell its story. Some sequences are action packed, others are intelligently blocked, such as Miles distracting the film's original director (Corey Brunish) whilst the rest of the crew shoot a different film behind his back. The performances are all very strong. This doesn't feel like amateur hour and that is most likely because the script has a truth to it that never strays. Hillebrecht is a great lead, we fully believe Miles's drive to make a good film, especially when he takes anti-heroic measures to get it done. Some parts are indulgent, such as the super technical references to cameras or shutter speed which are only going to land with those who make movies. However, the majority of the film is filled with an amusing and diverting plot that contains some impressive turns from a great cast. Watch the official movie trailer below.

★★ Directed by: Bart Freundlich Written by: #BartFreundlich #SusanneBier Starring: #MichelleWilliams #JulianneMoore #BillyCrudup Film Review by: #BrandonThomas The adult drama has all but vanished from American multiplexes. Sure, the occasional Oscar-baity title sneaks through around the holidays, but those mom-pleasing, bring your hanky dramas of yesteryear are pretty much a thing of the past. Despite the presence of A+ talent and an overall intriguing story, After the Wedding isn’t the shot in the arm the genre was looking for. A retread of Susanne Bier’s 2006 Oscar nominee for foreign language film, After the Weddingfollows Isabel (Michelle Williams), who is living a fulfilling, productive life running a small orphanage in Kolkata. After an extremely generous donation offer is made to the orphanage, Isabel travels to New York to meet Theresa (Julianne Moore), the benefactor. Unexpectedly invited to the wedding of Theresa’s daughter, Isabel finds herself face-to-face with a man from her past (Billy Crudup), and a 20-year-old decision that will shake her to her core. After the Wedding trips up right out of the gate by leaning so heavily into melodrama. Instead of an emotionally weighty dramatic piece anchored by an amazing cast, this film latches on to genre cliches and doesn’t let go. Deep, dark family secrets? Check. Mystery illness? Check. Sneaky motivations? Double check. The movie is one evil twin away from being a bad episode of General Hospital. Did I mention the amount of teary-eyed yelling? There is plenty. The only real sense of urgency comes from the movie being in a rush to get to that next dramatic reveal. The characters, and likewise the audience, are never given the chance to dwell on what just happened. The experience feels cheap and anticlimactic. Moore and Williams continue to show that they’re national treasures, but even they can only do so much with the material afforded them. The two actresses share multiple scenes together, but any emotional weight is often deflated by the scattershot script—co-written by director Bart Freundlich (Moore’s husband)— jumping from one unearned character beat to the next. These people feel like a blended mix of every character seen in indie dramas instead of being fully-formed individuals. Despite reeling in a Who’s Who of a cast, After the Wedding never becomes anything more than a Who Cares.