Film Reviews & Highlights

Film Highlights

• Heartland Film Festival
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• The 23rd Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards® will be simulcast live on TNT and TBS on Sunday, Jan. 29, 2017 at 8 p.m. (ET)/5 p.m. (PT).TBS and TNT subscribers can also watch the SAG Awards live through the networks' websites and mobile apps. In addition, TNT will present a primetime encore of the ceremony immediately following the live presentation.
• The Arlington International Film Festival (AIFF) is pleased to announce the opening of this year’s Call for Entries. Submission information can be found on the website, Aiffest.org and entries posted on FilmFreeway.com. AIFF continues to unearth some of the best independent storytellers in all genres and presents a diverse array of local, national, and international narrative and documentary features, shorts, and student films.
• Cinequest Film and VR Festival (Cinequest 2017) will occur February 28th to March 12th in bastion San Jose, while expanding to Redwood City, California. Heightening its fusion of technological innovation with empowering creativity, Silicon Valley's Cinequest will introduce an unparalleled Virtual Reality element to the 2017 festival.
• Kino Lorber has acquired all North American rights to Kirsten Tan’s debut feature POP AYE, after the film’s world premiere at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival in the World Dramatic section. (1/23/17)
• Lionsgate scored 26 Academy Award nominations across four different films, including a record-tying 14 Oscar nods for "La La Land," the most for any film. Lionsgate garnered three of the Academy's nine Best Picture nods with "Hacksaw Ridge" and "Hell or High Water." (1/24/17)
• First Annual Hawaii Film Challenge, an international screenwriting contest open to a global pool of talent, and awarding three winners airfare and lodging for their creative team, as well as casting, production staff, and equipment support, and a 10-day shoot and production experience in Hawaii, culminating in an exclusive screening. (117/17).
• Film Movement, the New York-based distributor of independent, foreign and documentary films, is pleased to announce that SOMEWHERE IN THE MIDDLE will be available on VOD and DVD on February 14th through its imprint Omnibus Entertainment. The film, which chronicles the rocky relationship of a couple who each subsequently begin messy affairs with beautiful younger women, was directed by award-winning indie director Lanre Olabisi. Also in February, Maren Ade’s first feature film, THE FOREST FOR THE TREES, will be re-issued on DVD by Film Movement on February 21st. Ade, who is the director of the Oscar-nominated film TONI ERDMANN, made this shot-on-video debut in 2003 and observes, as only she can, a teacher making a new life for herself in a new town.

Miv Evans, Reviewer
Entertainment Magazine On Line

"Fences" (December 25, 2016) The movie, Fences, is without doubt a magnificent piece of theater but, when played out ‘intacta’ on the silver screen, it becomes a hybrid that even the most devoted fans of Washington and Davis might find exhausting.

"Little Sister" (December 2016) A nun, a pot smoking mom, a recluse and his over-sexed girlfriend are great fodder for a wacky comedy but, unfortunately, the filmmakers opted for a serious drama instead.

The opening sequence of Nocturnal Animals (November 2016) shows a naked woman shaking her morbidly obese body for a lot longer than is comfortable to watch. Obviously, the filmmaker’s not a fan of audience focus groups or he would have discovered, not only that grotesque bodies don’t do it for most people, but also that style can’t hide a lack of depth and convoluted storytelling kills tension stone dead.

"SEIGE AT JADOTVILLE – the Fighting Irish" (October 2016) This David and Goliath story unravels against a backdrop of international intrigue, corrupt politicians, inept military command, and it’s all set on a stage covered in red dust from copper mines buried deep in the heart of the Congo. It’s thrilling, fascinating and peppered with the subverted humor that only the Irish can create. What is shocking about this film is that it is, in fact, a true story.

"Amanda Knox" (October 2016) One of the reasons Netflix financed this documentary could possibly be that Amanda Knox narrates in person.

"Eye in the Sky" is a story of war at its most chilling; its most humane; its most deadly and its most compelling. Every decision that the characters make can be challenged with a “But if you do that…….” Once a decision is made, that too can be challenged with the same warning, and so on, until we realize there is no good answer.

"Dark Shadows Stars" from Original Series Appear in New Dark Shadows Movie. Some old TV shows cannot stay dead and buried and the ABC horror soap opera Dark Shadows (1966-1971) is a key example. It underwent various reincarnations, from movies, House of Dark Shadows (1970), Night of Dark Shadows (1971), to the short-lived NBC revival series (January to March 1991), and to additional productions.

"Superior" is an adventure story about coming of age. It’s set in the late 1960s. The two main characters decide that before going to college or into military service they want one more adventure. They want one more week of joy before they have to grow up.

Interview with filmmakers of the film Homeless, Tif Hassler (producer) and Clay Hassler (director, cinematographer, co-writer).

This is “art house” movie-making but with meaningless dialogue in place of introspection, surreal sequences instead of theme, and pretentious vinaigrettes that replace the ‘slice of life’ synonymous to that genre. So it’s art house, without the art, and not much pleasure to watch. Continue reading about "Youth."

This true story about a transgender man suffers badly from overkill. At two hours, it’s too long; the music is too dramatic; the actors try too hard and there’s much too much crying. However, it’s a cleverly titled piece and the subject matter is interesting enough to make it just about worth watching. But only just. Read about The Danish Girl.

Heartland Film Festival Unveils Winners Awards More Than $120,000 to Independent Filmmakers. “The Judgment” wins $45,000 Grand Prize for Best Narrative Feature, “Romeo is Bleeding” wins $45,000 Grand Prize for Best Documentary Feature, “The Way of Tea” wins $5,000 Grand Prize for Best Narrative Short and “The 100 Years Show” wins $5,000 Grand Prize for Best Documentary Short. Continue reading about Heartland Film Festival winners.

Michael Moore's Where to Invade Next starts off in Italy and then catapults to Germany, Denmark, France, Finland, Norway, Iceland, Lisbon. Tunisia, Slovenia and Sweden, covering topics from school lunches to capital punishment. Each time Moore leaves a country, he presents his host with an American flag and, by the look on the hosts’ faces, they’re as confused as me about the reason for this gift.

In Stardust & Moonbeams, Will gets more than he bargains for when he asks Beth to pose for him. Beth knows she’s on to something when she asks Will to pose for her. These are the modern times of 1928—and she’s a feminist, after all. Watch video trailers.

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