Review: ‘A Violent Separation’

In Theaters and On-Demand May 17, 2019
Directed by: Kevin and Michael Goetz (A Scenic Route)

In a quiet midwestern town, Norman Young (Brenton Thwaites) is faced with an impossible decision; arrest his older brother Ray (Ben Robson) for murder or help him cover it up. Norman chooses family. As the ensuing investigation withers, neither of the brothers are prepared for the weight of their guilt or how that guilt will strain their loyalty to those closest to them.

Brenton Thwaites is the one thing that truly shines in this film. His emotional journey is a tad more interesting, but not by much. That is a reflection of the writing and not his abilities. He does the best he can and should be commended for it. While the cinematography is lovely, this script ends up feeling really anticlimactic and frankly pretty dull. I can see what it was trying to do but there was very little in the way of character development outside of the first 20 minutes. Even then, it was small-town cliche. Alycia Debnam-Carey is vastly underutilized and her character is overly simplistic. You knew exactly where this was going from the very beginning and the final scene between brothers was telegraphed from a mile away. The investigation (the driving force of the plot) was not very thorough which led to little to no intrigue. A Violent Separation needed more meat on the bones for my taste.

Starring: 
Brenton Thwaites (“Titans, The Giver)
Ben Robson (“Animal Kingdom,” “Vikings”)
Alycia Debnam-Carey (“Fear the Walking Dead,” “The 100”)
Claire Holt (“The Vampire Diaries,” “Pretty Little Liars”)
Ted Levine (Silence of the Lambs, “Monk”)
Francesca Eastwood (Outlaws and Angels, M.F.A.)
Gerald McRaney (“This Is Us,” “Promised Land”)
Peter Michael Goetz (Father of the Bride Part II, My Girl)

Kevin and Michael Goetz’s film explores how far we will go to protect the ones we love. Screen Media will release A VIOLENT SEPARATION in theaters and on-demand May 17, 2019.

Tribeca Film Festival 2019 Review: ‘Blow The Man Down’ is one of the year’s best films.

Blow The Man Down

While grieving for the loss of their mother, the Connolly Sisters suddenly find they have a crime to cover up, leading them deep into the underbelly of their salty Maine fishing village.

Growing up in a small New England town, I have a full appreciation for the glorious specificity in Blow The Man Down. From the regional slang to the understanding that everyone knows everyone else’s business, this film is filled with surprises and its very own version of a Greek chorus in Maine fisherman form. A completely femme-centric story boasts magnificent performances from the entire ensemble cast. June Squib, Annette O’Toole, Marceline Hugo, Margot Martindale, Sophie Lowe, Morgan Saylor, and Gayle Rankin. Co-directors and screenwriters Bridget Savage Cole and Danielle Krudy have created a suspenseful, funny, incredibly dark murder mystery. It’s only after walking away from the screening did I realize the small clues that were sprinkled along the way and but honestly had no idea what would happen from moment to moment. It was refreshing. Martindale plays the dominant town matriarch with the skill we’ve come to expect from her. Squib, O’Toole, and Hugo are a smart trio. They cleverly play their hand close to the chest and become the saving grace of our two young leads. Sophie Lowe and Morgan Saylor are fantastic foils as sisters. Their chemistry is spot on. Gayle Rankin’s emotional journey is much larger than it might first appear. She continues to be one to watch. Blow The Man Down is in my Top 3 films from the festival this year.

‘BLUEBIRD’ is the newest title available from WE ARE COLONY with behind-the-scenes extras!

we are colony logoThe newest digital release from We Are Colony is from first-time director Lance Edmands (editor of Lena Dunham’s Tiny Furniture) titled BLUEBIRD.  BLUEBIRD-iTunes-Full-Key-Art

Starring Mad Men’s John SlatteryThe Leftovers’ Emily MeadeThe Good Wife’s Margo Martingale plus a cameo from Girls’ Adam Driver, Bluebird will available to rent and buy in the US from Monday 25th July with exclusive behind-the-scenes extras.

Synopsis:

In the northern reaches of Maine, a local school bus driver becomes distracted during her end-of-day inspection, and fails to notice a sleeping boy in the back of the bus. What happens next shatters the tranquility of her small Maine logging town, proving that even the slightest actions have enormous consequences.

BLUEBIRD Amy Morton & Emily Meade & John Slattery Photo by Jody Lee LipesJeremy got the incredible oportunity to see Bluebird at the Indy Film Fest last year. In his review, he outlines the gutwrenching and effecting emotional hold the film has on it’s audience. I could not have said it better myself, so here are a few quotes from Jeremy’s review:

“…at this year’s Indy Film FestLance Edmands’ Bluebird was far and away my favorite of those that I saw and certainly worthy of the Grand Jury Prize, tops of the fest, as well as the American Spectrum Prize for the best film made by an American director…”

BLUEBIRD Amy Morton Photo by Jody Lee Lipes

“Bluebird is not a heartwarming story and thus not for everyone. It mirrors the bleakness and harshness of the landscape and the season in which it was shot so deftly by Jody Lee Lipes (also known for the great photography of Martha Marcy May Marlene). It echoes Atom Egoyan‘s The Sweet Hereafter, a film I would easily put in the top ten best of the 1990s, in tone and even bears some narrative resemblance, yet it stands on its own and makes us take notice.”

You can read Jeremy’s review in it’s entirety as well as his interview with director Lance Edmands. Take a look at the trailer below.

In renting or owning Bluebird through We Are Colony’s digital platform, you are treated to exclusive behind-the-scenes extras.

For more information on this unique platform: We Are Colony Colony-platform

Review: ‘WE THE PEOPLE: THE MARKET BASKET EFFECT’ puts the humanity in corporation.

Falco Ink LogoFilmbuff logo

PRESENTS
AN NBTV STUDIOS AND BUNGALOW MEDIA + ENTERTAINMENT FILM 

WE THE PEOPLE: THE MARKET BASKET EFFECT

We The People: The Market Basket effect
As a proud New Englander transplanted to New York City, I have a great understanding for small town living. I grew up in a storybook town in northern Connecticut, called Simsbury. It’s a place where people flock each year to see the turning of the leaves. If you’re a fan of Gilmore Girls, well Stars Hallow isn’t too far fetched when you grew up where I did. Everyone pretty much knows what’s going on with everyone else in town. When Target wanted to build a store on one of our busiest streets, well you can bet that got shut down pretty quickly. Everyone prides themselves on shopping local. We’ve got the chain grocery stores on the edge of town, but we all shopped, and still do, at Fitzgerald’s, or Fitzy’s as we so lovingly refer to it. At least one of your closest high school friends worked there at some point. It is a center point in our community. I can’t imagine what would happen if someone from with a corporate mindset came in and try to change things. If the Target incident is any indication, I’m guessing we’d raise hell. In the new doc WE THE PEOPLE: THE MARKET BASKET EFFECT, you get to see what happens when greed battles small town pride.

In an epic account of the warring Demoulas family, corporate greed breaks up a massive family empire. A groundswell of employee & community support cuts to the heart of the volatile, emotional, and dramatic conflict between Arthur T. Demoulas and arch-rival, cousin Arthur S. Demoulas over control of the $4 billion supermarket chain, Market Basket. A conflict that brought down the August 2014 U.S. jobs report by 17,000 jobs, sending shockwaves through the nation. With plot turns worthy of a Greek tragedy, the family feud raged on with the livelihoods of 25,000 employees hanging in the balance.

The film should be shown to such corporations as Johnson & Johnson and Walmart. The formula seems simple;  treat your employees with respect and high wages and productivity soars. Perhaps it doesn’t have to be about making a buck, especially when loyalty is on the line. The film utilizes intimate interviews with lifelong employees of the chain as well as a family history of the court proceedings. Dialogue from board meetings is highlighted and read to illustrate just how cut and dry this story really is. It’s like being afly on the wall in some of the largest businesses in America. At times, it’s actually heartbreaking to hear what we may already know to be true. Money makes the world go round, at least in some minds. With real time footage of protests from not only the staff but customers as well. With such love for their CEO, the people come together, sacrifice for what could have easily been a lost cause, and persevere to show who’s really the boss. It’s a beautiful depiction of what happens when small town heart overthrows greed.

Opening in New York on April 22nd
Opening In New England Starting April 14th
Opening On Demand May 18th

Narrated by Michael Chicklis 
(Gotham, American Horror Story, The Shield, Fantastic Four)

Directed by Tommy Reid 
(Danny Greene: The Rise & Fall of the Irishman, $uperthief: Inside America’s Biggest Bank Score)

Written by Jeff Pinilla
(
The Earth, The Way I Left It)

Produced by
Nick Buzell
Robert Friedman
Ted Leonsis

Paul Nero

Executive produced by
Mike Buzzell & Todd Hoffman