I’ll admit it. I’m a bit of a weird gal. It’s fine. It’s sort of my thing. I like what I like and I’m proud of it. That being said, if someone killed my best friend, I’d hunt them down like the scoundrels they are. (Prime example, I use words like scoundrel in regular conversation). In the new film MURDER OF A CAT, Clinton (Fran Kranz) also, a bit of a weirdo, finds his beloved cat-friend brutally murdered. It is his moral duty to find out who, what, when, where, and why.
Marriage is difficult. I got married 5 days before my husband started business school at Yale. He was on the Investment Banking track. What that meant in my world was that I wouldn’t see my husband for the next 4 months as he prepared for innumerable interviews, events, and attended the accelerated course load that comes with an ivy league school. Even after 6 years together, I had to become a whole new woman. In the new film RED KNOT, a young, newly married couple take this idea to the extreme as they honeymoon on a research vessel near Antarctica.
Sometimes reality is stranger than fiction. In Magnolia Pictures new release, PIONEER, we find a story based on true events that is both disturbing and heart-pounding. The film is based upon the scientific and political race to get a group of deep sea divers to 500 meters; a feet never even attempted prior. An American Team and a Norwegian team train side by side and the best men win, or so they think. Petter (Aksel Hennie) and his brother are part of the Norwegian team chosen to pursue the dive which would ultimately allow Norway to build an oil pipeline. After a tragedy during their first real attempt to dive, Petter is thrust into a conspiracy so deep, it is astounding to think that any of this actually happened. Though, if you know anything about international politics, you might think twice.
I have always found Antarctica to be a profoundly interesting place. From the fact that it (or the Atacama Desert in Perru, depending on the source) has the driest place on earth (the Dry Valleys), that it’s the home of five breeding species of penguins or that it has just two season, winter and summer in which winter has 24 hours of dark for 6 straight months and summer has 24 hours of daylight for the other six months. Couple that with the harshest landscape and weather on earth, one might ask why in the hell does anyone ever go there. That’s precisely what Anthony Powell does in his fantastic documentary Antarctica: A Year on Ice. Read More →
Passing the torch. Rise and fall. Student bests teacher. All of these are oft repeated themes in films, especially in sports films from He Got Game to Hoop Dreams to Bull Durham. Sometimes these themes bring out the best in people, other times they bring out the worst. In a cutthroat world like sports, where ego, money and self-promotion usually trump all, it’s rare to see a film of any kind run counter to these notions. But in Grant Barbeito & Christo Brock‘s documentary Touch the Wall, we see the best of the relationship between two athletes, Olympic swimmers Kara Lynn Joyce and Missy Franklin, who are at opposite ends of their career spectrum – one a champion trying to hold on and the other a phenom up and comer trying to make her mark. What unfolds over the multiple year filming is heartfelt, emotional and really a triumphant journey of these two women who, in and out of the pool, exemplify how best to deal with adversity, fame, victory and defeat. Read More →
If you’ve never seen one of Frederick Wiseman‘s many documentaries (I think the total rests somewhere near 40 now), watching National Gallery, his latest opus, might throw you off. He has been called a filmmaker who works in observational cinema or cinema verité, although he detests the term, but it’s easy to see why some people may call it so. Unlike most documentaries these days, Wiseman never veers into Errol Morris territory, meaning that he doesn’t interview the subjects present in his films. He captures them as they are in real time doing what they do. There are no interviews, no “talking heads” and no clever witticisms spoken directly into the camera and this takes getting used to. But it works, this technique. It allows us as the viewer to participate, something that many documentaries can’t do as they are too busy addressing us with a certain (biased?) viewpoint. We get none of that here. We, like the patrons and staff of the National Gallery in London, are free to move around in the space and address what it is that we want while taking in what Wiseman has shot. Read More →
I LOVE horror movies. I love an original script. I love a great soundtrack. Put them all together and you’ve got me on your side from minute one. There are few movies ever made that deliver on all of these aspects. The one I am about to describe blows it out of the water. Read More →
When I was a child I revelled in my mother and father reading bedtime stories. I grew up on classic Disney fairytales and Tom & Jerry reruns. As an adult, nothing makes me happier than reliving those moments and sharing that joy with the next generation. At this year’s New York Film Festival, I was treated to a film that has been around for ages, but for me was a brand new tale to pass down. Read More →
How many times will you see Interstellar? If you answer is more than one, then perhaps you’ll be interested in the new Interstellar Unlimited Ticket available for purchase. Read More →
When I was little, I was a fan a Nancy Drew books. My brother had a bookshelf filled with The Hardy Boys collection. I was jealous of that collection. As an adult, I am obsessed with Investigation Discover channel. I’ll straight up have that on in the background all day when I have a day off. I want to know who did it, why, and how. As of late I am a huge fan of NPR‘s new podcast “Serial” (Go do yourself a favor and subscribe now), so when this film came my way, I was more than intrigued.
Bad Turn Worse, a directed by Simon and Zeke Hawkins, grabbed me from the opening scene. Quippy, Tarantino-esque dialogue from the mouths of Texas teens (also reminiscent of Dawson’s Creek… wow, I’m really dating myself now…) made me sit up a little straighter at attention. The plot is not too far fetched. Three friends; two leaving for college in a few weeks, while the third we all know is destined to become a townie in this arid cotton mill town. BJ is a bitter, big fish in a little pond, whose aggressive charm and good looks have gotten him the smart girl next door Sue. Bobby is the best friend to both but his sheep demeanor gets him into some trouble when BJ steals $20K from his sociopath boss. When the shit hits the fan and the three are roped into a heist that is doomed from the start, everything gets turned in it’s head in this noir thriller.
Writer, Dutch Southern, deserves praise with his love letter to crime novelist Jim Thompson.
Jim Thompson — ‘There are thirty-two ways to write a story, and I’ve used every one, but there is only one plot – things are not as they seem.’
Sue makes mention of this in more than a few ways throughout the script. Little does the audience know that they are being led down a twisted plot line that is secretly spoon fed to them from the get go. But, seriously, you sort of miss it until the very end. When is the last time a movie played out in a surprising fashion? In true noir style, just when you think you’ve figured out what going on, nope, left turn.
The acting is fantastic. Mackenzie Davis, who I had previously been introduced to in Breathe In, is so wonderful. Fully fleshed out girl who is smart as a whip but vulnerable enough to fall for the town “badboy” but still have affection for the shy best friend. She gives the perfect balance of naive and cunning. Logan Huffman, who has one of those, ‘Why do I know him? Yeah, he is hot,” kind of demeanors, nails the role of BJ. That jockish, underachiever bitterness is rife for the taking. Jeremy Allen White is entrancing as Bobby. His endearing fragility draws you in. You genuinely feel sorry that he has such a crap best friend. And then, there is our ultimate baddie; Mark Pelligrino, my mysterious Jacob from LOST. His startling crazy is borderline comical but totally works. Money makes people do bad things, and the character of Giff is no exception.
The music is awesome and the cinematography is beautiful. I say catch this film this weekend. It will keep you on the edge of your nerve from beginning to end. Bad Turn Worse comes out today, November 14th in theaters and on VOD.
A rock. A very large rock. That is ostensibly what Doug Pray‘s Levitated Mass is about. While that may not seem like a subject of interest, it’s the context in which the rock is taken that makes this film, and the rock, so interesting. A little background to clarify – since the 1960s, artist/sculptor Michael Heizer has been working in large-scale earth art (like Andy Goldsworthy who may be more a household name than Heizer) that is too big to be contained within the traditional confines of an art gallery or museum. Since 1969 he had planned a piece, the titular Levitated Mass – a gigantic rock suspended on concrete rails that allows viewers to walk in a trench under the massive stone, the work, according the the LACMA website where the project now sits, “speaks to the expanse of art history, from ancient traditions of creating artworks from megalithic stone, to modern forms of abstract geometries and cutting-edge feats of engineering.” After a failed attempt, Heizer put the project on hold until a suitable stone could once again be found. Read More →
I’m not quite sure how this wasn’t on my radar but I just watched the trailer and I am so in. Check it out below…
On a farm in rural Kentucky, father Jeremiah (Robert Longstreet) and daughter Sarah (Sophie Traub) squabble together like young puppies. Over crisp, verdant images of nature, of animals, streams and puddles, a mysterious, sensual female voice tells of her lover, who may be a person or may be the whole world. Enter Akin (Joe Swanberg), there to help out for the summer. He’s left his wife and child at home – and taken off his wedding ring as a precaution. Soon the three of them are circling each other, watching, feeling watched and knowing that their watching is not going unwatched. Within this atmosphere, a charged romance develops between Sarah and Akin that carries both an erotic tension and vague feeling of menace. When Akin’s wife Drew comes for a visit, the situation explodes, harmless fantasies giving way to a violent nightmare.
The seductive colors and shallow depth of field of Ashley Connor’s superb camerawork accentuate the ethereal nature of this enigmatic story. Josephine Decker’s second feature lets beauty and horror blithely flirt with one another like two coquettish flowers in the same inviting meadow.
At some point or another in time, we’ve all failed to be there for friends. All gotten so wrapped up in our own lives that the ones who most count on us somehow fade into the background. In Chris Lowell’s directorial debut, we find just this scenario. Best Still Waters is a story about love, friendship and the ties that bind us together.
Daniel has just lost his mother and father. As he spirals deeper into depression, his childhood friends show up for a weekend away at his parents’ lake house. Each carrying their own baggage, they must come to terms with the lies they tell each other and themselves once reunited. Very much inspired by the 80’s classic The Big Chill and reminiscent of this year’s Tribeca Film Fest favorite, About Alex, Beside Still Waters deals with “what if”s and “what might have been”s. Reality swiftly punching each character in the gut or to be more specific, slapping them in the face.
As a child I sat in a hard plastic chair in my town library and played The Oregon Trail until eventually my player died of dysentery. I thought it was cool to put my name on a list, hear it called out, and get to play for a whole 30 minutes all my myself. Little did I know/care that I was actually learning in the process. All of those memories came flooding back when I saw the new Roadside Attractions release, The Homesman. Read More →
It’s no surprise that Tom O’Brien‘s Manhattan Romance feels like a Woody Allen film. Most of Allen‘s most successful romantic comedies take place in Manhattan and have a tremendous amount of dialogue so in this sense, Manhattan Romance emulates Allen. The circumstances befalling his protagonist, Danny (played by O’Brien himself), and the absence of the signature Allen comedic touches distinguish the film from those of Allen. But they tread in the same water. That isn’t to say that Manhattan Romance is in the same league as films like Annie Hall or Manhattan, but could it be a distant relative? Read More →
What is the Budapest Gambit, you ask? Well, it’s a chess opening that apparently was able to draw top players into making mistakes only to lose the game. I think it’s an apt appraisal of Ian McDonald‘s Algorithms, a film about chess following three young players from India, which just so happens to be the birthplace of chess, as they vie for prominence in their home country and for a world championship. The catch with these young men is that they are all blind or are partially sighted. Picture that if you can. Chess, a game where there are 318,979,564,000 possible plays in the first four moves, being played by blind players. While these players can certainly be aided by technology that blind players in the past did not have access to, the undertaking is immense. Much is the task that McDonald undertakes in the documentation about three junior players. Read More →
Thirteen years after we first waged war in response to the September 11 attacks in New York, Washington DC and Pennsylvania, we are still seeing a trickling of films addressing the consequences of the invasions of both Afghanistan and Iraq. While there have been some great ones, the bulk of them have been documentaries – Hornet’s Nest, Restrepo and Standard Operating Procedure come to mind, while narrative films haven’t had quite the same success, The Hurt Locker winning Best Picture in 2009 being the shining example. There hasn’t been the same connection to the plight of the soldiers in these wars as, say, those who fought in Vietnam with Apocalypse Now, Platoon, Coming Home, The Deer Hunter and Full Metal Jacket leading the critical praise. Camp X-Ray is writer/director Peter Sattler‘s entry into the post-9/11 film mix. a film that hits some high points, but ultimately doesn’t capitalize on an interesting premise. Read More →
Airsoft is a skirmish sport that originated in Japan. It is a combat style game in which individuals or teams compete to eliminate their opponent with non-metallic pellets loaded in guns. Standard Airsoft guns are typically replica firearms having a mechanism for shooting projectiles 6-8 mm in diameter. As per operating principles, airsoft guns are classified as spring loaded guns, battery powered electric guns and gas-powered guns.
In the late 1980s, this sport spread to the UK and until the mid-1980s when more and more upper parts for AR-15 rifles started to emerge. The sport has been adapted as a purely recreational activity in many countries.
This skirmish sport is also used in the United States by numerous law enforcement agencies for force-on-force training drills in varying organized scenarios.
Airsoft with a replica weaponGuns tend to run at 350fps-500fps or higher depending on the gun and the manufacturer. All guns are legally liable to comply with the “orange tip” muzzle requirement in order to distinguish them from real live fire ammunition fire arms. Check TheEliteDrone’s airsoft sniper guide
Because our field is close quarter urban combat, we require that all guns playing in our arena are shooting at or below 330fps for safety and have technicians on site to do any alterations necessary to allow players to use their personal weapons in our arena.
All in all, remember that Airsoft is played to have fun. This seems like a no-brainer but I’ve seen many players get caught up in the moment as well as fights breaking out. Try to avoid anything that might spark a conflict because no one wants to be banned from their local field.
Due to the nature of the sport, Airsoft has specific laws made for it so it can help prevent any sort of confusion. Airsoft contains many realistic themes of the military which can cause problems if you don’t know what your country allows. In this section, we’ll cover the basic Airsoft laws that exist in the USA together with our brothers in Canada.
Airsoft equipment can be a very broad topic. In our case, I am referring to the gear you are bringing into the field. First and foremost, you’ll need a tactical military vest to hold your magazines and grenades. Depending on your field, you should find the appropriate camouflage and the number of pockets. Make sure you have enough pockets to store your magazines as well as quick and easy access to whatever equipped. After the vest, I wouldn’t worry too much about your pants unless you’d want to match the camouflage of your torso. Later on in this mega-article, we cover game-changing attachments that can give you pinpoint accuracy. But for now, explore and see what type of clothing you’d like to wear. Check out Eagle Six Gear for the best military apparel.
The BBs used are primarily 6mm size ball made of plastic. They come in different weights and brands as well as BioDegradable or Tracer style. Here at VIP Airsoft, we have our BBs custom created for used specifically within our arena. They are made of high quality plastic and are a custom color to help identify ours from others. This difference allows our players the opportunity to bring any unused BBs to later sessions. A HUGE advantage for our players!
Many players have compared getting hit by a BB as being snapped by a rubberband. This sensation can be lessened by the amount of layers being worn, safety protection and the fabrics. So dress accordingly and be prepared to get hit. While the FPS we run in our arena will not cause blood draw, it may leave marks that last about an hour. Again, the better prepared you come with what you’re wearing, the better off you’ll be and the better the experience you’ll have.
Rare is it that I find the need to find a film to scare me. I usually only need to watch the evening news (Ebola anyone?) or watch any political coverage to get my scares in. However, every once in a while, a film comes along the piques my interest in this arena and Ivan Kavanagh‘s The Canal is one of those films. After seeing the trailer, I was hooked (something that is also quite a rarity). So I gave it a spin and these are my thoughts… Read More →
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