RESTORAGE
Episodes-TV Web Pilot- Drama, Comedy, Sci-Fi
SYNOPSIS: RESTORAGE is about a fractured group of siblings each
receiving a portion of their inheritance. Robert receives the business
legacy, Lisa is given the family estate and a priceless family heirloom, and
Chase, receives an old storage unit filled with junk. Chase and Robert
quarrel and he inadvertently breaks the vase causing a greater rift in the
family. Chase goes to the storage unit and discovers that it can repair
anything that has been broken that has been placed inside. Chase takes his
siblings to the storage unit in an attempt to fix the broken vase but
everything goes mysteriously sideways
Slamdance 2024 episodic pilot RESTORAGE is a knockout. It’s laugh-out-loud funny with a brilliant cast. Even the ancillary cast members deliver memorable and equally comedic performances. Jacob Daniels plays Robert with the self-righteous overachiever vibe to a tea. Olivia Clari Nice gives Lisa a motherly energy that grounds the trio.
Connor Boyd in Restorage
Outcast brother Chad lives in squalor. Everything in his trailer home is broken and filthy. He is the black sheep of the family. Connor Boyd is so compelling, with the confidence of Zach Galifianakis and the energy of Jack Black. He is a goddamn star.
Once we know the sci-fi plot, the mind races with theories. Screenwriters E’an Verdugo and Caleb Davis drop enough clues in the dialogue to infer deep injury between the siblings. You will be begging for more the moment the screen goes black! RESTORAGE is a damn treat that deserves a green light asap. I’m looking at you, Hulu, Netflix, and Prime!
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Director:E’an Verdugo
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Screenwriter:Caleb Davis, E’an Verdugo
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Producer:Caleb Davis, Alana Rood
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Cast:Connor Boyd, Olivia Clari Nice, Jacob Daniels, Joan Deschamps, Stephen Miller, Francis Juarez
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Year:2023
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Runtime:29 minutes
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Language:English
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Country:USA
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Genre:Drama, Comedy, Sci Fi
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Subtitle Language:English
For more information on Slamdance 2024, click here!
To read more of our Slamdance coverage on Reel News Daily and over at Unseen Films!
Filmmaker Scott Cummings brings Sundance 2024 audiences into the everyday lives of Satanists. The Church of Satan boasts innumerable followers around the world.
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Thoughtful closeups and the hauntingly beautiful score create heartwrenching transitions. Moyer and Toensing try to offer moments of childhood levity featuring Curtis and his siblings playing with poppers, water guns, and video games, but lurking in the background is the reality of parents severely impaired by drugs. Inheritance breaks your heart. A six-year journey down a rabbit hole of repeated histories. Is Curtis the best bet to break the cycle? One can only hope.
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DIG! XX
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Twin brothers Tristan and Làzaro are aspiring astronauts. During a late-night swim, Tristan becomes infected with a mysterious physical and mental ailment when a bright green asteroid plummets into the water. Lazaro must understand his brother’s drastic changes as he tries to maintain an elite physical and psychological state.
Marta Nieto plays the twin’s mother, Mayra. Her performance is like a gut punch. Writers nail the invisible labor and isolation in motherhood and its inevitable breaking point. Nieto lives in the skin of Mayra and earns a standing ovation. Pablo Cobo and Loius Peres are magnificent. Cobo’s brooding anger equally matches his deep adoration for his twin. His performance as Làzaro is an emotional roller coaster, riddled with survivor’s guilt. Peres leans into palpable fear and trauma, giving audiences a complete 180 in physicality. TROPIC’s costume and makeup departments lend a hand here as they switch gears for Tristan from tailored clothes to ill-fitting outfits, as well as his elaborate facial fx. He is spectacular.
As a special needs parent, this is a brutal but honest watch. Feeling “othered” as an individual and a family is viscerally devastating. The cinematography, particularly the underwater footage, is mesmerizing. The sci-fi elements combined with a perfect synth score create a timeless feel. TROPIC defies a single genre category. The volatility of this unique story is riveting, but its gravity lies within its intimacy.
FREUD’S LAST SESSION
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The cinematography and production design are luscious. The editing is lovely. Freud moves about his home, passing through doorways only to be transported through time and memories. Meaningful flashbacks fill the screen as each man shares their intimate history beginning in childhood and explores how it informed their development. The script, alongside the editing, has a dazzling theatricality. This makes more sense once you learn the screenplay was based on Mark St. Germain‘s play, adapted for the screen by Germain and director Matthew Brown. A West End production of FREUD’S LAST SESSION would be delicious. The references to literary figures and quotations are smirk-inducing for the well-read audience, while the overarching existential volley proves delightful.
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Joel Murray is George, the absent but immensely excitable father figure. Writer-director Caroline Keene drops early hints of his toxic masculinity, and Murray eases into the skin of a pretty loathsome man. Daniel Desmarais plays Tim. His sardonic wit meshes perfectly with this cast of fantastic misfits. Comfort Clinton is Cynthia. She is uptight and controlling. Clinton owns the role with her evident daddy issues and needs for approval. 
Sawyer Spielberg is charming as neighbor Sam. His chemistry with Levine is magic, which makes sense since they’ve been married since 2018. Susan Gallagher‘s performance is spectacular. Keene’s script nails the mother of adult children vibe with running errands, asking if we’ve eaten, awkwardly using technology, grabbing coffee, and the overly stocked fridge. Gallagher captivates with her vulnerability. Raye Levine gives Lucy a tangible relatability. She’s funny, a little lost, and yet entirely grounded.
At the heart of MERRY GOOD ENOUGH, this script delves into unresolved childhood trauma, emotional isolation, mental health, and forgiveness. It’s a breezy watch about finding bliss and connection in the imperfect.
As a whole, DISTANT TALES tackles all the chaos of lockdown in complex ways. Each story gets under the audience’s skin for vastly different reasons. If nothing else, Bitterman’s keen observation of human desperation will undoubtedly have people talking.
Mark-Paul Gosselar plays Brookes, the groundskeeper. His dominant physical presence and the fact that he bears a resemblance to Alex make him an intriguing addition to the narrative. Virginia Madsen plays cousin Mags, a woman who knows more about the family history than Sofia wants to hear. She delivers a precise amount of eerie mystery. Ryan Kwanten is Alex, Sofia’s husband. Kwanten gives the role a frightening aura while simultaneously settling into the physical trauma left behind by the accident. These dual traits allow his acting chops to shine bright, especially considering the little dialogue Alex has. Natalia Cordova-Buckley gives Sofia a perfect balance of determination, frustration, and emotional trauma to keep you perched on the edge of your seat. Her raw vulnerability takes you on a journey that most women will find surprisingly relatable.
A CREATURE WAS STIRRING
Scout Taylor-Compton is Liz, a religious fanatic drifter. Alongside Connor Paolo playing her brother Kory, they seek shelter by breaking into Faith and Charm’s house. These two deliver solid chemistry and provide a weighty anchor that completely counters the energy of Metz and Basso. You will love to hate them for vastly different reasons, but it’s much deeper than you can imagine.
Annalise Basso is Charm. An isolated and soulful take on the role, Basso takes late teen angst and manifests it into a physical performance that wows. Chrissy Metz confidently tackles the role of Faith, a nurse, and mother of a daughter who has a deadly condition. A former addict, her nuanced navigation of an impossible scenario is astonishing. Riddled with guilt and endless determination, Metz brings a fearlessly badass Mama to life. 
The lighting and camera work are fantastic. The film’s opening shot pacts an emotional punch. The dialogue is slick and dripping with innuendo. The volley between religion and science intertwined with comic book and horror canon. Don’t even attempt to guess where Shannon Wells‘ script is going because it is increasingly batshit by the minute. The practical FX made me audibly yelp over and over. When you see it, you won’t be able to remain silent. With quick homages to IT and POLTERGEIST, this creature feature meets addiction metaphor boasts a twisted ending darker than you are ready for.
DON’T SUCK follows a washed-up headliner and the newbie he agrees to mentor, who just so happens to be a vampire.
Jamie Kennedy
Stress can do things to you. In THIN SKIN, Aham’s life is falling apart around him. Circumstances, some of his own doing and others out of left field, throw his days, health, and sanity into chaos.
Lila Schmitz brings audiences the magic of West Ireland through the melodies of the locals and the emotional pull of a tune. THE JOB OF SONGS is a toe-tapping, viscerally joyous film. 
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