Guatemala’s main source of transportation comes from drivers of colorfully painted, refurbished buses known as “camionetas.” These drivers and their decorated buses are responsible for providing the majority of Guatemalans a way to make a living by transporting them to and from work each day. For as long as he can remember, Ermelindo has had a dream of owning one of these buses, and to perform this service that is so essential to the people of Guatemala and their way of life. The documentary feature debut from Mark Kendall (www.markkendall.net), La Camioneta, follows the bus that will eventually serve to fulfill Ermelindo’s long-awaited dream, as it makes it’s way from…
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G-S-T Top 10 – Movies Off the Beaten Path – Round 5
One of the great things about Netflix is the collection of recently debuted independent films. These selections, however, can be hit or miss, so with this installment of “Movies Off the Beaten Path,” we’re bringing you a list of ten independent films worth watching that were released over the last five years – and they are all also currently available on Netflix Instant. How can you go wrong? —————————————————————————————————————————————– Hunger – One of Fassbender’s very best and no one even knows about it…except for the Criterion community of course. It’s also the start of his increasingly brilliant collaboration with Steve McQueen (check out their second film in our review of…
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[DIFF Review]…Sweetwater
Set in the American Old West, Sweetwater is a story of one woman’s vengeance against a religious extremist (Jason Issacs) who claims himself a prophet, and the town that allows him to rule with tyranny. After Sarah’s (January Jones) husband goes missing a chain of events eventually lead her to take justice into her own hands. With a little help from an eccentric sheriff, played by Ed Harris, whose brilliant performance is something everyone will be talking about, she may just get her revenge. The film is set in New Mexico sometime in the 1800s. We are first introduced to Sarah (Jones) and her husband Miguel (Eduardo Noriega), as a…
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[DIFF Review]…Between Us
Between Us deals with the harsh realities that exist in friendships, love marriage and life that are rarely depicted in films. Director Dan Mirvish, co-founder of the Slamdance Film Festival, adapted the film from an Off-Broadway play by Joe Hortua. The film revolves around the lives of Carlo (Taye Diggs) and Joel (David Harbour), two friends who first met in art school, and moves between present moments and flashbacks into the past where we are introduced to Joel and his wife Sharyl (Melissa George) as they are hosting Carlo and his new wife Grace (Julie Stiles) at their large home in the Midwest. At this point we learn Joel and…
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[DIFF Review]…Diving Normal
Character-driven narrative feature Diving Normal that tells the story of a love triangle that occurs when two unlikely friends fall for the same girl. The film is an adaptation of the critically acclaimed play of the same name, and centers around the lives of Fulton and Gordon (played by Philipp Karner and Scotty Crowe, respectively, who also produced and co-wrote the adapted screenplay with playwright Ashlin Halfnight). Fulton and Gordon are an odd pair; Fulton is an adorable, successful graphic novelist who has no problem attracting attention from the ladies, despite (and maybe slightly because of) brief moments of insecurity, and Gordon is his sweet, yet extremely socially awkward neighbor…
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[DIFF Review]…A Teacher
While A Teacher may appear on the outset to be a typical tale of the inappropriate student/teacher relationship that has become all too familiar due their sensationalized media coverage, writer/director Hannah Fidell takes an in-depth, psychological approach, asking the audience to ponder the inner workings of a mind capable of such a taboo. The film begins in medias res, though Fidell chooses not to fill us in on how a lonely teacher named Diana (Lindsay Burdge), and her student Eric (Will Brittain) who epitomizes what every teenage boy is really like, confident and carefree as if invincible, ignorant to the hard truths of the world and therefore naïve to the…
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[DIFF Interview]…'KINGS OF SUMMER'
Fifteen-year-old, Joe Toy, finds himself increasingly frustrated by his single father, Frank, who tries to control his life. Declaring his independence, Joe escapes to the woods with his best friend, Patrick (Gabriel Basso), and a strange kid named Biaggio (Moises Arias); the three build a house there—free from responsibility and parents. Families and friendships are tested in this rare comedy that succeeds visually and manages to be nostalgic while remaining sincere. Go, See, Talk sat down with writer/director Jordan Vogt-Roberts, and the film’s young stars, Moises Arias and Gabriel Basso to talk about how the story evolved, improvisation, bringing cinematic flair back to comedy and filming Kings of Summer in Ohio. When…
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[DIFF Interview]…’PIT STOP’ Writer/Director Yen Tan
Gabe (Bill Heck) struggles with his identity as a gay man living in a small, rural Texas town, finding comfort in his relationship with ex-wife Shannon (Amy Seimetz) after his recent breakup. Ernesto (Marcus DeAnda) is also plagued with the demons of a failing relationship, as he is simultaneously forced to deal with another past lovers impending death. Pit Stop follows the lives of these two men as they unknowingly drift toward one another, demonstrating the way life often has a funny way of pointing us in the right direction, even in the moments we feel most lost. Go, See, Talk chatted with Pit Stop writer/director Yen Tan about his writing process, collaboration, and filming…
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G-S-T Review…Identity Thief
Despite a decent trailer that manages to deliver a few laughs, Identity Thief in its entirety fails to live up to it’s potential. Finding comic relief in stories about stolen identities is far from an original concept, one that’s managed to work fabulously well in films like the Coen Brothers’ 90’s classic, The Big Lebowski, but left in the hands of Director Seth Gordon, whose other comedic ventures include comedies Horrible Bosses and Four Christmases, the familiar comedy of errors scenario is nothing but a chaotic mess. The film opens with accountant Sandy Patterson, played by Jason Bateman, who is duped by Melissa McCarthy’s Diana – con woman and said…
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G-S-T Year In Review – Jessica's 2012 Wrap Up
Being the Indie lover that I am, I’ve decided to stick to independent titles only for my 2012 Wrap Up. After a fairly disappointing 2011, this year brought us so many amazing films it is difficult to chose only ten to discuss here, and with the limitations of the categories below, I am leaving out so many wonderful films, both studio and independent based, that I probably walked out of thinking it was the best film I’d seen to date. That’s what made picking a favorite film for 2012 so difficult. It seemed that the more I saw, the more favorites I had to add to the list. To name…
