Archive for the 'Events' Category
June 23rd, 2017 by Jason Coleman
The films have unspooled, the curtain is about to come down and even here at WhySoBlu.com we’re officially winding down our very comprehensive coverage of the LA Film Festival 2017. It’s been an awesome entertaining affair with ups, downs and most importantly an all out celebration of all things indie cinema. Trying to procure as many flicks under the viewing belt as possible below are the final nine titles dissected and given their respective critical skinny. Unique zombie tales, forest fright nights, strange neighbors, missing husbands, colorful comedies, road trips flicks, the traps of being a new parent, witness thrillers and one damn disappointing doc on the late Whitney Houston make up the encapsulated reviews below of It Stains The Sands Red, Desolation, The Neighbor, And Then There Was Eve, Fat Camp, Your Own Road, 20 Weeks, Never Here and Nick Broomfield’s Whitney: Can I Be Me. Continue reading ‘LA Film Festival 2017 – Final Film Reviews’
June 20th, 2017 by Jason Coleman
Films, films and more…films. (LA Fest style!) We here at WhySoBlu.com are trying to keep up with the cinematic offerings of the ongoing LA Film Fest 2017 (taking place June 14-22 at various Arclight Cinemas and theaters around LA – go to www.lafilmfest.com for more details!) and it’s a long movie race for sure. Full of dramas, docs, comedies and carnage, this year’s crop is definitely a diverse group of flicks geared to fans with different indie tastes. So below is the second wave of Encapsulated Movie Reviews via LAFF 2017 – the good, the bad and the…curious. Father/son stories, docs on animated primates (and the people who make them!) and sperm donors, the horrors of aging, young killers in training, the power of money (and not having it!) and tales of teenage angst – all given critical skinny for your consideration! Check out the reviews of LAFF hopefuls Humor Me, Monkey Business: The Adventures of Curious George’s Creators, Thank You For Coming, Replace, My Friend Dahmer, Beauty Mark and And Then I Go below. Continue reading ‘LA Film Festival 2017 – More Film Reviews’
June 16th, 2017 by Jason Coleman
It’s officially underway and the flicks show no sign of stopping! Yup, the Los Angeles Film Festival 2017 (taking place June 14-22 at various Arclight Cinemas and theaters around LA – go to www.lafilmfest.com for more details!) has begun to display its movie wares and WhySoBlu.com is gloriously taking them all in. We’ve seen a few more than reviewed below, but bound by dates that they unspool at the fest we’re sworn to cinematic secrecy until public release. (And yes, there are some terrifically tasty ones already viewed!) But since this fest happens over a mere nine days a modicum of movie reviews will have to do for now (have no fear – next week will be a multi-numbered one!), so here are three first flicks given some critical skinny for your consideration. Boxing docs, science guys dissected and unwelcome houseguests all make an appearance – check out the LAFF 2017 Encapsulated Movie Reviews of CounterPunch, Bill Nye: Science Guy and The Housemaid below! Continue reading ‘LA Film Festival 2017 – First Film Reviews’
June 14th, 2017 by Jason Coleman
For those here in LA the film fest fever never stops as witnessed by the myriad of movie gatherings in the month of June alone. So up next in our WhySoBlu.com comprehensive coverage is a famed fest so prestigious and well known that a cinema celeb sighting is all but guaranteed – it’s time for Los Angeles Film Festival 2017! Taking place June 14-22 at various Arclight Cinemas and other theaters around LA (go to www.lafilmfest.com for more details!), this year’s cinematic crop promises to be more memorable flick filled than ever before and we’re super excited to partake in the wares within. So to start the journey off right we’re taking first look at some of the more savory selections that the fest has to offer and the choices were not easy to narrow down. From the doc delights of filmmaker Nick Broomfield to a new movie featuring my 2015 LAFF Best of Fest actor award winner Jemaine Clement (love that guy!), there’s much to enjoy. So follow us on a LAFF 2017 film journey of…“What To See!” Continue reading ‘LA Film Festival 2017 – ‘What To See’’
June 13th, 2017 by Jason Coleman
The curtain has permanently closed on the illustrious 20th Annual Dances With Films Festival 2017 and we’re frankly movie exhausted. (In a good way!) With over a dozen feature films and a gaggle of shorts given critical skinny and even a layered leading lady turn highlighted with some additional interview insight, this year WhySoBlu.com has been bloody busy. But as the curtain closes it’s time to give a final farewell with our own awards, highlighting what we consider the best of the best via the Dances with Films Fest and the competition was high. But in the end (or in each category!) there can be only one – welcome to the our picks of the… Continue reading ‘Dances With Films Festival 2017 – Best of Fest ‘Wrap Up’’
June 13th, 2017 by Jason Coleman
The shows almost over via our coverage of the 20th Annual Dances With Films Festival 2017 and it’s been a busy movie ride indeed. But before we head into out final Best of Fest article we’re slapping down a few more reviews just for good measure. So below are an additional six features and 4 shorts with topics ranging from saints to safe crackers to make this movie meal complete. Check out the Encapsulated Movie Reviews of DWFF 2017 feature flicks Resistance Is Life, The Midnighters, Tater Tot & Patton, Jimmy The Saint, The Scent Of Rain And Lightning and All I Want, plus shorts Land of Happy Dreams, G-4, Hidden Daylight and Supermom below! Continue reading ‘Dances With Films Festival 2017 – Final Film Reviews’
June 9th, 2017 by Jason Coleman
With the still ongoing 20th Annual Dances With Films Festival 2017 (taking place June 1-11 at the Chinese 6 Theaters at Hollywood and Highland – go to www.danceswithfilms.com for more details!) heading into its final weekend there’s still plenty of time and tickets to check find that cinematic hidden gem you’ve been looking for. (I’m going to be there all day Sunday movie watching myself!) But to get you excited about heading into the unknown we’re checking out a second wave of flicks and the results are pretty spectacular. Meaning in the three features and five shorts covered below there are a lot of notable items that prove Dances With Films know their stuff. Depressed teens looking for solace, strange gals from outer space and homeless hustlers, plus angry zen masters, ladies who love themselves, worry warts, tainted tots and the effects of dementia are all themes explored in the Encapsulated Movie Reviews below. Check out the critical opinions on the features Holden On, Imitation Girl and Landing Up and the shorts Herbie, Wink, Panic Attack!, Thirteen, and Tonight And Every Night below! Continue reading ‘Dances With Films Festival 2017 – Three Features/Five Shorts Reviews’
June 6th, 2017 by Jason Coleman
The cinematically filled 20th Annual Dances With Films Festival 2017 (taking place June 1-11 at the Chinese 6 Theaters at Hollywood and Highland – go to www.danceswithfilms.com for more details!) is in full film swing and the reels are unspooling fast and furious for film fans to enjoy. Continuing our own fest coverage, below are a massive nine feature film reviews and even that is merely a taste of the myriad of flicks that have screened so far this year. Revenge tales with super powers, father/daughter dramas, real life inspired flicks, tales of both serious and comical woe, haunted houses, deadly dogs, musicians, hackers and deadly hobos without a shotgun – it’s all dissected here for your convenience! Check out the Encapsulated Movie Reviews of the first feature film crop via the DWFF 2017 including Eliza Sherman’s Revenge, Tomorrow, Maybe, D-Love, Grief, Inheritance, Chance, American Folk, Missing In Europe and Central Park via three different film categories below!
Continue reading ‘Dances With Films Festival 2017 – Nine Encapsulated Movie Reviews’
June 5th, 2017 by Jason Coleman
There’s nothing better than a no-nonsense leading lady force to be reckoned with to make a wild west yarn even wilder. But add to that a careful character layering that also infuses equal amounts of passion, romance, heart and grit and you’ve got one dynamic and long lingering female performance that demands to be seen and praised. Such is the fate of the terrific turn by actress-to-watch-for Abby Eiland via the Dances With Films 2017 recently screened dramatic western set against the 19th century American Southwest titled Cassidy Red. Eiland plays Josephine “Joe” Cassidy, a headstrong daughter of a prostitute and a gunslinger who heads into town with skills and singular vengeance in mind when she finds out her lover has been gunned down – and she’s not happy.
Continue reading ‘DWFF 2017 Interview – Captivating “Cassidy Red” Actress Abby Eiland Talks Westerns, Female Grit And Becoming Something Dangerous’
June 1st, 2017 by Jason Coleman
It’s June here in Los Angeles and that could only mean one thing – multi-film festival time! First up for the indie film enthusiast is the coveted and prestigious Dances With Films Festival 2017 (taking place June 1-11 at the Chinese 6 Theaters at Hollywood and Highland – go to www.danceswithfilms.com for more details!) which this year is celebrating it’s amazing 20 year anniversary! (Congrats!) Notable flicks of the past like Honeyglue, Soledad and Lola’s Last Letter (all featuring 5-star turns by the likes of actors Adriana Mather, Jesse Celedon and Valerie Brandy!) and filmmakers to watch for like the stunning Christopher Soren Kelly (his short Monkeys has pure Fincher aesthetic!) all came out of the fantastic film festival known as Dances with Films. This year seems even more filled with promise as 2017 boasts more than 160 films to choose from – the odds are most assuredly in a movie geeks favor! So in gearing up to find the good stuff, I’ve strapped on my movie-watching boots and am hitting the flicks hard to provide you with the most comprehensive cinematic coverage beginning with a first look preview. And while there are a myriad of fine films to choose from (hey, can’t list them all here!), below is merely a tiny taste of the films that initially intrigued and peaked my possible best of fest interest – an on-screen appetizer for those hungry for more. So from gals kicking some Wild West ass to docs through the eyes of resilient youngsters here are my first glance picks on…”What To See!” Continue reading ‘Dances With Films Festival 2017 – ‘What To See’’
May 25th, 2017 by Brian White
So most movie aficionados, especially in the Austin, TX area, love their neighborhood Alamo Drafthouses. And let’s face it who of my generation doesn’t love the Baywatch television series featuring David Hasselhoff, Pamela Anderson and more? I know right! So imagine my surprise when I received an invite to cover the following event. It read and I quote “Join us on Wednesday, May 24th for BAYWATCH ON THE BEACH, a special opening night only event of a no shirt, no shoes, no problemo screening of the summer of 2017’s bronzed and buff comedy spectacular, all happening on the sunny, lake-side shores of Volente Beach.” As an added bonus Volente Beach is located in the city of Leander. Hello! That’s where I live. While I have never been there before I knew I could not pass this unique screening opportunity up so I did what I always do. I applied for press credentials and the rest is history. So join me down below here in my recap of this historic screening. Continue reading ‘Alamo Drafthouse’s BAYWATCH ON THE BEACH (Event Coverage)’
May 8th, 2017 by Jason Coleman
For someone still early in their career, actor Dash Mihok has certainly wasted no time stacking up an impressive cache of credits. And while most fans know Mihok from his prolific work as the flawed young brother Bunchy to Liev Schreiber’s Ray Donovan on the hit Showtime series, cinefiles like myself have also relished his various big screen endeavors. Working with the likes of Baz Luhrmann, Terrence Malik and Wolfgang Peterson and playing memorable roles in notable flicks like Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, The Day After Tomorrow and Silver Linings Playbook, Mihok is the epitome of the hard working actor who shows no signs of stopping. But it’s his latest performance playing an over-protective brother who has become mentally challenged due to an accident in the new film from writer/director Tom Sierchio called The Girl Who Invented Kissing that could launch Mihok into a new category – award winning actor. (He already deservedly nabbed the Best Actor Award at the recent Beverly Hills Film Festival 2017 for his performance – a sign of things to come for sure!) His carefully constructed character is so utterly effective and at the same time so completely relatable that he almost steals the already amazing film. Continue reading ‘BHFF 2017 Interview – “The Girl Who Invented Kissing” Actor Dash Mihok Talks Character, Honesty And Daring To Differentiate’
May 5th, 2017 by Aaron Neuwirth
Wrapping up my coverage of this year’s Newport Beach Film Festival, I wanted to shine the spotlight on some of the short film programs I was able to see. Thanks to some hype created by my lovely girlfriend, I was particularly excited to see the animated and Irish short programs but was also able to see a set of horror shorts as well. There is always plenty to admire in these films, as they must tell a full story in a limited amount of time while also showing off a level of cinematic talent from newer and veteran filmmakers alike. Here are some thoughts on the short films in particular that stuck out to me in the programs I saw.
a Continue reading ‘NBFF 2017 Review: Animated, Irish & Horror Shorts’
May 1st, 2017 by Jason Coleman
So many amazing film fests – so little time! The recent star-studded 17th Annual Beverly Hills Film Festival happened this past week (at the famed TLC Chinese 6 Theatres in Hollywood!) and it was a massive five day movie event indeed. Not only were there amazing docs and features, but also a slew of short films in various genres guaranteed to please every moviegoers. (There were a whopping 87 competition films!) Of course it’s impossible to check out everything (again, I’m only a single movie geek!), but the power of a passionate one still prevails as I managed to check out eight feature film hopefuls. From flicks about the pleasure of dream life and not giving up to docs about tigers, underdogs, former movie moguls and Aussie hotshots, we’re hitting the films of the BHFF fest hard and fast to provide some cinematic insight into what to possibly seek out in the future. Check out the Encapsulated Movie Reviews of Zen Dog, The Girl Who Invented Kissing, John G. Avildsen: King of the Underdogs, Mable, Mable, Tiger Trainer, Golan A Farewell To Mr. Cinema, Rod Taylor: Pulling No Punches, Gun and Legendary AD below! Continue reading ‘Beverly Hills Film Fest 2017 – Eight Feature Film Reviews’
April 28th, 2017 by Aaron Neuwirth
Closing out the 18th Annual Newport Beach Film Festival is The Exception, a World War II drama that may as well be called The Good Nazi. Adapted from the novel “The Kaiser’s Last Kiss” by Alan Judd, the film tells the story of a German Nazi Captain who falls in love with a Jewish Dutch spy. The conceit is pulpy enough to fit right in with Paul Verhoeven’s great 2006 WWII thriller Black Book, but there is a major problem in the film’s attempt to be anything more than serviceable at best. Leave it to star Jai Courtney to make a film like this duller than it ought to be.
Continue reading ‘NBFF 2017 Review: The Exception’
April 23rd, 2017 by Aaron Neuwirth
One of the advantages of seeing smaller films touring around festivals is having a chance to see character actors in lead roles. The Hero provides the great Sam Elliot this chance and it’s a joy to watch. No stranger to cinema, Elliot has been a stable presence in many films and TV shows for over 40 years. Here’s a film that gets to play with his image, while also challenging the man to be more than just a mustachioed character actor with a deep and wonderful voice.
Continue reading ‘NBFF 2017 Review: The Hero’
April 22nd, 2017 by Aaron Neuwirth
There is a lot to get out of films surrounding family secrets. Ideally, you are gradually drawn into learning about who a family is, establishing various personas, only to have things turn around on you thanks to sudden reveals. It’s not a cheat to make these sort of twists, as you’ve been effectively coerced into feeling like a part of the family. The Scent of Rain and Lightning is a modern western with a mystery at its core. We are well aware that something bad happened early on, but the film wants us to continue questioning the validity of this fact throughout. Unfortunately, the results are not as effective as they could be, due to a disjointed narrative.
Continue reading ‘NBFF 2017 Review: The Scent Of Rain And Lightning’
April 21st, 2017 by Aaron Neuwirth
The tagline for this year’s Newport Beach Film Festival is “Go Deeper” and that is certainly fitting for the Opening Night premiere film. Take Every Wave: The Life of Laid Hamilton is both an extreme sports film, featuring some breathtaking footage, and a solid biographical study of big-wave surfer and ocean pioneer Laird Hamilton. This documentary from director Rory Kennedy certainly does take us deeper, as we spend nearly two hours watching the story of a fearless and quite affable athlete who has pushed himself hard to find various successes throughout his life, while also experiencing some literal and emotional tough breaks.
a Continue reading ‘NBFF 2017 Review: Take Every Wave: The Life of Laird Hamilton’
