Archive for the 'SXSW 2017' Category
April 17th, 2017 by Bron Anderson
Starz was on hand at the SXSW Conference to show off the first episode of their new series “American Gods” based on the book of the same name by Neil Gaiman. The series is set to start on April 30th of this year and follows a recently released prisoner named Shadow Moon, played by Ricky Whittle (“The 100”) as he interacts with a number of old and new god-like beings who inhabit human form in his service of the mysterious Mr. Wednesday, played by Ian McShane (“Deadwood”). The show is executive produced by Bryan Fuller (“Pushing Daisies,” “Hannibal”) and it shows, blossoming with Fulleresque flourishes throughout that create an eerie and visually stunning atmosphere for an intriguing, well-acted, and, so far, well-paced television series. Continue reading ‘American Gods Episode 1 (SXSW Review)’
March 17th, 2017 by Bron Anderson
This is just the kind of midnight movie I was waiting for at SXSW! Meatball Machine Kodoku has tons of ridiculous gore effects (actually 4 tons of fake blood were used on the film according to the director), an insane plot that doesn’t need to make any sense, and completely over-the-top action scenes. This is a direct sequel to 2005’s Meatball Machine from the same director, Yoshihiro Nishimura (Tokyo Gore Police), and by direct sequel I mean it shares almost the same exact plot as the original, but with better effects and a tighter plot (plot, in this case is a very loose interpretation of the term). This movie is a hilarious, blood-filled, wackily Japanese, complete crazefest of a blast! Continue reading ‘Meatball Machine Kodoku (SXSW Review)’
March 17th, 2017 by Bron Anderson
When a person watches 23 films over 9 days, it can be difficult to find the time to write enough about all of them. Also, with over 150 different films to choose from, it is nearly impossible to pick all winners. I have tried to cover the bigger films of the festival this year and getting those reviews out has been a priority. However, I have seen a bunch that kinda fall into this middle ground that when I sit down to write about them, I can’t really find a lot to say… and then I have to rush out to catch another film back in downtown Austin. So, I have encapsulated (if I might borrow a term from my colleague on this site) some thoughts on the more average or somewhat bad films I have seen here in this post just to put the thoughts somewhere. Continue reading ‘The Good, The Meh, and The Messy Films of SXSW (SXSW Review)’
March 17th, 2017 by Bron Anderson
The Big Sick is an uproariously funny comedy that had to tread a very difficult line since a major portion of the film takes place in a hospital and has one of the major characters in a coma. A film written by and starring Kumail Nanjiani (“Silicon Valley”), directed by Michael Showalter (Wet Hot American Summer), and produced by Judd Apatow (Trainwreck) should, on those names alone, have enough buy-in to get lovers of comedy into the theater. Once in the theater, though, this movie will surprise audiences with its tenderness and heart and then leave them straining to hear lines as laughter fills the auditorium. A tone-perfect, Apatow-style rom-COM, The Big Sick will be the summer date movie that has everyone falling out of their seats.
Continue reading ‘The Big Sick (SXSW Review)’
March 17th, 2017 by Bron Anderson
Where Straight Outta Compton showed the hard-edge, down and dirty, fighting-for-justice story of NWA, G-Funk, in a way that somewhat mirrors the musical sound itself, documents the smoother and sweeter turn that Warren G, Snoop Dogg, and Nate Dogg brought to West Coast hip-hop music in the early 90s. First time director Karam Gill and producer Warren G assembled some big musical names from the era to tell a number of entertaining stories or drop memorable lines that make the film highly entertaining and a must watch for any fan of music from that time period. The music in the background of these interviews and clips should be enough to get someone in the door, but the overall story is well crafted, with an infectiously optimistic undercurrent that stands on its own. Continue reading ‘G-Funk (SXSW Review)’
March 15th, 2017 by Bron Anderson
Becoming Bond is a funny and intriguing blend of documentary and reenactment based around the story of the one-time James Bond, George Lazenby. The story is told by Lazenby in interview and some parts are filled in with actors in the style of the television series “Drunk History” to add some visual comedy to these over-the-top tales. The film succeeds at both helping to clear up the rumors behind what led to Lazenby only playing the iconic role in a single film and being a kind of origin story of the man himself as he retells nearly his entire life in amazing detail and honesty. Being a Bond fan is not a prerequisite for having a blast with this film, which will be on Hulu later this year. Continue reading ‘Becoming Bond (SXSW Review)’
March 14th, 2017 by Bron Anderson
Having only seen one of director Ben Wheatley’s (Kill List) films before, I had a distinct skepticism about the idea of waiting in line for his next release, Free Fire. The premise of a gun deal gone wrong didn’t really promise much in the way of depth and I knew from his previous work that he had a talent for veering off in completely unnecessary directions in his films, leaving them a disappointment. This film is not a disappointment. It is a tightly directed, charming, funny, and playful action comedy with a great cast and superb sound mixing that remains completely entertaining all the way up to the end. Continue reading ‘Free Fire (SXSW Review)’
March 14th, 2017 by Jordan Grout
“The Honor Farm” wants to simultaneously be a coming of age story and a horror story, but cannot overcome its bland mediocrity. It’s not focused enough to sustain interest, but it’s short enough to not walk out on. That’s the deceptive brilliance of the film; at under 80 minutes, by the time you realize just how meaningless the story is, it quickly comes to an end.
Continue reading ‘SXSW Review: The Honor Farm’
March 13th, 2017 by Bron Anderson
The Disaster Artist is a hilarious and lovable tribute to the enigmatic and oddly admirable figure who is Tommy Wiseau, director of The Room. This film is really for those who love The Room for its off-the-wall absurdity and incomprehensibility, but there is enough setup and care given to establishing just what kind of person Tommy Wiseau, played by James Franco (127 Hours), is and what The Room means to him and Greg Sestero, played by Dave Franco (Now You See Me 2), that in context one could easily pick up what makes Tommy so worthy of a story. While this film, based on the book “The Disaster Artist: My Life Inside The Room, The Greatest Bad Movie Ever Made,” could have easily jumped into a parody of Wiseau and his eccentricities, Franco, who also directed the film, creates a respectful and heartfelt depiction of a man who really just wants to have a friend and follow his passion. Though, he did also fill the movie with all his funny friends and his brother and made a comedy out of a story about a very earnest but very weird man’s passion, so it is difficult to tell where parody and authenticity begin and end. Continue reading ‘The Disaster Artist [Work-In-Progress] (SXSW Review)’
March 13th, 2017 by Bron Anderson
Where David Leitch’s first film, John Wick seemed to come out of nowhere, delight the senses, and spend time blending its style and substance into a heart-filled tale of revenge and bulletplay that continuously wows, his second film Atomic Blonde is highly anticipated, remains cool and distant, and heavily favors style to compensate for a generic spy action movie that alternates between being boring and being showy. While it remains a slightly-better-than-average film and, with some reserved expectations, it could be a fine summer flick, Atomic Blonde will likely only really be remembered for one very excellent 15 minute long action scene. That and Charlize Theron (Mad Max Fury Road) puts in a heck of a physical performance as the titular blonde that shows how great she will be in a better action movie. Continue reading ‘Atomic Blonde (SXSW Review)’
March 12th, 2017 by Bron Anderson
Baby Driver stands out as a truly unique cinematic experience. One that pretty much could only be brought to life by its director, Edgar Wright (Scott Pilgrim Vs The World). The gentleman known for films with superb editing with inventive and fluid scene transitions and a liberal use of music appears to have outdone himself with this one. Baby Driver is the kind of film that, when it releases later this year, all your friends will be asking “Oh my goodness! Have you seen it yet?” And you will reply cheerfully “Of course I have! Let’s go see it again!” Continue reading ‘Baby Driver (SXSW Review)’
March 11th, 2017 by Bron Anderson
The opening film of the SXSW Conference Film Festival this year was the documentary Nobody Speak: Trials of the Free Press, which comes to Netflix later this year. What is described as and initially shot as a look at the involvement of wealthy individuals on the trial against Gawker Media and the purchase of a newspaper in Las Vegas starts quite small with some scandalous, but not too worrisome looks at isolated interests but begins to pull back to show the terrifying effect that powerful individuals can have on the freedom of the press. This, by no coincidence at all, comes just at the right time in the United States of America. Continue reading ‘Nobody Speak: Trials of the Free Press (SXSW Review)’
