The lives of two strangers - a struggling mother and a gambling addict - who meet in tragedy. Years pass and they must come to terms with themselves and one another.
Like most kids, Ned idolized his father and dreamed of following in his footsteps. Unfortunately, his father was a two-bit crook who spent most of his life in jail. Without a family of his ... See full summary »
Director:Van Fischer
Stars:Jeremy Renner,Gabrielle Union,David E. Allen
A rags-to-riches story of two friends, a small-time inventor and a sharky salesman, who hit rock bottom before coming up with a gizmo that becomes a worldwide phenomenon.
Returning home the morning after graduation, Jim Swanson discovers an intruder in his home. Only after tracking him down and running him over in his car does he find out the intruder is his best friend from university.
Director:Eric Bay-Andersen
Stars:Eric Bay-Andersen,Yasha Shrimpton,Joshua David Hall
A young man is hired as the executioner at a prison where his brother sits on death row. Things get more surreal when he falls in love with his brother's ex-girlfriend -- who's imprisoned herself.
After his twin brother is accidentally killed by vengeful bullies, a 12-year old boy and his friends face the harsh realities of death, teenage hormones, and family dysfunction.
A detective in post-Katrina New Orleans has a series of surreal encounters with a troop of friendly Confederate soldiers while investigating serial killings of local prostitutes, a 1965 lynching, and corrupt local businessmen.
Director:Bertrand Tavernier
Stars:Tommy Lee Jones,John Goodman,Peter Sarsgaard
When 19-year-old Adam agrees to do a day's driving for his mum's gangster boyfriend Peter, it takes him on a 24-hour journey into a nightmarish world of murder, sex trafficking and revenge, in the company of aging hit man Roy.
The lives of two strangers - a struggling mother and a gambling addict - who meet in tragedy. Years pass and they must come to terms with themselves and one another.
Title Card:Most prison will not allow victims to meet with their offenders. Title Card:RESTORATIVE JUSTICE is a worldwide effort that encourages victims and offenders to meet. The program forces offenders to give a face to their crime, to feel remorse, and to understand the true repercussions of their actions. Title Card:This year over 700,000 inmates will be released from prison. More than 50% will be re-incarcerated within 3 years. Where Restorative Justice is allowed to work, the re-incarceration rate drops to as little as 8%... See more »
This film exemplifies why the industry needs to keep encouraging the making of independent films. This film couldn't have come from a major studio.
The cinematography was cutting edge and experimental (a patent is even pending on a new camera rig, according to the DP at a Tribeca Q&A), and it worked well to saturate the viewer with the mood of each part of the film.
The writing was precise and tight, but the director allowed the force of the film to be carried more in its silences and in tiny nuances of expression than in dialog.
Which brings me to perhaps the most powerful of the film's elements: the acting. Without the right actors, the powerful message of the film in evoking the immense struggle surrounding rage and forgiveness would have been lost in the silences. Minnie Driver's face on one tight closeup after another showed nuances that were unbelievably powerful. Jeremy Renner's portrayal of a slow inexorable descent into darkness was captured flawlessly. And the little boy - Bobby Coleman (Driver's son in the film)- both enchanted with a completely natural portrayal of charming boyhood and terrified with a chilling reaction to what happens to him. Although young, he was completely real, with none of the Dakota-Fanning-blankness we've come to accept. In a sense, he was the linchpin of the film; if we hadn't cared about him and his relationship to Minnie, we would not have cried as we did.
The whole audience was in tears; be prepared. But...also be prepared to think, and wonder, and grapple with the film. It is well worth it.
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This film exemplifies why the industry needs to keep encouraging the making of independent films. This film couldn't have come from a major studio.
The cinematography was cutting edge and experimental (a patent is even pending on a new camera rig, according to the DP at a Tribeca Q&A), and it worked well to saturate the viewer with the mood of each part of the film.
The writing was precise and tight, but the director allowed the force of the film to be carried more in its silences and in tiny nuances of expression than in dialog.
Which brings me to perhaps the most powerful of the film's elements: the acting. Without the right actors, the powerful message of the film in evoking the immense struggle surrounding rage and forgiveness would have been lost in the silences. Minnie Driver's face on one tight closeup after another showed nuances that were unbelievably powerful. Jeremy Renner's portrayal of a slow inexorable descent into darkness was captured flawlessly. And the little boy - Bobby Coleman (Driver's son in the film)- both enchanted with a completely natural portrayal of charming boyhood and terrified with a chilling reaction to what happens to him. Although young, he was completely real, with none of the Dakota-Fanning-blankness we've come to accept. In a sense, he was the linchpin of the film; if we hadn't cared about him and his relationship to Minnie, we would not have cried as we did.
The whole audience was in tears; be prepared. But...also be prepared to think, and wonder, and grapple with the film. It is well worth it.