In November 2006, I received an email from a filmmaker looking for a review of their film. It was the first such request I had gotten, so I was pretty excited, and enthusiastically replied that I would be delighted. A short time later in the month, I received the screener for a film called “Royal Faceoff.” If you know me, it’s likely you’ve heard me speak of this film before. It’s…interesting, to say the least. Actually, it’s like the worst after-school special ever made, and almost gives you the impression it was made specifically for the folks over at “Mystery Science Theater 3000” to have a field day on. It’s a pretty bad film. I didn’t have the heart at the time to write a full review, although the film got a one-line mention in one of my review emails, and would find its way onto my Worst Films list for 2006. I did eventually write a full review for the film in late 2007, when I got to watching and reviewing two more films I’d been asked to screen for review– the 2006 psychological thriller “the 4th dimension” and the DIY personal drama “imagination.” After those original three films, it wouldn’t be until late 2008 when I would be approached to screen a movie for review. Since then however, it seems like I haven’t had a time where there wasn’t a DVD or YouTube link for me to check out.
Without all the facts, such requests could be misinterpreted as the equivalent of “payola,” the old music industry scandal where record companies would “gift” radio stations or DJs for favorable rotations of certain records. Does this mean I’m prostituting my opinion just because a filmmaker asked for my two cents? Ask the directors of “Royal Faceoff,” “A Glaring Emission,” “Emasculation,” “Knock ‘Em Dead, Kid,” “Snow Bunny,” and “Somewhere Between Here and Now” that question and get back to me. It’s true, like with mainstream and “major” indie films, my reviews tend towards the favorable, but as most of the filmmakers I’ve reviewed will (hopefully) tell you, I’m– more importantly –fair with how I see their films. I don’t mince words for the sake of stroking egos. I call it how I see it. And that’s been an important part of my being able to cultivate relationships with some of these filmmakers.
In that respect, the one that comes most to mind is writer-director-actor Edgar Muniz. If you’ve read my end-of-year blogs of the past couple of years, you’ve no doubt seen his name before. He’s not the only filmmaker or actor I’ve seen multiple films from (Princeton Holt and his New York-based stock company One Way or Another and the recently-reviewed work of director Jakob Bilinski come to mind), but my relationship with him and his films is the one that stands out the most with me thus far. In 2009 he sent me a screener of his first feature, “Rocks & Pebbles & Happiness.” It was a rough work technically (and sometimes in performance), but it was honest in how it presented the story and engaged me. I gave it a “B.” Eddie was so grateful for my honest assessment that we not only got to talking a bit more on film, but he even quoted me on the DVD case for the film when he eventually released it on Amazon. Sweetness. It’ll be a long while, I’m guessing, until one of the big studios does that. Last year, I heard from him again about reviewing his next feature, “Someone Else in the Evening.” Once again, I welcomed the opportunity. When I got around to watching it last summer, talk about night and day from his first feature! The storytelling was still there, but the story itself was more intriguing, and more importantly, the technical part was much-improved. I loved it, and not only did it land on my 10 Favorites list for last year, but until the blitzkrieg of excellence that rocked cinemas late last year it was very much in the running for a slot on my 10 Best films of last year. It would have been the first film I’ve reviewed through contact with the filmmaker to do so. Don’t worry, Eddie; right now your latest film, “From the Heart of the Crowd,” is near the top of my movies for 2012, just as “On Parade” was at this time in 2011.
Sonic Cinema isn’t the only place on the web that accepts such submissions, but my hope is that I’ll be able to continue my track record of honest assessment and personal interest to make Sonic Cinema the best such website, and the first one filmmakers go to if they are looking to get some buzz going on their film. Most of these films don’t move past the festival circuit or digital distribution, but the variety of genres, styles, and formats has made watching all of them (good and bad) an absolute pleasure to watch over the years. They’ve certainly brightened up my moviewatching year. It’s nice to get a rest from the buzz and bluster of movies that we’re saturated with year in and year out. Plus, as a hopeful filmmaker myself, it’s good to see what my peers are up to. It’s not something I get to do very often.
Here are the 10 “Do-It-Yourself” films (with links to their reviews on Sonic Cinema) that have made the biggest impression on me. I hope you choose to seek them out, and remember– you can always borrow them (well, most of them) from me if you can’t see them otherwise.
1. “The Symphony”– “But in Ray’s final words, and in our own thoughts on what we’ve witnessed in the film’s 90 minutes, we learn that Ray’s album is not about embracing death, but in capturing life, and the experiences that make it worth living, although in the end, even Ray seems to wish that he had been able to follow a different path in getting there.”
2. “Someone Else in the Evening”– “As a creative artist myself, like Eva, I try to be experimental and true to my own worldview in my art. Sometimes doing that means a project will jump the rails, and you have to start over from scratch, but that’s one of the dirty little secrets of art- it may seem flawless and perfect when it’s done, but it’s a messy road to get there.”
3. “Familiar”– “Powell presents a powerful vision of a man being torn apart on the inside, and the tragic consequences that turmoil holds for his family. Like the best horror, it will get under your skin.”
4. “Missing Pieces”– “What this film has that even Nolan’s best films don’t always have, however, is a warm, romantic soul that keeps you glued to the screen even as the narrative goes off into truly unexpected areas.”
5. “Isak’s Choice – Les Mains”– “Plissonneau’s story hits all of the emotional bases, allowing us to see the delight of life and love, as well as the pain that gives us a chance to see what we’re really made of. It’s a wonderful film, and if the stars line up, I hope to hear more about this film beyond simply being given the opportunity to write about it.”
6. “On Parade”– “This is the third film from writer/director Edgar Muniz I’ve watched in three years, and his work is growing ever more assured and mature with each film. 2009’s ‘Rocks & Pebbles & Happiness’ was very much par for the course for DIY filmmakers—personal, rough around the edges, but interesting in the way it deals with its characters.”
7. “Uptown”– “I mentioned earlier that I identified with this film on a personal level, and indeed I’ve had a similar quandary occur in my own life. It left me spinning, as much because I wondered what it said about me as it was a referendum on the emotional issues it brought up for me at the time.”
8. “Mother’s Red Dress”– “I think the thing that I admire most about “Mother’s Red Dress” isn’t the writing or directing (although they are superb), or the performances (although they do draw you in), but the fact that Bravo had an idea, and he executed it in a way that I don’t really feel like I’ve seen before.”
9. “Cookies and Cream”– “But instead of a raunchy romantic comedy, Holt has made an intelligent and compassionate drama centered around Carmen’s dilemma. She wants a normal life, but she’s having great success with the website in doing what she needs to work her way through school and try to raise her child.”
10. “Starla”– “Again, I’m not going to say a word. I will say, however, that Cordero’s film, and the performances by all the main actors, left me with much to think about, which is one of the great things I love about such independent films– in life, there are no “pat” answers. Usually, there are just events that leave a mark on the individual that, for better or worse, will be with them forever.”
The Rest of My “DIY” Screeners
“disOrientation” (2012)
“The Night Never Sleeps” (2012)
“New Guy in Town” (2012)
“What You Need” (2012)
“Bolero” (2012)
“Dark of Winter” (2012)
“Her Heart Still Beats” (2012)
“The Nocturnal Third” (2012)
“JT vs. the Good Guys” (2012)
“From the Heart of the Crowd” (2012)
“Things I Don’t Understand” (2012)
“Emasculation” (2011)
“Fathoms Deep” (2011)
“Viva! Saint Agrippina” (2011)
“Cinema Salvation” (2011)
“Glitch in the Grid” (2011)
“The Millennium Bug” (2011)
“The Secret Friend” (2011)
“Young Islands” (2011)
“Madeleine Zabel” (2011)
“Perry St” (2011)
“The Taint” (2011)
“Socks and Cakes” (2011)
“Awoken” (2011)
“A Glaring Emission” (2011)
“Obsolescence” (2011)
“festival” (2011)
“Just About Famous” (2010)
“Guillotine Guys” (2010)
“One Hour Fantasy Girl” (2010)
“The Watchers” (2010)
“Red Princess Blues” (2010)
“Doorways and Meander” (2010)
“Homeland” (2010)
“Road to Victory” (2010)
“The Sweet Hand of the White Rose” (2010)
“Spoiler Alert” (2010)
“Smoke” (2010)
“Drawing With Chalk” (2009)
“no footing” (2009)
“A Good Alibi” (2009)
“Somewhere Between Here and Now” (2009)
“Zorg and Andy” (2009)
“Doorways and Meander” (2009)
“The Open Door” (2009)
“The Quiet Arrangement” (2009)
“Snow Bunny” (2009)
“Thin Line” (2009)
“Don’t Shoot the Pharmacist!” (2009)
“Bucovina: Card Game” (2009)
“Diary of a Bad Lad” (2009)
“Look” (2009)
“The Last Lullaby” (2009)
“Knock ‘Em Dead, Kid” (2009)
“Cut From Home” (2009)
“Knuckle Draggers” (2009)
“Thicker Than Water: The Vampire Diaries- Part I” (2009)
“Rocks & Pebbles & Happiness” (2009)
“Rolling” (2009)
“Baystate Blues” (2009)
“carter.” (2009)
“Sex and Justice” (2009)
“Night for Day” (2009)
“Shade of Grey” (2009)
“New York Lately” (2009)
“You Only Loved Me Twice” (2008)
“…Around” (2008)
“Happy Holidays” (2008)
“Fil Rouge (“The Red Thread”)” (2008)
“The Puzzle” (2008)
“Low” (2008)
“imagination” (2007)
“Foxxy Madonna vs. The Black Death” (2007)
“the 4th dimension” (2006)
“Royal Faceoff” (2006)
Viva La Resistance!
Brian Skutle
www.sonic-cinema.com
