Year: 2018

Interview with Winning Screenwriter J. David Thayer (ROBOTS FROM NEPTUNE)

festreviews Uncategorized

matthewtoffolo's avatarMatthew Toffolo's Summary

Get to know the writer:

 1. What is your screenplay about?

The ROBOBTS FROM NEPTUNE film trilogy is an animated scieince fiction comedy. This scene is from the epymonous first film, and films two and three are entitiled RFN2:The Venus Casino, and RFN3: Pax Neptunia.

In the first film, we learn of a race of people called the X-Tonians. They live deep within the icy layers of Neptune on a floating chunk of ore called The X-Tonian Subcontent. X-Tonians each have six eyes, no mouths, and they communicate exclusively through telepathy. They also telepathically control a set of disembodied hands, and they move around atop a single slug-like foot. As we join them in our story, X-Tonia is on the brink of suffocation. They are silicone-based creatures, and they metabolize in reverse from humans–which is to say they breathe pollution and exhale clean air. Centuries of over industrialization have cleaned…

View original post 1,021 more words

Interview with Winning Screenwriter Michael Clohesy (BIOS)

festreviews Uncategorized

matthewtoffolo's avatarMatthew Toffolo's Summary

Get to know the writer: 

 1. What is your screenplay about?

BIOS surrounds the life, love and destiny of two people, born lifetimes apart but who share the same consciousness, who must come together and harness their shared potential in order to avert a cataclysmic ecological disaster.

2. What genres does your screenplay fall under?

BIOS is a Sci-fi mystery drama. Kinda like LOST with some elements of Dark thrown in, even though it was conceived well before Dark entered the zeitgeist.

3. Why should this screenplay be made into a movie?

The reason BIOS should be made in to TV series is because the themes of Indigenous land rights, the cost of ecological preservation, the role of technology in overcoming adversity and the importance of critical thinking in a world full of ‘fake news’ are all crucial in today’s increasingly interconnected yet myopically corporatised global society.

4. How would…

View original post 627 more words

Interview with Winning Screenwriter Eddie Baca (LOOK INTO MY EYES)

festreviews Uncategorized

matthewtoffolo's avatarMatthew Toffolo's Summary

Get to know the writer:

 1. What is your screenplay about?

My screenplay is about 2 gay men from completely different backgrounds (geographically, religion, age, ethnicity, world viewpoints, politically and the acceptance of their own gayness) who fall madly in love and go about changing the course of their world.

2. What genres does your screenplay fall under?

Romance, drama, lgbt,

3. Why should this screenplay be made into a movie?

It’s a powerful film about how people perceived as powerless in this power driven mad world of ours can actually effectuate change and make a real difference.

4. How would you describe this script in two words.

Unpredictable, believable.

6. How long have you been working on this screenplay?

6 years.

7. How many stories have you written?

This is my only and 1st screenplay.

8. What is your favorite song? (or what song have you listened to the…

View original post 239 more words

Interview with Winning Screenwriter Mike Hoberg (OCCUPY WALLY STREETSKI)

festreviews Uncategorized

matthewtoffolo's avatarMatthew Toffolo's Summary

Get to know the writer: 

 1. What is your screenplay about?

You’re just one electric bill away from being Amish!

Finn Chandler is a jobless college graduate, loaded with debt, and living in his Dad’s basement. While at an Occupy Wall Street protest, Finn gets whacked in the head by a weird-looking coin that supernaturally predicts future stock prices.

Finn uses the coin’s picks to make $261,554.14 in his first week at home as a day trader.

The coin belonged to filthy-rich Walter Streetski and he begins a devious plan to put Finn through hell to get the coin back.

Finn fights back, but is just one step from going to prison.

2. What genres does your screenplay fall under?

Comedy, Action, Central Hero, High Concept

3. Why should this screenplay be made into a movie?

Cathartic relief if you’ve ever been screwed over by a rich person, business, or…

View original post 191 more words

Interview with Filmmaker Kaitlin Creadon (FOR THE LOVE OF THE CHILD)

festreviews Uncategorized

matthewtoffolo's avatarMatthew Toffolo's Summary

FOR THE LOVE OF THE CHILD played to rave reviews at the March 2018 DOCUMENTARY FEEDBACK Film Festival in Toronto.

Matthew Toffolo: What motivated you to make this film?

Kaitlin Creadon: With the wonderful opportunity to make any type of film I desired through my schooling, I had the chance to turn this once-in-a-lifetime event into a documentary. Creating this personal documentary was definitely out of my comfort zone, but I knew it was a story I truly wanted to share with the world. A big motivation for completing this film was the hope that someone else
going through this will see it, and that the film will help them through their own journey.

From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this short?

I started working on the concept in August of 2016 and it took about a year and a half…

View original post 501 more words

Interview with Filmmaker Robert Nazar Arjoyan (I PROMISED HER LIFE)

festreviews Uncategorized

matthewtoffolo's avatarMatthew Toffolo's Summary

I PROMISED HER LIFE was the winner of BEST PERFORMANCES at the April 2018 FEEDBACK Film Festival in Los Angeles.

Matthew Toffolo: What motivated you to make this film?

Robert Nazar Arjoyan: First, I just wanted to get out there again and make something new. It had been a while since my previous short film and felt the time was now. Second, the whole ritual of washing hands after a funeral was something I grew up with and wanted to explore further.

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this short?

About 8 months, all told.

3. How would you describe your short film in two words!?

Wash away.

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?

To be honest, the entire process was pretty smooth. The biggest obstacle, as I’m sure is the case with…

View original post 307 more words

Film Review: THE SCENT OF RAIN AND LIGHTNING (USA 2016) ***

festreviews 2018 movies, movie, Movie Review, Uncategorized , , , , , ,

Submit your Screenplay to the Festival TODAY

The Scent of Rain & Lightning Poster
Based on the novel THE SCENT OF RAIN & LIGHTNING by Nancy Pickard. When a young woman learns her parents’ killer has been released from jail, she is forced to revisit old wounds while …See full summary »

Director:

Blake Robbins

Writers:

Nancy Pickard (novel), Jeff Robison (screenplay) |3 more credits »

Stars:

Maika Monroe, Maggie Grace, Justin Chatwin

Is there a scent to rain or lightning?  There really isn’t but in the film torrid sex is happening during a storm.  There is clearly a scent of trouble as a killing is about to happen, a killing that is the subject of this moody, atmospheric film.

With a title like THE SCENT OF RAIN AND LIGHTNING, one would expect a good atmospheric thriller. The film does look stunning, courtesy of cinematographer Lyn Moncrief, where his lightning is often just sufficient enough for the audience to see only what is necessary in the plot.  The film is beautifully shot in Oklahoma with steers and cows roaming about in a ranch, the setting of the story, though not much work is shown with the animals on the ranch.

The film begins with a bearded inmate released from prison with the opening credits appearing on screen.   It is a 5 – 10 minute. long opening that could have been cut shorter.  The audiences is primed for a slower paced thriller than the norm of the thriller genre.  It appears that a young woman’s parents’ killer has been released from jail.  The woman is Jody Linder (Maika Monroe).  Word in her small town suggests he may be innocent.  Jody is also approached by the killer’s son that he is innocent of the murder.  Jody begins questioning the police investigation and witnesses, and uncovers her own family secrets to piece together the shocking truth.  

The film is based on the bestselling novel The Scent of Rain & Lightning by Nancy Pickard with a script written by two males, Jeff Robison and Casey Twenter and directed by a male director, Robbins (who gives himself a cameo as Sheriff Don Phelps).  The film has therefore both a strong male and female point of view of the proceedings.  This is a good thing, something rare in films these days with many a narrative leaning way too far towards either the female or male direction.

Director Robbins’s narrative is difficult to follow.  There are many reasons for this unfortunate state of affairs.  For one, all the females are blondes with long flowing hair.  It takes a while to distinguish that one is the Linder mother, another the Linder daughter and yet another the grandmother.  The flashbacks, a few too many flow into the main narrative at any time, making it difficult to tell which is which.  The casting of Meg Crosbie as the young Jody and Maika Monroe as the older Jodie while all other characters undergoing age differences are performed by the same actor is also disorienting.  The many dimly lit scenes do not help either.  As the adult Linder pieces the puzzle of her father’s death so the audiences have to piece together the sense of the film’s plot.

As the title implies, the film might be more satisfying to the artsier crowd.  The film also contains a non-Hollywood ending.  The question of ‘what will Jody do after she discovers the truth of her father’s murder’ is not satisfactory answered.  As such, it really makes no sense in the driving force of the narrative, whether she succeeds in her quest or not.

Trailer: https://vimeo.com/254204096

Submit your Screenplay to the Festival TODAY

Film Review: SPACEMAN (USA 2016)

festreviews 2018 movies, movie, Movie Review, Uncategorized , , , , , , ,

Submit your Screenplay to the Festival TODAY

Spaceman Poster
Story of former MLB pitcher Bill ‘Spaceman’ Lee following his release by the Montreal Expos.

Director:

Brett Rapkin

Writer:

Brett Rapkin

Stars:

Josh Duhamel, W. Earl Brown, Ernie Hudson

SPACEMAN is the biographical film on former Major League baseball pitcher, Bill Lee (Josh Duhamal from TRANSFORMERS) nicknamed SPACEMAN.  Lee is given the nickname for his drug use and hence constantly being ‘spaced out’. 

The film is written and directed by Brett Rapkin.  SPACEMAN is not the first film Rapkin has made of baseball celebrity eccentric Bill Lee.  He made the documentary on Lee SPACEMAN: A BASEBALL ODYSSEY in 2006, a film much better than this one.

This new Bill Lee film made in 2016 took 2 years for its release.  The question is the film’s target audience.  Who would likely be interested in watching Lee’s biography  He is not super famous or super talented though he can pitch very well on a good day.  Non-sports fans like myself have not interest in watching a film on Lee, and neither I guess of many baseball fans either.  Being executively produced by Ron Shelton who directed Kevin Costner in BILL DURHAM, one can assume the film financiers are counting on all baseball fans (and maybe the other peripheral sports fans) to be the target audience.  The trouble is that Bill Lee is not really a winning character.  Lee is more a troublemaker and a loser that no one waned to hire or to be on their team.

The film first shows Lee making pancakes for breakfast.  He sprinkles green stuff on them, so that they end up as marijuana pancakes.  The film follows the man as he also gets drunk, and high and often!  But he stands up for his baseball mates, to the point that he gets let go, in one rare but very hilarious scene with his manager/boss.  He is now out of the major league.  The man loves baseball and is willing to go into the minor league to keep playing.  Hoping to get hired by other clubs, or be selected by talent scouts, he never ever makes good again.  The film reveals one major truth about baseball – it is a business.  No businessman wants to hire a player who has a drug problem.  That is a bad business decision.  Lee ends up losing his family too.

With the above bad stuff going on for Lee, the same goes for the movie.  The movie does not have any upside, except for comedic moments.  The segment where the audiences is supposed to be on Lee’s side, when he convinces his team to just loosen up and get high, works against the film’s favour.  The audience is not on Lee’s side but sees the problem in his actions.

The only positive thing about the biography appears to be Josh Duhamel who is delivering a fine performance regardless of how the film turns out.  Duhamel is sufficiently spirited in the role and able to elicit sympathy from the audience for his character’s poor behaviour. 

SPACEMAN ends up a let down just as the Bill Lee character that it portrays.  That might have been the film’s aim, but it turns out not to be a very entertaining watch.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvRF_ezKoeI

 

Submit your Screenplay to the Festival TODAY

HOT DOCS 2018: THREE IDENTICAL STRANGERS (USA 2018) ***

festreviews 2018 movies, movie, Movie Review, Uncategorized , , , , , ,

Submit your Screenplay to the Festival TODAY

Three Identical Strangers Poster
Trailer

New York, 1980: three complete strangers accidentally discover that they are identical triplets, separated at birth. The 19-year-olds’ joyous reunion catapults them to international fame, …See full summary »

Director:

Tim Wardle

Stars:

Silvi Alzetta-Reali, Eddy Galland, Ron Guttman

The doc, THREE IDENTICAL STRANGERS opens in the year 1980 when 19-year-olds Robert Shafran and Edward Galland found each other at the same community college and realized they were twins separated at birth.  To each other’s surprise, they discover a third.  Triplets at birth finding each other is news. 

 The surprise triplets became fast friends and overnight media sensations.  Can the happiness last forever?  Every story eventually has a dark side.  The dark side involves the discovery at the adoption agency that the triplets (as are other twins) were part of an experiment conducted on human behaviour.  The film’s best part is the insight given by a few of the interviewees. 

 One, a lady who worked at the adoption research centre gives her opinion that it was not considered inappropriate in those days to do experiments of this kind.  Psychology was new and in, and it was a cool subject then, not like today.

A documentary is often as good as its subject.  A far as Wardle’s documentary goes, what other film could have topped this with a more intriguing subject.  THREE IDENTICAL STRANGERS will eventually be praised as a film despite its glaring flaws.   One wishes that more conclusion would have been presented regarding the experiments

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-OF0OaK3o0

 

Submit your Screenplay to the Festival TODAY

Film Review: MOBILE HOMES (France/Canada 2017)

festreviews 2018 movies, movie, Movie Review, Uncategorized , , , , , ,

Submit your Screenplay to the Festival TODAY

Mobile Homes Poster
A young mother drifts from one motel to the next with her intoxicating boyfriend and her 8-year-old son. The makeshift family scrapes by, living one hustle at a time, until the discovery of…See full summary »

Director:

Vladimir de Fontenay

Writers:

Vladimir de Fontenay, Danielle Lessovitz (Artistic Collaborator)

Stars:

Imogen Poots, Callum Turner, Callum Keith Rennie

 

MOBILE HOMES is a very intense film as evident in three of the film’s opening sequences.  The first shows a mother, Ali (British actress Imogen Poots), frustrated to the point of blowing up at her inability to set her son up for aid due to lack of documentation.  The next scene that follows is a highly charged erotic sex scene with the mother having it on with boyfriend, Evan (Callum Turner).  This soon follows one where the boy, Bone (Frank Oulton) has to make a dash out of a diner to escape payment.  Will he make it or get caught?

France born director Vladimir de Fontenay keeps up the intensity throughout the film though one soon has the feeling if all this is necessary or is he trying too hard.  MOBILE HOMES, is as the title implies set in the white trailer trash surroundings of losers and dishonest low-life who would cheat and lie to get ahead just for a few bucks.  Evan and Ali attempt one scheme after another, often with the help of 8-year old Bone who seems to have an affinity for his mother’s boyfriend who treats him ok, if not teaching him a bad thing or two on survival.  There is another nasty bit in the story involving cock fighting.  Bone has a rooster that he loves and carries around with him.   There is also the question of using an underaged kid to sell drugs or do dishonest deeds besides banned outings like cock fighting.

At one point in the film, Ali confesses her desire to own a place of her own, so she can f*** in her own bed.  This leads to a scheme of trying to own their own mobile home, though it may mean stealing from mobile homes owner, Robert (Callum Keith Rennie).  

One wonders at the director’s fascination of mobile homes.  His obsession can be observed right down to the film’s climax that include a high speed chase with Ali driving a vehicle with a stolen mobile home in tow.  It is an extremely exciting and well shot scene, credit to de Fontenay and one that is guaranteed to have audiences at the edge of their seats.

The film is shot in Ontario around the Niagara region, which is where cheap tourism exists – a perfect locale for the film’s setting.

The trouble with MOBILE HOMES is that besides being a really nasty film, director de Fontena offers few redeeming qualities for any of his characters with the result that the audience does not care what happens to them.  Why doesn’t Ali just start thinking seriously about getting a job to settle down?  The prospect of a job is at one point offered to her by Robert, which she misuses.

While Poots and Turner deliver exceptional performances despite the film’s flaws, it is the boy Frank Oulton who is a natural.  Whether getting lost, beaten or scolded, he is the only character that the audience feels for.  The result, however, is still a film the audience is detached from.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=py-MBw-8pM4

Submit your Screenplay to the Festival TODAY