Contemporary social realism films from the USA, like much of social realism cinema in general, focuses on the lives of the poor and marginalized, and often involve the potential loss of a home or need for extra money for medical...
The proliferation of reality TV talent contests seem to have given young people (and older people) a false idea of what it means to have artistic talent: mainly, that you don't. All you need to do is win a contest...
There are as many stories of how and why someone becomes homeless, as there are homeless people. Sometimes we ignore them, sometimes we give them some money; there are organizations that help, or that we tell ourselves help. Do we...
“The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” I am reminded of these lines when thinking of a throughline for the Mikhail Red-directed horror film Eerie. Storywise, the film delivers commentary on how our institutions and internalized preconceptions can...
All jobs and professions require certain skills; most of these can be learned, allowing most people to learn as they go along, and become better the longer they work. But some jobs require a certain kind of talent, or perhaps...
A friend of mine has theorized that that US citizens would sooner vote for a black lesbian muslim before they would vote for an atheist, so ingrained is the notion that one must believe in a deity in order to...
Opening and closing to the thunderous sounds of Prokofiev, Relaxer by Joel Potrykus is a grungy meditation on the fine art of relaxation. Relaxer is dark and disturbing. Relaxer is also very funny. The year is 1999. The world is...
The peaceful Scottish highlands hide a bloody secret in writer/director Ninian Doff's hilarious rural nightmare Boyz in the Wood. A trio of teenage miscreants are given one last chance to turn their lives around by completing the Duke of Edinburgh...
After a pair of incredibly divisive features in Excision and Trash Fire, controversial director Ricky Bates is back with his latest film, and it looks like he's done beating around the bush when it comes to taking on the status...
A psychic driving instructor fights to save a young girl from a satanic sacrifice at the hands of a washed up psychedelic rock star in directors Enda Loughman & Mike Ahern's Extra Ordinary. This dark comic fantasy from Ireland absolutely...
The Mountain director, Rick Alverson, doesn’t give a fuck what you think about his movies. In his short, but eventful career making feature films, he’s already created two of the most polarizing American independent films of the current decade in...
After the loss of her best friend Grace, young Aubrey (Virginia Gardner) struggles to make sense of her life. It doesn't help that the world has fallen victim to what appears to be an invasion of alien beasts determined to...
Professional journalism is in crisis mode. Major consolidation, cost-cutting, and technology shifts are leading to less outlets, less job opportunities, and less coverage of important issues. In this changing landscape, new models built around the unique capabilities of the Internet...
A remake of a 2011 Belgian film called Hasta La Vista, Richard Wong's Come As You Are is a charming, poignant, affectionate take on the road trip movie with an eye toward building compassion for those who are so often...
The crew of a small town movie theater stumbles into a boarded up basement and comes back with more than they bargained for in director Keola Racela's Porno, one of the several horror comedies anchoring SXSW's Midnight section this year....
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