Tag: Independent Film

From Kitty to Zombie Cats From Mars & A Sequel Seeking Crowdfunding Help

Zombiecats Concept ArtBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

The production team behind the first Zombie Cats from Mars movie wants to make a sequel. They are hoping the faithful will support the crowdfunding effort, and the curious to check out the film currently available on Amazon Prime Video.

This work is a tongue-in-cheek budget film that’s clearly a labour of love, as they learn for themselves in what makes a B-Movie memorable. With such a name like Zombie Cats, my curiosity was immediately peaked! In the past, works like Lesbian Vampire Killers, The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra and Amazon Women on the Moon also tickled my fancy. They had bigger budgets and looked good. ZCfM has the production budget of a student film and it shows. This detail is not a bad thing as any new up-and-coming talents need to start somewhere. Who knows, one of them might become the next Sam Raimi.  For instance, director Montetré certainly has an impressive filmography on the IMDB which is worth investigating.

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What is Hiding in “Asylum of Darkness?” A Movie Review

By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)mv5bmjeyodm2ndiynl5bml5banbnxkftztgwmjq3odm5mdi-_v1_uy268_cr30182268_al_

Arriving on VOD April 11th.

Does being insane allow one to see the world in a totally new light? Only Jay Woelfel’s horror flick Asylum of Darkness can tell, and oh boy, can he tell! Although the soap opera effects budget and narrative seem distracting, perhaps that was this director’s intention. He’s made a very melodramatic and vaguely supernatural film. With Richard Hatch (in one of his final film appearances) enjoying himself in the role of a doctor (psychologist) trying to calm Dwight Stroud (Nick Baldasare) down, the chuckles are well-earned. This product has a feel of Creepshow meets Dark Shadows.

From inside a padded room, a very beleaguered Stroud narrates, still unaware of all that he’s going to experience in the next few days. Insanity offers foresight into the terrors to come, and this film recalls the style of David Lynch. Not only does this narrative keeps the viewer and Stroud off-kilter but also requires the audience to fully pay attention to the story to realize what is going on in this crazy person’s life.

The tale he tells suggests the world is filled with secret agendas and monstrous beasts in disguise (as humans). The question of who Dwight Stroud truly is gets asked. Is he simply nuts, a serial killer, or someone else? This film moves Donnie Darko style and injects a good measure of Twilight Zone uncertainty into it. There’s a painter Dwight knows whose works “come to life.”

The problem with indie films these days is that it is hard to get noticed by the masses. On the Internet Movie Database, two entries suggest this movie was most likely made in 2012 than recently. In light of Hatch’s death early this year, perhaps acknowledgement for this film can come for those curious in seeing what Hatch has done the past few years after the short, Prelude to Axanar, was made. He’s been very supportive of the indie film-making scene by appearing in them, and this movie is no exception.

3½ Stars out of 5

Occupants Set to Screen at San Diego Comic Con and Looking Beyond

Occupants Poster JPEG Small

By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

Quite often, movies using the found footage format is used synonymously with a supernatural horror film and Occupants is a film that subverts this idea. This movie will be screened during San Diego Comic-Con‘s Film Festival on July 23 and San Antonio Film Festival on July 28. For me, as an enthusiast of paranormal studies, this movie is highly recommended.

I would call this product more of a budget thriller instead of in your face horror. For once, this movie is not about another ghostly haunting. This time, the viewer (me) gets to see how one of these found footage films are constructed within the confines of itself. Director Russ Emanuel crafted a wickedly fascinating look into the mirror darkly of the lives of a believably happy couple — Annie (Briana White) and Neil Curtis (Michael Pugliese) — who are about to cleanse their body of various toxins found in food. Buried in the narrative is also a cleansing of who they are mind, body and soul.

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You Beta Believe It — Interview with Nicholas Gyeney, Seattle Filmmaker on Upcoming Films

HkqH1L8F-300x300By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

Nicholas Gyeney is an independent filmmaker based out of Seattle, Washington and his upcoming film, Beta Test, will definitely break one cinematic record that I’ve seen and am excited for. It will feature a really long continuous shot of well-coordinated fight scene! Getting a film noticed in the sea of summer blockbuster material is tough, and I feel this director succeeded.

His past works include The Penitent Man (2010) with Lance Henriksen in an important role, and Matt’s Choice (2013), starring Edward Furlong, Lee Majors and Margot Kidder. In my interview with him, he revealed that he creates the characters with specific performers in mind, and that alone has me interested in seeking out his earlier material to check out. After seeing his latest movie, I found myself appreciating Manu Bennett (Arrow) and Larenz Tate’s (Crash) talents more. A review can be found on this website titled, “Playing Video Games Can Be Dangerous in the Film, ‘Beta Test'”

This movie is set to debut in select theatres across the USA on July 22nd (see below for listings) and it will arrive on VOD the following month at outlets like iTunes, Google Play, Amazon. I have to thank Gyeney for taking the time to answer my questions.

ES: Can you please introduce yourself to readers unfamiliar with your movies?

NG: I fell in love with film at a young age. Dad introduced me to it all. He died when I was 12. It changed my life. I discovered filmmaking when I realized the impact movies had on my ability to get through losing my father. I decided to work towards creating films that could return the favor.

ES: How did the story come about?

NG: It was born out of a desire to make an indie action film that injected, hopefully, a bit more class into the indie action sub-genre. Most of the films we see in this market are plagued by sloppy production values from the top down. I wanted something to help change the conversation. A movie that says, just because we are small, doesn’t mean we have to be bad. With that said,  I knew I had to come up with some sort of spectacle that could sell the film, which is where the idea for the longest single-take fight sequence was born.

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Overlooked Gem, Microbe and Gasoline gets a State-side Release July 1st

microbe__gasoline_key_art_posterBy Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

* This subtitled film is finally getting an American-side release come July 1, 2016 courtesy of Screen Media Films. Please check local listings for screenings and locations.

Microbe and Gasoline is a charming, optimistic and insightful coming-of-age story of two young boys. Together, they embark on an epic road trip when life at home simply sucks. Just how they managed to build a vehicle in the shape of a tiny cabin with a small engine to traverse France is beyond me, but this leap of faith works. The idea puts this film into the realm of escapist fantasy. When their decision to leave is based on the fact they wish to put behind a miserable life, I can certainly see the reasons why.

Both are outcasts. The younger of the two, Microbe aka Daniel (Ange Dargent) is the quieter of the two (and runt of the family). He gets bullied at school. Théo (Théophile Baquet) is nicknamed Gasoline because he often smells like he works at a garage. Nobody at middle school is fond of being near him. He does not let the insults tossed at him hurt. He wears a stylish imitation leather jacket that Michael Jackson might envy.

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On Patterson’s Wager & Comic Books, An Interview with Corbin Saleken & Garry Chalk

Patterson's Wager poster

By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

Cinecenta
University of Victoria
Victoria, BC
Tuesday, June 14th, 
7:00pm and 9:15pm

Also available on iTunes and other VOD platforms.

O. Corbin Saleken’s independent film, Patterson’s Wager, is not necessarily a tough to categorize movie. There are light elements of fantasy and a dash of comedy woven into a charming romantic tale about a dorky insurance agent, Charles (Fred Ewanuick, Corner Gas) trying to find that perfect moment to propose to Audrey (Chelah Horsdal, Hell on Wheels). But when he gains psychic powers that allow him to see into the future by a few minutes, just what can he do with it? Can he use this ability to find that special moment or save the day? This product could have moved like M. Night Shyamalan’s Unbreakable. There’s no villain here but there’s a quest to discover what’s special between two people.

Within this film is a side story about a young girl’s relationship with grandpa which ties into the main story in one huge way. I don’t want to say too much about it since it would constitute a major spoiler. I was very drawn to this secondary narrative because it features one of my favourite all-time performers in a very genial role: Garry Chalk. He’s the voice of Optimus Primal in Mainframe Entertainment’s Beast Wars and played Colonel Chekovin Stargate SG-1.

Otter (Michelle Creber) talks with her mum high res

Folks interested in this quirky film can find it on iTunes Canada and USA. It’s also available on other streaming platforms like Amazon Instant Video, VHX and Vimeo, along with making continued presences at the film festivals. This movie won many awards — like the Best Independent Feature Narrative award at the Winnipeg Real to Reel Film Festival and the Golden Honu for Best Foreign Feature at the Big Island Film Festival in Hawaii — since debuting last year.

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