Thursday, June 23, 2016

The Shallows

Two hundred yards from the shore of a secluded beach, Nancy (Blake Lively) lies bleeding on a rock. She's been bitten by a massive, bloodthirsty shark which stalks the small cove in which she's trapped, and her time is running out. This is the fundamental conflict of The Shallows, director Jaume Collet-Serra's new film that proudly stakes its claim as a modern B-movie.

The Shallows
Director: Jaume Collet-Serra
Starring: Blake Lively, Sharkster A. Sharkington



Friday, June 17, 2016

Raiders! The Story of The Greatest Fan Film Ever Made

You've probably heard the story by now: Steven Spielberg's Raiders of the Lost Ark comes out in 1981 and blows everyone's minds, but three Mississippi kids' minds are arguably blown more than anyone else's. Against all odds, and without the internet or even a VHS copy of the movie to assist them, they set out to complete a shot for shot remake of the movie to be filmed in their houses, backyards, and surrounding town. For the next seven years, they work tirelessly through every summer vacation and spring break to finish this thing, sacrificing any semblance of a "normal" childhood in the quest to achieve their ultimate goal. An astonishing seven years later, they finally wrap production, and fifteen years after that, their movie becomes a sensation among hardcore film fans. So...what next?

Raiders! The Story of The Greatest Fan Film Ever Made
Directors: Jeremy Coon & Tim Skousen
Starring: Chris Strompolos, Eric Zala, Jayson Lamb


Friday, June 10, 2016

Dying Laughing (LA Film Fest 2016)

A poetic, brutally candid examination of stand-up comedy, Dying Laughing features a murder’s row of famous comedians telling honest, genuine stories about the art form they love.

Dying Laughing
Directors: Lloyd Stanton, Paul Toogood
Starring: Jerry Seinfeld, Chris Rock, Kevin Hart, Jerry Lewis, Sarah Silverman

Thursday, June 9, 2016

Equity (LA Film Fest 2016)

Set in the high-powered world of New York City finance, Equity is a showcase for Breaking Bad star Anna Gunn to prove she unequivocally has what it takes to headline a movie.

Equity
Director: Meera Menon
Starring: Anna Gunn, Sarah Megan Thomas, James Purefoy

A Hundred Streets (LA Film Fest 2016)

Disparate people of different race, background, and social status intersect and bounce off each other in Jim O’Hanlon’s A Hundred Streets, a London-set film that attempts to make grand statements about life but ends up being a middling yet still somewhat enjoyable trek through key moments in their lives.

A Hundred Streets
Director: Jim O'Hanlon
Starring: Idris Elba, Gemma Arterton, Franz Drameh

Tuesday, June 7, 2016

Don't Think Twice (LA Film Fest 2016)

Eddie Murphy. Will Ferrell. Bill Murray. The list of supremely talented improvisers who’ve made it big in Hollywood is extensive, but no one has ever made a movie that takes the audience inside the subculture of modern improv and investigates the often complicated relationships between its comedians. Mike Birbiglia has changed that with his sophomore directorial feature Don’t Think Twice, a love letter to the art form that also functions as an exploration of creativity, loyalty, and maturation.

Don't Think Twice
Writer/Director: Mike Birbiglia
Starring: Keegan-Michael Key, Gillian Jacobs, Mike Birbiglia

Monday, June 6, 2016

Officer Downe (LA Film Fest 2016)

Outrageous, ultra-violent, and sleazy as hell, Officer Downe is the kind of movie made for midnight screenings and intended for audiences in the right mindset to see some deranged and psychotic nonsense.

Officer Downe
Director: Shawn Crahan
Starring: Kim Coates, Tyler Ross

Friday, June 3, 2016

Beyond The Gates (LA Film Fest 2016)

If you dumped JumanjiThe Ring, and a couple gallons of fake blood into a blender and hit the "combine into a 1980s horror homage" button, you'd get Beyond The Gates. A mishmash of genre influences, the film follows two brothers who return to their missing father's house, only to discover a dangerous, mystical board game they must play in order to save his soul. That's about all of the plot description you're going to get because I don't want to spoil any of the film's big moments, but it's clear the movie has a lot on its mind.

Beyond The Gates
Director/Co-writer: Jackson Stewart
Starring: Graham Skipper, Chase Williamson, Brea Grant



Thursday, June 2, 2016

Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping

Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping takes aim at spoiled pop artists before we ever see a frame of footage (the title is a riff on the 2011 documentary Justin Bieber: Never Say Never), but this movie isn't only interested in raking singers over the coals: it's out to make fun of the entire music industry and the culture surrounding it. Celebrity romances, TMZ, social media, traditional news networks, and much more are skewered in this ridiculous — and often hilarious — examination of superstardom from The Lonely Island.

Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping
Directors: Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone
Starring: Andy Samberg, Tim Meadows, Sarah Silverman


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