Indie Gems: Wild Rose

Not western, just country.

Rose-Lynn (Jessie Buckley) is fresh out of prison after a year long stint for a drug charged. She dreams of moving to Nashville and becoming a country music star, but the reality is she's not a convicted felon with two children she had before she turned 18. Her mother, Marion (Julie Walters) has been taking care of the while Rose-Lynn has been in prison. Now she must choose between following her dream and her responsibilities as a parent.

Like country music in general, Rose-Lynn is a damn mess. She drinks too much, she's an absent parent and she takes no responsibility for the mess she puts herself in. In fact, the only time Rose-Lynn is in any way put together is when she's on stage performing. Her talent cannot be denied. It's hard sometimes to watch a character like this when you'd rather shake them and tell them to get their priorities straight, but Rose-Lynn thankfully gets there.

Buckley is absolutely amazing in this film. You can tell no one saw it otherwise her name would be everywhere in the Best Actress race. She's a very talented singer, she does a very convincing Scottish accent and best of all she doesn't make Rose-Lynn unbearable which she easily could've been. Walters also gives a strong performance, as does Sophie Okonedo as Susannah, a woman who takes an interesting in Rose-Lynn.

Okonedo is a very sympathetic actress to me. I see her and just want to hug her, so I had a bit of anxiety/annoyance during part of this film because I expected it to go one way, but it was thankfully rectified. A lot about this film is familiar but little touches set it apart. I even enjoyed the music, despite not caring for country at all.

This is out on DVD now in the U.S Give it a watch if you come across it.

Grade: B

Watched on: DVD Netflix

Memorable Quote: "I should've been born in America" - Rose-Lynn (Jessie Buckley)

Indie Gems: Luce

Don't put him in a box.

Luce (Kelvin Harrison Jr.) was adopted from war torn Eritrea as a child by the affluent family Amy (Naomi Watts) and Peter. (Tim Roth) They've worked hard to make sure he reaches his full potential, and so far, they've succeeded. Luce is a kind boy, he's good in school and in sports, but when he writes a troubling essay in Mrs. Wilson's (Octavia Spence) class, Amy in particular is forced to consider the idea that maybe he isn't perfect.

Luce makes a comment about the harmful nature of tokenism and stereotypes early in the film. Why is it okay that the school makes it clear how much they want Luce, a boy with a tragic past to succeed and not another black student who gets kicked off the track team for weed in his locker and loses his only shot of college because of it? Why does Mrs. Wilson project onto some students and not the others? Why can't Amy see any grey area at all in her son's life? These are all valid questions and they are what make Luce such an interesting watch. 

Harrison puts on a very sincere facade. He does want to succeed, he's capable of shitty things, but he's aware how much he is being projected on. One of his classmates, Stephanie (Andrea Bang) has a powerful scene where she recounts a sexual assault at a party and it's one of the best acted moments I've seen this year. Naomi Watts is also very good, even though Amy's decisions were frustrating. 

I like the conversation this film brings to the table and I'm surprised it's not being talked about more. It never came to a theater near me, so I'm happy I got to watch it on DVD now.

Grade: B

Watched on: Netflix DVD

Memorable Quote: "I just don't believe you, Amy." - Luce (Kelvin Harrison Jr.)

Indie Gems: The Wind

I think we're alone now. 

Lizzy (Caitlin Gerard) lives isolated on the plains with her husband, Isaac. (Ashley Zukerman) He's gone for many days at a time, leaving her isolated save for an occasional visit from neighbors Emma and Gideon. (Julia Goldani Telles and Dylan McTee) But Lizzy is plagued by evil spirits...or is she? Maybe it's just her mind playing tricks on her.

If you've been here for awhile you know I struggle with Westerns. It's a genre that never fails to bore me. Thankfully at a brisk 1 hour 26 minutes, The Wind never has time to be boring, even though it is what you could call a "slow burn" in a sense. Dread plagues Lizzy. You get an uneasy feeling watching this throughout. She's also somewhat of an unreliable narrator in a way. The film constantly asks you to question what's happening to her. Is the isolation affecting her head space? Is there really a demon out there? Both? 

I loved how Gerard plays this part. She doesn't always do sympathetic things but I never once stopped caring about her and you can tell director Emma Tammi cares about her deeply too. They could've gone a completely different route with this. Her husband and neighbors could've been antagonists, but they're not. They could've had her be over the top crazy, but she isn't. It reminded me a bit of The Babadok in a sense that this was a story about mental illness as well as a horror film.

There are a few cheap jump scares, and the film sometimes suffers from not being told in a linear fashion, but if you're looking for something quiet and creepy, this one is for you.

Grade: B

Watched on: Netflix DVD

Memorable Quote: "You have been such a strong person, I would not have survived without you." - Emma

Indie Gems: The Last Black Man in San Francisco

This is my city.

Jimmie Fails (his actual name) dreams of returning to his old home, a house his grandfather built in San Francisco. His city has become gentrified and expensive and he and many others were forced to move further away. When the current owner has a dispute, he and his from Mont (Jonathan Majors) move in.

Watching this film is like watching a poem. It's beautiful, free flowing and poignant at times. Nearly everything shot here is framed with love an admiration. When Jimmie and Mont face hardships, they're empathetic. Never overly angry or harsh. It's quite extraordinary to see.

Falls and Majors are both outstanding and if there was any justice in the world, they'd be talked about in the Oscar race to come. But after all the buzz this had coming off Sundance this year, it was given an earlier release and is now out on DVD. I hope it can still get some awards love. 

There are parts where the film drags, but the relationship between our two leads makes up for it. They're so loving and supportive of each other. I'm reminded of Booksmart in the way where I just really enjoyed the friendship of the two leads, even though our friends here are polar opposites of those girls. 

Recommended: Yes

Grade: A-

Memorable Quote: "You don't get to hate it unless you love it." - Jimmie (Jimmie Fails)

Indie Gems: Fast Color

Can you see the colors?

Ruth (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) has seizures that cause earthquakes and finds herself on the run from scientists who want to experiment on her. She's forced to go back home to her mother, Bo (Lorraine Toussaint) and the daughter she left behind, Lila (Saniyya Sidney) and hide out. But they have super powers themselves that manifest differently than Ruth's.

Fast Color came on my radar because it's one of the few sci fi movies directed by a woman. It turns out, I had seen and enjoyed one of director Julia Hart's previous features - Miss Stevens - earlier this year. 

For a film about super powers, this is very understated. I read that Hart plans on making this universe into a TV series and that makes sense given you get the feeling that there's a lot more that needs to be said when the film really doesn't have time for it.

Mbatha-Raw always gives amazing performances as does Toussaint. I loved the cast in this, and even though we don't know a lot about these characters, we know enough to make everything meaningful.

I hope Hart gets to expand on this because I'd love to know more, and even with that in mind, Fast Color is definitely worth your time.

Grade: B

Watched on: Netflix DVD

Memorable Quote: "Don't be in such a rush to leave." - Ruth (Gugu Mbatha-Raw)

Indie Gems: Entanglement

Finding where you went wrong.

Ben's (Thomas Middleditch) life is a complete mess. His wife just left him, and the opening scene is him failing at several suicide attempts. He's determined to figure out where he went wrong in life so he can attempt to fix it. He finds out from his parents that he almost had a sister. They adopted a daughter, but when his mother found out she was pregnant they had to give her back to the agency. With the help of his neighbor Tabby (Diana Bang) he eventually finds Hanna (Jess Weixler) and they fall in love. Don't worry, there's more.

This is going to be a strange review because I both loved this film and had a serious problem with its execution. I can't stop thinking about it. I actually watched it twice. (It helps that it's available to stream on Netflix and is a whopping 85 minutes long) First thing, when Hanna gets introduced, you're going to immediately think you walked into some manic pixie dream girl bullshit, but just stay with it. It will all make sense. Without getting into spoiler territory this film is obviously a study on mental illness and it takes a very whimsical approach to it. I think this works at the beginning, but not so much at the end. I felt there was a lot more this film could've addressed and it would have benefited by an extra 10 minutes.

The actors are wonderful. I enjoy Middleditch's work in Silicon Valley and he gets to show a bit more range here that I really enjoyed. Jess Weixler is always a welcome presence in film. Diana Bang was new to me and I really liked Tabby as well. 

At the end of the day, this is a heavy topic disguised as a romantic comedy. It asks you to question all of the tropes that go along with that as well. It's a delightful film that may annoy you after you finish that they didn't take a bit more care in it, but at the same time, were they ever aiming to do that in the first place? 

Grade: B

Watched on: Netflix

Memorable Quote: "I wanted to be awake again." - Ben (Thomas Middleditch)

Indie Gems: JT LeRoy

The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things

Savannah (Kristen Stewart) has just moved to San Francisco. She takes over an apartment owned by her brother, Geoff (Jim Sturgess) and sister-in-law, Laura. (Laura Dern) Laura wrote a best selling book under what she calls an "avatar", JT LeRoy, a young man who grew up in poverty and prostitution. She convinces Savannah to pose as JT in public, and the rest is history.

I first heard about JT LeRoy around 2006-2007 when I happened upon a movie based on his book - The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things. Asia Argento starred and directed (Diane Kruger plays a version of her in this film) and actors like Jeremy Renner, Ben Foster and the Sprouse twins were in it. It was very disturbing, and also very different from films I had been watching at the time. It grabbed my interest, so I read JT's novels along with it. Of course a quick Google search showed that JT wasn't a real person but the audacity of his hoax was just fascinating to me. 

There's already been a documentary on this hoax from Laura's perspective, plus many interviews, so I was excited to see that this was being adapted from Savannah Knoop's memoir, Girl Boy Girl. (Which I also read and enjoyed) and her side of things is a breath of fresh air in the LeRoy drama.

Kristen Stewart and Laura Dern are so perfectly cast that I can barely comprehend it. They were perfect incarnations of Savannah and Laura. Laura's manipulation of Savannah is so clear, as is her own temptation with living in the lime light. It covers nearly all of the big beats of her memoir. Unfortunately this film is so fast paced that it feels rushed.

If you've ever followed the JT Hoax, this is a must see for you, and even if you haven't, I think this would be an enjoyable nonetheless.

Grade: B+

Watched on: Netflix DVD

Memorable Quote: "Art is fucking eerie, man." - Laura (Laura Dern)

Indie Gems: Never Look Away

Work of the author.

Kurt Barnert (Tom Schilling) is an artist in West Germany. He's often haunted by growing up during WWII, and how his beloved Aunt Elizabeth (Saskia Rosendahl) who fed his creative spirit was sent to her death by the Nazis because of her mental illness. He meets and marries Ellie (Paula Beer) whose father, Professor Seeband (Sebastian Koch) doesn't approve of Kurt and unbeknownst to him is the same doctor that is directly responsible for his aunt's death. 

I saved this movie into my Netflix queue after this year's Oscar nominations came out. Never Look Away was not only a Foreign Film nominee, but was also a surprise entry into the Cinematography category. What I didn't notice until I opened the DVD Netflix sent me is that this movie was over three hours long. It's probably for the best I didn't pay attention to that before because I'm not sure if I would've put in the effort otherwise. 

Is every bit of its hefty run time warranted? Of course not. There's a point in this film where Kurt and Ellie move to Dusseldorf and the film absolutely stalls. The first hour flies by and is very engrossing but I checked my watch once I was rounding out two hours it's like the film is moving slower on purpose. I almost wonder if you'd still get the jist of everything if you put the last hour on fast forward. Another thing that I think works against the film is the outcome. You know Seeband is going to figure out that he killed Kurt's aunt. But because Kurt wasn't there to see him give the order, there's really no satisfactory resolution from Kurt's end. It's only semi satisfying to the audience but it still left me wanting more to come from that.

Schilling, Koch, and Rosendahl are all German actors that I enjoy and have seen before. Koch of course was in director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck's last German film, the wonderful The Lives of Others. They're all fantastic here and von Donnersmarck's direction is excellent. And yes, it absolutely deserved that cinematography nomination. There's not a single frame of this movie that isn't beautifully shot.

I thought a lot about Toni Erdmann after watching this, another long German film, and for comparison, I would say I preferred Never Look Away. If I'm honest I prefer this to the foreign film winner, Roma as well. It's too long, but it says enough to make me happy I spent the time on it. 

Grade: B-

Watched on: Netflix DVD

Memorable Quote: "All that is true is beautiful" - Elizabeth (Saskia Rosendahl)

Indie Gems: The Wedding Guest

Surprise!

Jay (Dev Patel) is headed to a wedding in Pakistan, only it's not your typical affair. He's armed with several passports, a few guns, and a plan to kidnap a bride, Samira (Radhika Apte) instead of watching her nuptials.

I knew nothing about this movie before I selected it while browsing through my in flight selection. Let's be honest, Dev Patel with his beard is enough to get me to watch anything.

The thing The Wedding Guest does very well is it keeps you guessing on what the characters' motivations are. Jay is our eyes to this world, but he's obviously not a good person. Samira is dealt several shitty hands throughout but it's never certain where she's going to land by the end of it. Do you want them to trust each other? Fight? Run? There's plenty of possibilities and the film doesn't take the most obvious choices either.

I think Patel and Apte are both good here. Neither role is really requiring a lot from them in terms of emotions but the commentary is interesting, especially when it comes to Samira and her marriage. I think there will be plenty who want more from this film, and that would be a valid critique, but I was fine with how it played out. It's not the most amazing watch out there, but I'm glad I did watch it. 

Grade: B-

Watched on: Delta Studios 

Memorable Quote: "I don't want to be married." - Samira (Radhika Apte)

Indie Gems: Little Woods

You can start over.

Ollie (Tessa Thompson) is trying to lead a straight(er) life after getting caught running drugs over the North Dakota/Canadian boarder. When her sister Deb (Lily James) falls pregnant and knows she can't afford to have the baby, Ollie turns to dealing again for hopefully the last time. 

First off, thank you all for leaving comments on the two posts I had scheduled while I was on vacation. I'm currently typing up a bit of content, then I'm off to read your lovely blogs. Even when I travel I normally set aside time each night to check out my blog roll, but I was EXHAUSTED at the end of each day. I'm happy to be back in the swing of things.

I had to laugh when I started watching this movie and realized it was set around the area I grew up in. (Though they choose a fictional name for the town) They certainly capture the despair and general bleakness of Western North Dakota well, especially now that oil drilling is so common there. The desperate need of affordable health care is prevalent and I found the way the film addressed that to be very believable. 

Tessa Thompson gives a very understated performance here that I just adored. Ollie is a good person trying to make the best out of hard times, for herself and her mess of a sister. I enjoyed Lily James in this role too. I felt like it was fairly different for both of them.

I give this major props for not going with the ending that I was sure they choose. It's a very quiet film, there's not a lot of action nor excitement but something like this is rare. We have so many films about trafficking drugs through the Mexican boarder but barely any that address the desperate need for pain killers and how some attempt to get fake Canadian ID cards just so they can afford basic health care. 

Grade: B

Watched on: Delta Studios In Flight Movies

Memorable Quote: "How do you always manage to fuck things up?" - Ollie (Tessa Thompson)

Indie Gems: Super Dark Times

We shouldn't tell anybody about this..

Zach (Owen Campbell) and Josh (Charlie Tahan) are best friends growing up somewhere in America during the 90's. They end up in a devastating situation and the resulting cover up puts a strain on their should be unbreakable friendship. 

At first, I was worried I was going to end up in a Summer of 84 scenario where we followed around kids I could not care less about. One of Zach and Josh's friends, Daryl (Charlie Tahan) is one of the first people we're introduced to and he's so over the top and irritating I was prepared for the worst, but the film rightly sticks with Zach and Josh, and eventually Zach's crush, Allison. (Elizabeth Cappuccino)

I was familiar with both Campbell and Tahan from some of their other work and they are both wonderful here. Especially Campbell who ultimately anchors this film. It's his POV we follow. They feel like real friends. The chemistry they have together, and that Zach also has with Allison never has an un-genuine moment. 

The film does a good job of building to the accident that kicks things off, and again when they try to navigate the aftermath. For a film with a run time of 1 hr 43 minutes, it doesn't have time to drag. However, there is one huge fault to this...

They completely rush the ending. So much so that the resolution is in no way satisfying. I wouldn't even call it ambiguous because they don't even leave us with enough to think about after the credits rolled. For a film that was doing everything right, it shocks me how hard they dropped the ball here. This is almost right up there with The Butterfly Effect when it comes to films that are doing so well until the ending comes along and brings all that fine story to a screeching halt. 

I don't think everyone will be as annoyed with the ending as I was, and for that reason alone, I still recommend it, because aside from that it's very well done and the rushed nature doesn't ruin the film, only disappoints me that there wasn't more.

Grade: B+

Watched on: Netflix Instant

Memorable Quote: "We're friends.." - Zach (Owen Campbell)

Indie Gems: Other People

I thought this happened to other people. 

David (Jesse Plemmons) is a writer living in New York who flies home to Sacramento to be with his dying mother, Joanne (Molly Shannon) as she quits chemo. His relationship with his family is strained since he came out 10 years prior and they did not take it well, especially his father. (Bradley Whitford) Now the current situation forces everyone to rethink what family means to them.

This fell into my Netflix black hole after reading Jay's review on Assholes Watching Movies and while I thought it sounded like something I'd like, I didn't expect to like it as much as I did. What I've found during this Netflix clean out is I tend to drift towards my cell phone while watching some of these films, I never did once here.

Cancer dramas can be very cliche, but writer/director Chris Kelly (Who apparently wrote this based off his own experiences) litters his film with genuine humor and skips all the platitudes. David and Joanne, as our main focus feel like mother and son. You can tell just by listening to Joanne where David gets his knack for comedy from, even though he's at a point in his life where he's not successful. 

Molly Shannon is absolutely amazing here. For me, when I see her I think of Superstar, even though I know she's done a ton of more dramatic work since then. I didn't get a single second of Mary Katherine Gallagher here. I stayed strong with her at the beginning and wept for her at the end. Plemmons also puts in great work. David isn't the most likable character, but he's never so bad to where I don't care about him. All of this is just happening at the worst possible time.

If you need a film to amuse you for a while, then make you cry it all out at the end. (or maybe I'm a wuss and you'll power through it) This one is for you.

Grade: A-

Watched on: Netflix

Memorable quote: "When you miss me, come visit your sisters." - Joanne (Molly Shannon)

Indie Gems: The Incredible Jessica James

I'm dope.

Jessica (Jessica Williams) is an aspiring playwright  who still pines for her ex-boyfriend. (Lakeith Stanfield) Her friend, Tasha (Noel Wells) sets her up with an acquaintance, Boone (Chris O'Dowd) who is also fresh out of a relationship and they strike up a friendship.

I have no excuse for how long it took me to watch this film. I think Jessica Williams and Chris O'Dowd are hilarious, and this got great reviews when it came out. It just fell into the Netflix black hole. I'm happy to say this did not disappoint.

If you're familiar with Williams from her stint on The Daily Show, her humor is all over this. I'm guessing she was given a lot of leeway to improvise and it all works in her favor. Same with O'Dowd, only he can sell himself with "Also, I'm good at cunnilingus" so nonchalantly. 

There's not a lot in terms of plot here but that's okay. Jessica is interesting and it was so easy to root for her throughout. I liked how they handled all of her relationships too, between her and Boone, Tasha, Damon, and everyone else around her. It felt very organic and funny. I really wish I would've seen this sooner, because it's something I can easily see myself watching again and again.

Grade: A

Watched on: Netflix

Memorable Quote: "Oh...you probably think...no I mean she's good with dick." - Boone (Chris O'Dowd)

Indie Gems: The Endless

They don't age.

When brothers Aaron (Aaron Moorhead) and Justin (Justin Benson) were younger, they escaped a UFO death cult. Now into adulthood and just drifting by, they receive a video tape from said cult. Aaron, the younger of the two begs Justin to take him back for closure. He doesn't have many memories of his time there, and none of the bad ones Justin does. His older brother reluctantly agrees to take him back.

Aside from starring, Moorhead and Benson also direct. I watched one of their earlier flims, Spring a few years ago and this is along the same line as that. Very low budget, pretty weird, intriguing. Unlike Spring they don't have the powerhouse Lou Taylor Pucci to anchor their film, they were forced to cast themselves to keep the budget down. 

The cult in this film isn't played up as sinister, even when you get to the big reason of why they are doing what they're doing. That's a nice change if you're used to seeing films about damaging religious ones. I liked that they took it a different route. 

There is one thing that really distracted me throughout that no matter how hard I tried to ignore it, I could not shake it. Moorhead and Benson are fine in these roles, and they have great chemistry together. But they never state how old their characters are supposed to be, and they look the same age (in reality there's about 4 years age difference between them) But where this is problematic is they speak as if there's supposed to be a massive age gap between the two. Justin was clearly a young adult when they fled, and Aaron was supposed to be young enough to not have fully formed memories of his time there. He only remembers "campfires," but never anything in more detail. I suppose that *could* happen for a teenager but I felt like had they been able to cast others, a much younger actor should've been playing Aaron. 

That aside, I really enjoyed this and if you like a little sci fi, you probably will too.

Grade: B

Watched on: Netflix

Memorable Quote: "Can you have power over yourself if you give up any amount of authority to something else?" - Tate Ellington

Indie Gems: Girl Asleep

She just needs a little nudge.

Greta (Bethany Whitmore) is a shy and awkward girl who isn't quite ready to let go of her childhood and turn 15. She's recently moved and when she makes a new friend, Elliott (Harrison Feldman) her parents decide to throw her a birthday party against her wishes to help get her out of her shell. 

Sometime later this year I'll be writing a massive post about all the films that have been in my Netflix queue black hole for ages. This is one of them, and I felt compelled to write a full review instead of the little blurb I have in my drafts.

This movie, clocking in at a quick 77 minutes is so perfectly weird. 1970's Australia is already different enough from what I'm used to seeing and it's un-apologetically bizarre while still managing to make sense. It could've easily ended up in avant garde territory and threw cohesiveness to the wind but it doesn't. Plus, the family here feels honest and real. 

There's nothing groundbreaking in terms of acting here but Whitmore and Feldman do really well and have nice chemistry. She carries the film with ease. 

I'm sure this won't be for everyone but if you're looking for something short, sweet, and kind of weird, this is for you.

Grade: A-

Memorable Quote: "I don't want a fucking party!" - Greta (Bethany Whitmore)

Indie Gems: Loveless

Why are you even doing this?

Zhenya (Maryana Spivak) and Boris (Aleksey Rozin) are going through a bitter divorce. They're trying to sell their apartment so they unfortunately still live under the same roof. Their biggest issues is their son, Alyosha. (Matvey Novikov) Neither actually want him. Boris has already gotten his new girlfriend pregnant and they won't have the room, and Zhenya is enjoying her freedom too much. They entertain the thought of dropping him at an orphanage, though Boris is afraid his conservative boss will find out. Alyosha listens to all of this from the bathroom and cries himself to sleep. He runs away the next day, and his parents don't notice he's gone until two days later.

This might be one of the harshest movies I've ever watched. Zhenya and Boris are terrible people. All I wanted to do was take Alyosha away, wrap him in a warm blanket, and punch both of his parents in the face. It's a bit jarring to see two people act so selfishly about their child, but that's the point of the film. Director Andrey Zvyagintsev wanted to make a movie about how selfish the world has gotten, particularly his home nation of Russia. He succeeds with flying colors.

The cinematography is absolutely gorgeous for a film with so much despair, and actors are all very good. I prefer this to the other I saw of his, Leviathan. It's one of those that's not going to be for everyone. At times even I had a hard time watching people behaving as shitty as these ones do but for what he was trying to say, it worked very well. I'm not sure I've ever seen a movie tackle a subject like this.

Grade: B-

Watched on: DVD (thanks local library!)

Memorable Quote: "Here I was thinking you actually cared for your son." - Zhenya (Maryana Spivak)

Indie Gems: The Miseducation of Cameron Post

What's on your iceberg?

In 1993, Cameron Post (Chloe Grace Moretz) is caught making out with her friend Coley (Quinn Shephard) and promptly sent to a gay conversion camp where she make friends with Jane (Sasha Lane) and Adam (Forrest Goodluck) and ponders what comes next.

When I reviewed Boy Erased in November, I mentioned that a lot of reviews I had read prior compared it to this. I can see why based on premise but they're very different in theme. Where the only act of sexuality in Boy Erased was a rape, this one frequently shows it in both passion and stolen moments. Where Boy Erased was about fear, this is more about staying true to yourself. What this film does better is that we learn a bit more about the other residents aside from Cameron. She doesn't just interact with Jane and Adam and while not everyone is fully developed it felt more satisfying. These kids are actually allowed to talk to each other and that makes for a better film.

I didn't get excited for this at Sundance because I've never been a fan of Chloe Grace Moretz. I find her to be very dull even though I admire the roles she chooses for herself most of the time, she's actually very good here. I still wish Sasha Lane was the lead instead but she did fine. I've been a fan of John Gallagher Jr. for quite some time too, and he's good in his small role as well.

Ultimately I think this film is very well done all around and I'm glad I took the time to see it.

Grade: A-

Watched on: Netflix DVD

Memorable Quote: "You people have no idea what you're doing, do you?" - Cameron Post (Chloe Grace Moretz)

Indie Gem: I Think We're Alone Now

Is it just us?

After an unknown event causes the majority of the population to suddenly drop dead, Del (Peter Dinklage) is the only one left in his small town. He has a routine. He buries the bodies, cleans out the houses, and keeps up the local library where he worked. When he suddenly comes across Grace (Elle Fanning) she challenges his nature to keep to himself.

I really liked the simplicity of this. Another movie may have tried to examine what happened to everyone, but Del pointedly asks at one point "does it matter?" In the scheme of things now, no. No it doesn't. I was content watching the quietness of what Del had going on and his interactions with Grace were interesting. They couldn't be more different people, but their relationship is not handled in that over the top/total opposites way.

Dinklage and Fanning are both fantastic in it. Each of them is heartbreaking in their own different ways and amusing in others. They make a good team. 

There is one issue I take with this movie, and it's what they introduce in the 3rd act. There's something there that in my opinion deserved more elaboration and ambiguity didn't really work in its case. They only needed a few extra lines of dialogue too, but they choose to let you come to your own conclusions. It's fine, I suppose, but I was left with a lot of questions even though the watch in general was quite enjoyable.

Grade: B-

Watched on: Netflix DVD

Memorable Quote: "Batteries are the most important thing the dead can leave behind." - Del (Peter Dinklage)

Indie Gems: Blindspotting

Can your brain unsee this?

When we meet Collin (Daveed Diggs) he's coming off a prison sentence and is being put on probation. We catch up with him in his final three days of it, where he's trying his hardest to lay low. His short tempered friend, Miles (Rafael Casal) is making this difficult. On top of that, he witnesses a police officer shooting an unarmed black man and it keeps coming back to haunt him.

I remember when I first saw trailers for this, I wasn't sure if I would rush out to see it. But after hearing so many positive reviews, I bumped it to the top of my Netflix queue as soon as it came available. This film was nothing like I was expecting. I didn't realize they would fuse so much humor and poetry into this. Director Carlos López Estrada has a lot of ideas. Sometimes that effects the tone, is this a surreal comedy? A racial politics drama? A music video? It's all of those things. It's a little messy but there's never a part where I went "this really doesn't work."

Daveed Diggs is extraordinary and gives one of the best performances this year. I was so worried for Collin throughout. He's in a constant state of disadvantage and there was one particular scene where I held my breath throughout. Casal is also wonderful here. It could be easy to hate Miles, he's volatile and a bit unaware of his privilege despite feeling like a victim of it, but Casal humanizes him. They could've gone the typical annoying sidekick/best friend trope route, but they don't. Everything about Collin and Miles' relationship is important.

Grade: A-

Watched on: Netflix DVD

Memorable Quote: "You monsters got me feeling like a monster in my own town." - Collin (Daveed Diggs)

Indie Gems: Nancy

I'm sorry I wasn't there.

After her mother dies, Nancy (Andrea Riseborough) becomes convinced she was kidnapped as a child after seeing a composite drawing that resembles her on the news. She contacts the family, Ellen (J. Smith-Cameron) and Leo (Steve Buscemi) and puts them in a very emotional situation. 

This was a film I hadn't heard about until the Independent Spirit Nominations came out. J Smith-Cameron is nominated in the supporting actress category, and after watching this film I can see why.

This film was obviously shot on a microbudget but when you have talent like this it doesn't matter if the quality isn't the greatest. When we meet Nancy, she's not someone I warmed up to. I'd describe her as "full of shit" to put it bluntly, but in a strange way Riseborough gets you to almost want her to be right here. Ellen and Leo have been hurting for years, but still remain a strong couple and they are easy to root for. Overall, I just wished happiness for everyone. They all had something weighing on them.

This film has a lot of ambiguity, which won't make it for everyone. But I strongly suggest seeking this little film out. 

Grade: A-

Watched on: Netflix DVD

Memorable Quote: "I just changed the time line." - Nancy (Andrea Riseborough)