Piracy and You

Recently I lost a facebook friend due to us differing on opinions of Torrent sites. He was completely against them, for the sake of the artists losing money due to piracy. Which I understand and respect his opinion, stealing is stealing.

However, how many of us have made mix tapes/cd's? Who didn't rent movies from video stores in the 80's and 90's and make a copy on VHS? Who didn't record episodes of TV shows, movies off television, or sporting events? Aren't all of those stealing as well?

I've always used torrent sites for rare horror films that have been lost to VHS. So many of them will never see a DVD release. With VHS collecting becoming so hip, and tapes going for crazy amounts (some well in the 1000's of dollars), how can a fan get a hold of these films any other way? Besides bootlegs at horror conventions, which is another form or piracy.

If it weren't for bootleg VHS' so many of today's cult films would have been lost as well. Think about any of the video nasties. My collection of films, hard copies, is insane. If these films were to see DVD releases, I'd gladly fork over the cash to purchase them.

Thanks to companies like Camp Motion Pictures, SRS,  and Massacre Video we've seen several SOV (Shot-on-Video) classics be resurrected. With the VHS subculture growing, it's hopeful that we will continue to see more of titles resurface.

While I understand that artists/musicians/film makers should be compensated for their work, and piracy through torrent websites can hurt them.... isn't it a theft to us the fans to have to pay insane prices for VHS copies via Ebay?

Here is an example of a film currently going for $1,699.99: EXTREMELY RARE!!!  This auction is for an ORIGINAL VHS video of WCW Wild in Sturgis 1996. This rare tape was available ONLY through the official WCW fan club of Germany and is hosted by Alex Wright.  This video was produced during Hog Wild 1996.....featuring footage and interviews with Harlem Heat, Jimmy Hart, Arn Anderson, Sting, Rey Mysterio Jr. and MANY others!  First time ever offered on eBay, and never sold in stores!  This was exclusively available only to members of WCW's fan club in Germany in 1996.  This original tape comes with it’s original box too !!

And people will pay these prices. To me this is a form of theft as well, but it happens every day.

It was disheartening to have lost this person from Facebook, and again I respect his opinion, but he had made up his mind about me before I even took the chance to explain myself. Even then, he defriended me. There are no hard feelings on my part, it's just a subject I wanted to touch on.

- Brandon

DEFECTIVE MAN!

http://www.sb-films.com/
http://www.facebook.com/dryanmowry
http://www.facebook.com/defective.man.movie

D. Ryan Mowry's DEFECTIVE MAN! contains all the TROMA and LOW BUDGET PICTURES elements a fan could want: adult humor, comic book style hijinx, nudity, and absurdity... all while managing to find it's own voice and sense of humor.


Paul Alsing, Defective Man himself, has the comic sensibility of Joel D Wynkoop (Dirty Cop No Donut, Truth or Dare, The Uh-Oh Show, and Brainjacked). Bringing this vibrant, over the top character to life without feeling forced or stiff.


TROMA regular Trent Haaga almost steals the show as motivational speaker Ronny Tobins, and the films villain Hevvy Flo's partner in crime. What turns out to be more than just a cameo, Haaga's character has more screen time than said antagonist. Giving a series of inspirational seminars, these scenes are filled with Haaga's natural energy, comedic timing, and natural charm.


The character of Hevvy Flo is brought to life by actress Haylee Nelson. Nelson has some of the funniest, and memorable lines in the film. While this may be her first feature film, Mowry was able to get a great performance without leaving the audience feeling like they were watching a freshmen to acting. I for one look forward to seeing where she goes in her career, and the diversity I'm sure she is capable of.


Spolier alert: Notable to fans of Low Budget Pictures, Billy Garberina (Terror at Blood Far Lake, Taintlight, and Deathbone) also makes a cameo as The President of New Mexico. Chris Seaver himself is given a special thanks for creating the character in the end credits.


There are a few other surprises in store for the audience in the film, and bonus features on the DVD.


While the film has a few technical issues involving audio and lighting, I felt they were so minor that they were so minimal most viewers will not even notice them. Besides, the film itself is so consistently funny and entertaining that you will be too occupied with the story and characters to take note.


Overall, Mowry's first venture into feature films is a complete success. DEFECTIVE MAN! packs the goods that any low budget, comedy aficionado hungers for. Hopefully this film will find distribution soon and be presented to the masses. 


- Brandon Bennett

The Mini-View Featuring Torin Langen

Welcome to the first Mini-View of 2012!

This week I bring you a very ambitious young filmmaker, Torin Langen. His short film TRASH has slowly been making its way around these here interwebs. Below I will include the film itself for your viewing pleasure. Hopefully you all enjoy it as well as I do. Please feel free to share and help spread the word.

Enjoy my friends!
- Brandon

1. Tell us about how your film TRASH came to be? And what kind of equipment you used?

TRASH was the result of desperation. I had just come off of finishing another short and was between projects, which is a situation I hate above all else. I was itching to get something started but didn't want to do anything too lavish, and just wanted to have fun making something cool. At the time, my buddy Zach Ramelan had been making a number of 3-5 minute shorts where he carried out every aspect of production himself, including directing, acting, camera work, editing, etc. As a result, I thought I'd give it a try myself, but what I initially intended to be a 3-5 minute project evolved into something a bit different.

The equipment I've got access to is certainly sub-standard, but for this particular short I think it worked to my advantage. I have yet to upgrade to HD, so TRASH was shot on DV tape with a 12-year-old Sony VX-2000. As far as lighting goes, I was just using a couple clamp lights and some bizarre looking thing that is supposed to emulate sunlight. However, unlike the films it's meant to pay homage to, TRASH was edited with Final Cut. I would have shot myself if I'd tried assembling it tape-to-tape!

2. How long was the process? From conception to filming, and finally editing.

I shot TRASH all over the place. I started shooting it sometime in the middle of May 2011 and finished it in November later that year. There wasn't really a conception period; like I said before, I was desperate to start work on something, so I started shooting before I even knew what it was going to be about (which by the way, is a horrible idea). Also, because I was the only one involved for the majority of the shoot, it was one of those situations where I'd set up the camera, try and frame it as best I could, start recording, then run into frame and "act". Because this shooting process was so frustrating, I'd sometimes only grab a few shots in an evening, get fed up, and leave it for another week or more. However, I edited as I went, so once I finally got all my footage together all that was really left to do was score it. The one thing I did know from the get-go that it was going to be a SOV-throwback, so while i was still shooting I contacted my friend Struan Sutherland (www.bloodthirstymelonproductions.com) to make a retro logo animated logo for my company. I also ended up running the film through a VHS tape to muck up the image quality a bit. If I'd really wanted to I probably could have shot it all over a few days, but it wasn't something that I thought would turn out well or was taking seriously at all. It was really just something to keep me busy until I started a "real" project, although ironically it seems to be the thing I've done that people have enjoyed the most!

3. TRASH truly shows your love of horror, and maybe specifically the SOV subgenre. Who are some directors, and some films that inspired you?

I started getting into SOV movies back in the 8th grade, which was when I saw Todd Sheets' Zombie Bloodbath Trilogy, Jon McBride's Cannibal Campout, and JR Bookwalter's The Dead Next Door (which, granted, was shot on 8mm film, but the spirit was the same!). I'd say the most inspiring thing about these types of films for me was simply that these guys were able to go out and make movies with limited resources, get them released, and create something cool that wound up generating a cult following. I loved the films and still do! Never underestimate the power of a few horror fans, a camcorder, and a wild imagination!

4. What has the reception been like to the film? I know you had a premier, can you tell us how that came about and what kind of response you got?

The reception has really surprised me! Like I said before, it was just a goofy project that I was doing to keep me busy, yet it's shaping up to be one of the more successful pieces I've put together! I think a lot of that just has to do with timing, seeing as it was released in the middle of this whole "VHS-revival" thing that's happening on the indie film circuit. The premiere of TRASH was awesome, the first public screening was on January 6th at one of Horror In The Hammer's Fright Night Theatre movie nights, and it was a fantastic time! I contacted them literally the day after I finished the film, sent them the link, and they booked it then and there! It screened on a double bill with James Bickert's biker-sploitation flick "Dear God No!", which was gloriously offensive and funny as hell! I'd say the best part of the whole night was the audience reaction to TRASH. Heckling is encouraged at these screenings, so luckily I was able to capture all the crowd's audio and will be uploading it synced with the film in the near future. It was really well-received and I've met a lot of great people as a result! Can't wait to do it again!

5. I have in my possession, a VHS copy of TRASH. How many of these were made, and do you plan on releasing any more? 

As VHS has become increasing more collectible, is this something you may continue to do in the the future?

Those VHS of TRASH were made specifically for the premiere as raffle prizes, but I made up a few extras and only 3 were given away at the screening. I believe that only 7 tapes were made up in total, but I'll be throwing more together with actual bonus features on them for an upcoming Canadian horror convention called Shock Stock that I'll be selling at come April. I'll also be making up copies of my other short Case Study 2: Hide and Seek, and my upcoming short Merry Christmas, Daddy, both on VHS and with bonus features. Right now, I'm thinking these tapes will only be sold at this con, but if I have any leftovers I'll have them for sale online. But yeah, the version that you have was limited to only 7 copies. I'd better not see that thing listed on eBay!

6. What is next for you? Another short film, or perhaps a feature?

The plan at the moment is to complete another couple of shorts, then take everything and make an anthology film out of them, currently titled "Scribbles". There's also a possibility that the shorts may be divided up into episodes and air on the local access channel as a series. However, I won't make any guarantees about that as of now since you never really know what might happen down the line, but things are looking good as of now! Anyway, once the anthology's finished, I've got some ideas for another very different type of short I'd like to do, as well as a "real" feature, currently titled Daisy's Daughter. There's tons I'd like to do, but I'm trying not to think too much about that right now and focus on the tasks at hand! There's lots coming though, so stay tuned!

Oh, and since this is my last question, I'd like to take a moment and thank Mickey Conde for his work on the film TRASH, Struan Sutherland for the fantastic Candle Flame Films logo he put together, and all you guys who have watched the film, shared it, or support no-budget indie cinema as a whole!

Many thanks to Torin for being joining us here at The Indie Film Revue!

365 Days of Trailers Day 27

Day number 27 brings you Bam Margera's 2003 indie film Haggard: The Movie.

Based on the true story about Ryan Dunn (played by himself) and his ex-girlfriend Glauren (Jenn Rivell) and how she cheated on him. After the break up Glauren is rumored to have been hooking up with heavy metal Hellboy (Rake Yohn). Ryan enlists the help of his friends Valo (Bam Margera) and Falcone (Brandom Dicamillo) to find out the truth. They do whatever it takes to get the evidence, even if it meant breaking into her house. Meanwhile, Ryan has run-ins with the law and even gets stabbed in the eye with a fork. The movie also includes special appearances by pro-skaters Tony Hawk, Jason Ellis, and Bucky Lasek. - IMDB

Haggard is not your typical Jackass material, as it focuses on actual storyline. Dunn truly showed off his acting abilities, it's sad that he is no longer with us and never got as much work in film as Johnny Knoxville. Dicamillo's character has always been one of my favorites in the film. While not believable, his absurd sense of humor truly stands out. Nothing in this film is award winning, but has always held a special place for me. Watching Dunn go through the mixed emotions of a breakup seemed quite true to life, as if he wasn't actually acting but truly going through those experiences.

I hope you all enjoy and actually give the film a chance.



Haggard IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0298656/
Bam Margera IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0546640/
Margera's Official site:  http://www.bamargera.com/

Days of Trailers Day 26

Day number 26 brings you Rian Johnson's 2006 neo-noir, murder mystery Brick.

The lonely teenager Brendan finds his former girlfriend Emily dead in the entrance of a tunnel of sewage and recalls her phone call two days ago, when she said to him that she was in trouble. Brendan, who still loved Emily, met bad elements of his high-school trying to contact her, and when he succeeded, she told him that she was OK. He hides her body in the tunnel and decides to investigate the meaning and connection of four words, including "brick" and "pin", that Emily told him to find who killed her. Using the support of his nerd friend Brain, he successively meets the small time drug dealers Kara, Dode, Brad Bramish, Laura and Tugger, to reach the teenager powerful drug dealer The Pin. Slowly, Brendan unravels the motives why Emily was killed and plots a revenge. -IMDB


It was Johnson's directorial debut and won the Special Jury Prize for Originality of Vision at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival. Brick was distributed by Focus Features, opening in New York and Los Angeles on April 7, 2006.

The origins of Brick were Rian Johnson's obsession with the writing of Dashiell Hammett (1894–1961), an author known for hardboiled detective novels, and his desire to make a straightforward American detective story. He had discovered Hammett's work through an interview the Coen brothers did around the time of the release of their 1990 gangster film, Miller's Crossing. He read Red Harvest (1929) and then moved on to The Maltese Falcon (1930) and The Glass Key (1931), the latter of which had been the main influence for the Coen's Miller's Crossing. Johnson had grown up watching detective films and film noir, and reading Hammett's novels inspired him to make a film that created the same kind of world. He realized that this would result in a mere imitation and came up with high school as the setting to keep things fresh. Of the initial writing process he remarked "it was really amazing how all the archetypes from that detective world slid perfectly over the high school types". He also wanted to disrupt the visual preconceptions that came from the film noir genre but once he started making Brick, he found it "very much about the experience of being a teenager to me". Despite this admission, Johnson maintained that the film was not autobiographical.

Johnson wrote the first draft of Brick in 1997 after graduating from USC School of Cinematic Arts a year earlier. He spent the next seven years pitching his script but none of the Hollywood studios or production companies were interested because the material was too unusual to make with a first-time director. Johnson estimated the minimal amount of money for which he could make the film, and asked friends and family for backing. His family were in the construction industry, and came into a significant amount of money which they devoted to the project, thereby encouraging others to contribute funds. After Johnson had acquired about $450,000 for the film's budget, Brick finally began production in 2003.

Brick has, to me, a very similar tone as Donnie Darko. It's a film that keeps me thinking, and I notice something new with each viewing. So many tiny nuances to pick up on. Hopefully you all enjoy as much as I do!



Brick IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0393109/
Rian Johnson IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0426059/

365 Days of Trailers Day 25

Day 25 brings you a piece of Canadian horror in Jon Knautz's 2010 The Shrine.

After a young American backpacker goes missing in Europe, a group of journalists link his disappearance to a remote village in Poland. They travel there hoping to get the story, but as they unravel the secrets behind this mysterious village, they are suddenly pursued by hostile locals. Unable to escape, they soon become the next victims of ritualistic human sacrifice. Forced into the gruesome reality of true survival horror, the journalists soon discover that this village hides a much darker secret than they could ever imagine. - IMBD

The Shrine was done by Brookstreet Pictures, the minds behind Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer. Unlike the almost Evil Dead'ish humor of Brooks, this film is straight forward horror. While openly a fan of Brooks, it was refreshing to see the team do something different.

A big part of the seperation in the film is that most of the cast is speaking 'Polish', leaving the viewer wondering about the dialogue being spoken between characters. Which puts you as in the dark as the three main protagonists. (Note: As I do not speak Ploish myself, I can not tell you if they really were or if it was simply gibberish)

Check out the trailer and I hope you enjoy as much as I did!



The Shrine IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1341710/
Jon Knautz IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1394062/
The Shrine official page: http://www.theshrinemovie.com/

365 Days of Trailers Day 24

It's day 24 and I bring you a bit of science fiction with Franck Vestiel's 2007 film Eden Log.

A man wakes up deep inside a cave. Suffering amnesia, he has no recollection of how he came to be here or of what happened to the man whose body he finds beside him. Tailed by a mysterious creature, he must continue through this strange and fantastic world. Enclosed, Tolbiac has no other option to reach the surface than to use REZO ZERO, secret observing cells in this cemetery-like abandoned mine. He embarks upon this journey guided by the roots of a plant, leading the way and the main subject of attention of the REZO. - IMDB

The film was Franck Vestiel's first as a director. Eden Log uses a muted palette. The film is shot with only hand-held cameras in underground locations 60 feet (18 m) below the surface, as well as in a sewer. A gray and blue multilevel set is used in Eden Log, which, according to Vestiel, was designed to "avoid the look of the usual science fiction future [...] The last thing I wanted was for Eden Log to fall into the trap of those science fiction films where the characters live in super-sterile, bathroom-like environments. [...] And I did not want people to be able to date the film by identifying the technology, which is why I have no apparatuses, no dials, no buttons." The surrealistic landscapes of Eden Log were inspired by Vestiel's favorite films, such as Escape From New York and Dawn of the Dead, and comics and literature, such as Frank Miller's Daredevil and Métal Hurlant.

Without giving away too much I will say that the story it self is a sort of a re-invisioning of Genesis and the Resurrection. It's visually beautiful and dirty. It's a film that will force you to think. Throughout the film I felt influences from films such as Shin'ya Tsukamoto's Tetsuo, the Iron man... and E. Elias Merhige's Begotten. These were always pictures that forced the veiwer to think and disect what was happening before their eyes.

Hopefully you all enjoy as much as I did.

IMDB Page: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1087842/

Franck Vestiel IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0895367/