The apocalypse. I love it. I love everything about it, I love the potential for story and human study is presents, I love the whole idea of society crumbling under the threat of some force, and I revel in writing about it. “After” is yet another take on a zombie apocalypse, except this time… it’s through the eyes of a zombie. After a presumably horribly bloody death, three survivors, held up in a large house, draw their attention elsewhere as their father lays in the next room slowly dying. Through his eyes, we watch his last sights as his children run back and forth planning an escape from the zombies outside. He then emerges and begins wandering the house, with his children struggling to fend him off without killing him.
Category Archives: A+ Indie
Hobo with a Shotgun (2007)
Now living as an online cult gem, “Hobo with a Shotgun” has an interesting history. Around the time the craze for the Tarantino-Rodriguez “Grindhouse” rolled around, there was a lot of excitement. Fake trailers, the Grindhouse feel, and two big movies, and then they offered young filmmakers at SXSW a chance to create their own fake trailer to be featured during the actual movie. “Hobo with a Shotgun” won out. Granted, it only was featured in a few theatrical showings across the US, it was praised as one of the few entries to capture that truly trashy atmosphere that made Grindhouse so much fun. And shockingly, Eisener captures the time much better than Rob Zombie’s trailer did.
The Green Hornet (2006)
I still don’t see why it’s so difficult to turn two of the coolest superheroes into a full fledged action franchise to this day. If anyone is more deserving of a movie franchise it’s The Green Hornet and his assistant/sidekick Kato, who, with the right director, can be turned into a blockbuster franchise that could easily be put in the same consideration as Batman.
The Insane (2006)
There’s nothing more exciting for a horror fanatic to watch a film from an undiscovered talent who has a new and original vision for the horror genre. What Ellison and Cripps do is prefer to explore the recesses of the mind and how violence can psychologically alter what we view in our world, and how we view it. Thus, “The Insane” covers some interesting ground in only twelve minutes, and presents a gruesome view of the underworld of crime, while John Vincent goes on the hunt for the maniacs who took his life away.
Random Lunacy: Videos from the Road Less Traveled (2007)
Very few people in life have the ability to drop everything, be rid of all sorts of city life vices, and go on the road to live the life they want to. Very few people actually have the courage to do so, and risk losing their family in the process. Poppa Neutrino is one of those people. He’s a man who isn’t rich or famous, or even that well known, but at the end of the day he can tell us that he’s lived his life how he’s wanted to, and no one can take that away from him. This is the subject of the latest documentary from the directing team of Victor Zimet and Stephanie Silber.
Friday the 13th: Mother's Day (2007)
I’ve seen plenty of fan films in my time. Comic book fan films, Star Wars fan films, and yes even fan films from other movies. Usually they’re made by utterly ambitious fan boys, with a sleek production quality, and yet only really range a running time of 10-45 minutes, with the work done before the bag gets old. “Friday the 13th: Mother’s Day” is probably one of the most ambitious fan films I’ve ever seen—the jury is still out. Not only does it pay homage to my favorite horror franchise of the genre, but it’s based on a teen novel, and runs for about ninety minutes. Suffice it to say, I was shocked when I took a glimpse at the running time for this movie. Ninety minutes? Were they kidding us? No, they were not.
Foxxy Madonna vs the Black Death (2007)
Why did I even long for a Grind House revival, when it was happening right under my nose? You may be surprised to hear this, but I can be a bit slow witted at times. Right now, there are about a hundred young directors creating movies, all of whom are just clamoring to re-invent the Grind House and exploitation genre, and they just don’t get enough of the credit that they deserve for accomplishing what Hollywood has tried so desperately to do. The proof in the pudding is this utterly fantastic production short from Cinephreak Pictures that aces every feeling and novelty you get from a Grind House film, with a touch of Blaxploitation for good measure.