Oscars 2019 or The Academy Why so Corrupt?!?!?!?

Oscars 2019 or The Academy Why so Corrupt?!?!?!?!

It has been almost 24 hours since the Oscars has ended. I had time to sleep on the winners, take in the shocks, take in the morning news, and reflect on what I saw. To all the winners congratulations and if your name is brought up it is issues with the current system in place.

The Oscars tends to bring out the worst in my ci ephile friends we can protective of films and actors we love that year. I am no exception. I'll be upfront and honest. Last night it was funny watching Deborah Hildebrandt scream everytime Bohemian Rhapsody won an award. I was preparing myself to how many FBombs might fly with my group of that film won Best Picture. It was the winningest film of the night unfortunately. I think the film should have taken two awards sound mixing and best actor. I am not sure what the voters saw in that film.

I am sure as I write that my mail bag for my birthday and Christmas will be filled with that film im various formats.

That just leads me to questions how does a film get nominated, selected, and win in it's category. Are there improvements to be made? Simply the studios pick who they think should be nominated for each category and then the nomimees eventually get selected from that pool and people from within the industry vote.

So the Oscars biggest problem in our age is that they are controlled by the major studios. It is honestly a corrupt system that leads to holding films back to a certain period for release and allowing the studio to make more money offnofna film the public normally wouldn't see. What happens is simple whether it is intentional or not people get snubbed, nominated for the wrong categories, and the right films don't get the attention.

Let's take a look at a few areas of controversy. The definition of Best Actor or Supporting Actor. When Olivia Colman won last night I was excited for her, but the studio put her in the wrong category. Not Olivia's fault. PS Olivia best speach of the night. Olivia's character was a supporting character in The Favourite. The film centers around Emma Stone's character. Clearly Emma while recognized herself was nominated for the wrong category. Poor Glenn Close sorry girl, but even Olivia knows that award belonged to you. You got snubbed Glenn.

Now to two other categories Best Foriegn Film and Best Animated Feature. Best Animated was created after the controversy that followed Beauty and the Beast's loss and Foriegn Film falls into category of segregation for me to make sure neither style of film wins Best Picture. Yeah in online post I said Roma was not my cup of tea, but that doesn't mean the film was not great because it was I made that clear in my post as well. The film didn't speak to me.

The film that did speak to me was SpiderVerse. Spider Verse was hands down the most groundbreaking film I have seen in almost 20 uears. To give you context I was speechless when I left the theater. The last film to have that effect on me was Dark City.

The two types of films in these categories have never won best picture. It's the hahaha you have your prize go home category because you will never win. Indirectly those categories segregates those films from having a chance. I am not sure if it is time for them to go or not.

What I am sure is the Oscars needs some changes to the system to be more in line with today's world and be more popular with the at home viewing experience.

The necessary changes to the system

1. The selection/nomination process

The Oscars are a global thing and more studios exist besides the big boys. It is time for a vasectomy. Yes a vasectomy.

All nominations should come from approved film critics across the world who work within the industry. After that list has been narrowed down and a committee of film critics narrows down that list of films to an appropriate number. A semi final round will begin of voting with the critics. The top nominations of that semifinal round make the final round.

2. The Final Round Voting Process
This is a 3 way weighted vote
1. Critics their vote counts towards 50 percent of the final votes
2. Industry Workers 25 percent of the weighted vote (Actors, Directors, Producers, and etc.)
3. The public vote
The Academy should take a page from the Rock Hall setup an online vote to where the public can register and vote. Give us the at home viewer a reason to watch the Oscars and a stake in it.

Nobody has seen more than the critics their vote counts the most, but each party has a stake. While at the same time eliminating studio control. I know it's a pipe dream, but its how you find out the true winners.

The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then the Bigfoot

The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then the Bigfoot

Written and Directed by Robert D. Krzykowski

Cast
Sam Elliott - Old Man Calvin Barr
Aidan Turner - Young Calvin Barr
Caitlin FitzGerald - Maxine
Larry Miller - Ed Barr

Opening Thoughts: Growing up in my household, with as as big as a movie fan I am you might be surprised if I told you my mom is just not into cinema. She has only been to the theaters once in the last five years as context. So there are not many actors or films she speaks about. One thing is for sure she doesn't understand my passion for films.

However she will talk about one actor with a passion of love. That actor is Sam Elliott. To my mom, Sam Elliott screams what man should be inside and out. A moustache, hairy chest, and a sense of sensibility few actors have that makes him attractive to  both women and men. Outside of Robert DeNiro, Sam Elliott is the actor I have watched with my Mom.

So anytime I get a chance to experience  a new film with Sam Elliott I cherish those moments. That said watching Sam in a film that appears to be an exploitation is nothing I have experienced before. This may work for him and may not the film seems outside of his wheelhouse.

Well at least the trailer looked fun and hopefully the film lives up to that. The film from that trailer looks like it came from the mind of Quentin Tarantino. I just can't see Elliott in a Tarantino film it's so not Elliott.

Plot: Calvin Barr, an ederly man, is a man who appears to be just going through the motions at this point in his life to survive. Barr, doesn't seem to have a lot of friends and wants to keep his past a secret even from his closest relatives and best friend Ed Barr.

The past is eating him alive from the inside, on any given day you will find Calvin in a dive bar drowning his regrets in liquor. Those regrets, especially when drinking trigger PTSD moments to where he remembers his past like it was happening right now. Calvin as result looks like a sad excuse for a man and an easy target for criminals to take advantage of at his age.

One day on his way home from the bar a group of young hooligans decide they want to mug Calvin and steel his car. What they didn't expect was Calvin to fight back with cat like reflexes. Calvin easily subdues the men, but that moment triggers flashbacks of his past that he wish he never did and regrets.

The next day Calvin finds himself in his younger brother's barber shop. Ed can tell Calvin is troubled, but nothing Ed can do can get Calvin to open up to him. So Calvin is reliving, a period in his life feom the late 1930s to mid 1940s by himself.

That past finds Calvin in a relationship with a young school teacher Maxine. The relationship appears to be one that most of us would long for, but with the United States going into World War II every man wants to join including Calvin. Maxine doesn't want Calvin to join. Calvin is already an accomplished person with musical talent, Maxine knows Calvin doesn't need to join.

Maxine ultimately decides to end their relationship based on Calvin's decision to join the war amd go back to her hometown to teach. Ultimately it's this decision of what if that bothers Calvin years later. Yet Calvin is also bothered by the assassination of  Adolf Hitler he carried out back then.

It is those skills years later that brings the CIA knocking on his door asking him to search, hunt, and kill the bigfoot that is carrying a virus that could wipe out more people than the 1919 Spanish Flu virus. Calvin refuses because he is pacifist that can't live with the blood of another person or creature on his hands. The thing is Calvin is one of the few people immune to this virus and quickly realizes he has no choice but to accept this mission because the fate of the world relies on him not just mankind, but animalkind as well.

As Calvin prepares for the showdown with the bigfoot he finally opens up about his past to Ed. Ed finding it hard to believe supports Calvin and understands this may be the last time he sees his brother alive.

Who wins in the final showdown Calvin Barr or the Bigfoot?

Review: What I thought I might see going into this film, is not what was delivered after I watched the film at the Film Bar Phoenix. With RLJE films attached and the title of the film, I expected an exploitation film. What I saw in the theater played out as a classic western in which a lawman regrets something of his past and must atone for what he felt was his sins years later in order to move on. An atonement that requires that lawman, or some instances a criminal, to come out of retirement despite the fact he or she don't want to.

In alot of ways this film is comparable to Unforgiven or First Blood. Krzykowski should be applauded for this. What Kryz did was give such an outlandish concept, but made it believable as a serious film worthy of being in Sam Elliott's catalog of films. The fact he went this route  makes me excited to see more of his films in the future since this was his directorial debut as feature film director.

Special shoutouts should go to Larry Miller and Caitlin FitzGerald as well. Sam always delivers in his performances no matter how bad his films are. Aidan Turner I have had similar experiences im both film and television with. Larry Miller is a great character actor in films like The Nutty Professor and Necessary Roughness, but he always plays the villain in roles that I have seen him in. I have never seen Miller play sympathetic character that you are supposed to like in a film. It's the first time I saw him break this mold and honestly I want more of it.  Caitlin on the other hand provides a performance that is perfect you love her and you want Aidan to end up with her. You can feel what she is thinking without having to hear her say it. I am hoping she becomes a bigger actress.

The film, including the forest scenes, were shot in Massachusetts. I think the most breathtaking scenes cinematography wise happen in the forest. I wish this sequence longer because of those shots.

That said this film does have its flaws. With Krzy making this a serious film, the design and how the bigfoot scene played out was cringeworthy at times. This is probably the biggest flaw of the film having a bigfoot that didn't seem frightening and an exploitation fight sequence when the rest of the film up til that sequence was serious took the film back a notch or two. The bigfoot throwing up in Calvin's mouth while funny just didn't seem to belong.  The bigfoot looked like tje witch from Henson's Dark Crystal again just out of place.

The other flaws of this film develop in the aftermath of the showdown and unexplored opportunities with Calvin and Maxine when he returned from WWII. I just wish that aspect was explored more.

Final Thoughts: I'm glad I saw this film in the theater. Overall everyone attached to this project delivered. Sure the film has its setbacks, but the good outweighs the bad. As far as 2019 goes, this is the best film off the 27 films I have seen this year in the theater. That said the year is early and I would give this film a 7/10. So as you can see I don't think the film is great, but the film is worthy of watching in the theater and good for repeat viewing. If you can deliver that then as a team you accomplished what uou were meant to. If this was Sam's last film I would be okay with it.

Side News: I  don't know anybody who loves Sam Elliott as much as my Mom does more than Shelly Grant of BS Movies Podcast. I love BS Movies Podcast and while I have influenced both Brian Haas and Shelly Grant into watching films they have also influenced my cinematic journey.

BS Movies wants to take their show on the road throughout cinemas across the nation. Films are a passion of love and that is what they want to share on their road trip. However to share that passion of love it does cost money and they are looking for support to take this show on the road. BS Movies has started a wonderful Indiegogo project with wonderful perks.

To see more about this project visit this link

igg.me/at/bsmovies

Spotlight Look: Happy Death Day 2U

Happy Death Day 2U

Opening Thoughts: It's no secret I love horror films and Happy Death Day, aka the horror version of Groundhog Day. Plus as a bonus Blumhouse has been knocking horror out of the park. The main cast and crew return so the film should have a certain feel a familiarity to it. The only downside I could see happening with a film like this is an outplayed concept and a PG-13 rating.

Plot: Ryan Phan, that Asian roommate from the first film, wakes up in his Kia and slowly makes his way back to his dorm room. On his way there, Ryan just keeps having the strangest things happen to him. Ryan walks in on Tree and Carter making out and gets kicked out of his dorm. Ryan then makes his way to the lab only to find out the Dean is going to shutdown his experiments. A machine that has the ability to open doors to another dimension.

What can go wrong with a machine like that? Well apparently an alternate universe version of him decides to kill him and close the loophole. Thing is Ryan wakes up the next day and realizes he is having DejaVu and enlists the help of Carter and Tree to stop the madness. Only for Ryan, he doesn't have the smarts to stop the madness in an explosion Tree wakes back up in an alternate universe having to live her Death Day over and over again.

Does Tree live? Can the madness be stopped? What is different in this universe? Can Tree make it back to her own Universe?

Review: Happy Death Day 2U as a sequel has its flaws and successes like any sequel would. Quite honestly I found the first 20 minutes boring and somewhat repetitive of the first film. Then all of the sudden it's like Christopher Landon took the Happy Death Day bible and threw it out the window.

Sure the film is a horror comedy, but you are given the explanation of why the day was repetitive. This time they decided to go all out with science fiction aspect to the film that oddly works. The film in many ways ia funnier than the first film and Tree's crew grows into a rag tag team of Big Bang Theory misfits and I love it.

The big flaw with this film was simple the Babyface killer. It was just boring to repeat the killer and in an alternate dimension I knew who the killers were well before we got to the reveal. So I hope with the next film they go with a new killer and a different day.

Final Thoughts: I will leave you with this I think the deaths are better and the makers of the film were not afraid to go all out this time for a laugh.
The issue with this film was a boring start and lack suspense with the killers with me. I do think there was enough explored in this alternate reality that was new and along with new teammates to make fans of the first movie happy. While the film was more outlandish and funnier than the first film the small flaws hold this film back. I really think from the 20 minute point on this is a superior film to the first one especially with science Fiction added. That said the film gets a 6.5 out of 10 from me while the first film is still a solid 7.5 out of 10 for me.

The Legend of Billie Jean

The Legend of Billie Jean

Director: Matthew Robbins
Writers: Mark Rosenthal and Lawrence Konner
Starring:
Helen Slater as Billie Jean Davy
Christian Slater as Binx Davy
Richard Bradford as Mr. Pyatt
Peter Coyote as Lt. Ringwald
Keith Gordon as Lloyd Muldaur
Martha Gehman as Ophelia 
Yeardley Smith as Putter

Opening Thoughts: This is a film I have passed many times on the video rental shelf and in stores to buy. I never had the interest to watch the film because honestly the cover never interest me. Well when you love films this is one of those ones your relatives send you in a set with other films. About my only experiences I remember with Helen Slater was watching Supergirl in the theaters at the age of 5 and a few years later Michael J Fox got the hots for her in The Secret of my Success. That said looking at the box the film does say PG-13 that just came out at that time and maybe trying to push the limits for an MTV Video watching generation. Pretty much the new trend from that era was throw a bunch of pop songs in the movie and make the film one giant music video. So hopefully if I don't like the film at least the music will get me through it.

Plot: Billie Jean Davy is a fun, free spirited, and extremely attractive girl the boys just can't keep their eyes off of. Hubie Pyatt, a spoiled jock with a muscle car, is one of those boys who decides the time has come to get into Billie Jean's pants and make her his girl. Billie knows how to putsmart him and does her best to keep Hubie at bay. The problem for Billie is her younger brother Binx. Binx is a hot headed individual who decides to take it upon himself to protect Billie one day at the beach.

With every action there is always a reaction, Binx's actions get him jump and his MotoScooter stolen by Hubie's gang. Billie tells Binx to stay calm and let her fix the situation. Billie speaks with Lt. Ringwald  of the police and he tells her not to worry about the situation these things are harmless pranks that tend to blow over and the person will give you back the scooter no harm no foul.

Ringwald's optimism doesn't pan out when Binx recovers his scooter damaged beyond belief. Billie pays for the repairs and approaches Hubie's father Mr. Pyatt at his shop to pay for the damages around $600. The thing is Mr. Pyatt is willing to give Billie the money, but only if she repays him with sexual favors.

Billie tries to escape the situation, but Billie is trapped until her Binx enters the store. In complete confusion, Binx shoots Mr. Pyatt and Billie escapes. Binx And Billie along with their friends Orphelia and Putter flee the town in Orphelia's family station wagon to avoid being captured by the police.

Billie becomes the leader of the group as they try to out maneuver the police, FBI, and Mr. Pyatt. The longer their escape goes the more the group becomes folklore larger than life. Thus the legend of Billie Jean is born that all teenagers want to ve.

The question is can these kids avoid being captured? Who will they cross paths with  on the run? Does thing end well for this group or will they meet the same fate as Bonnie and Clyde?

Review: The Legend of Billie Jean has a lot going for the film before even watching. A phenomenal cast across the board that would make you stop. A soundtrack featuring the DiVinyls, Billy Idol, and Pat Benatar. A story that in concept grabs you and makes you want to the film. I certainly enjoyed watching the film, but with all that going for the film there was something just off putting about this film at times.

Most of the offputting things about Billie Jean simply comes down to poor writing or lack of common sense from the writers and director of the film not from performances. To simply put it, there are bang your head against the wall moments in this film not one, but multiple times throught out the film. Sure I have gimmies in just about everything I watch, but the gimmies in the film stretch my patience.

1. Lt. Ringwald is written as a moron in this film. What police officer is not going to take a report and investigate the theft of a vehicle especially if witnessed? Honestly this film shouldn't have even gotten to the point of the kids being on the run from the law.

2. Mr. Pyatt's actions he make him a good villain, but man how does not end up in jail when both the police and the FBI knowingly watch him interfere with their investigation and multiple attempts in trying to capture the kids.

Quite honestly these are unforgivable when you think about it and you just can't look past. You throw in 80s lingo cliches like the interviews with the teenage public watching  the escape and their opinions not being portrayed well either. The filmmakers just didn't do their job in fixing obvious issues even a child could see is wrong.

That is a shame because the rest of the film is great and despite being dated in some ways the film has been become more relevant now then when originally released.

Despite that the film does have a certain charm to it mostly Putter and Lloyd being the redeaming factors. Yet those redeeming factors may not be enough to save the casual viewer from not liking this film.

Final Thoughts: Billie Jean is one of those I like, but because of its flaws I find hard to recommend to people. So if you like my description of the plot watch the film, if not then don't force yourself unless you can catch the film on tv or streaming. That said in the era of the MeToo movement this film has become more relevant today then back when released.

Because of how the film became more relevant now then back when released, I am going to make a rare recommendation in that this film should get remade under the right circumstances. Those circumstances requires the following from me.

1. A female writer
2. A female director
3. A female producer
4. A female cinematographer
5. A female composer

Billie Jean just won't get the justice she deserves unless it falls under those circumstances. I hope this can happen, but only time will tell.

With all this said despite  that I like The Legend of Billie Jean, the fact is I want to give this film a good rating yet I can't. If I gave this film a good rating I wouldn't be true to the film, the viewer, and myself. So Billie Jean you get a 5.5 out of 10.

Severin's All the Colors of Giallo

Severin's All the Colors of Giallo

Opening Thoughts: I blame my love of Giallo films, on my local arthouse theater The Film Bar Phoenix. The Film Bar Phoenix has a unique set of programming every month that has various tracks of programming whether that Cinemania, BS Movies, American Genre Film Archive, Arthouse Society, and more. Name a theater in the world that you can see Spice World, Roma, The Candy Tangerine Man, The Stuff, Deep Red, and Metropolis all on the same screen on the same day? Yes I am spoiled where I live.

So as you can see the variety leads to a journey with many different paths. One of those paths includes Giallo films, Italian Slasher films. Last year alone I saw Deep Red, Don't Torture a Duckling, and The Bird With the Crystal Plumage on the big screen. In a few weeks, I will get to see Martino's Torso on the big screen. All of these are top tier films that make you want to find and explore more Giallo, but where do you start there are hundreds of films to consider?

It's a difficult and somewhat complicated process if you pick the wrong films you might lose your love of all things Giallo. So when Severin-films.com announced an in depth look in the form of a documentary that will take a look into the history of Giallo I got excited. Alot of promises were made with this release mostly hours upon hours of Giallo trailers with Kat Ellinger doing audio commentary, a 2nd disc focusing on Krimi films from Germany, and a 3rd disc that is a cd filled with Giallo music. Not a bad deal at $28 if it lives up to promise. It's time to put on the black gloves to see if this release can survive.

Review: Disc 1 for the most part carries the guts of what was promised that any Giallo fan would love to get their hands on. A full feature length documentary by Severin that features interviews all across the board from the filmmakers and stars of who is still with us along with interviews with historians all giving the background from the humble beginnings in book format to its premiere on the big screen to what Giallo is through the 80s. Some jaw dropping facts from the masters themselves, like did you know the same man who created the creepy doll in Deep Red also created the Alien costume and ET. The documentary really gives you a deeper appreciation for these films.

Now you get to the fun part of the disc 1, the Giallothon. The Giallothon is 82 handpicked Giallo Film Trailers to mark the beginning of the Giallo era to what many people feel is the end of the Giallo's as you know them. Now to watch the evolution Giallo from trailers is great. Yet Severin said there was supposed to be over 100 trailers. Seems to be 19 short of what was promised to us, but my guess is that is because they were counting the Krimi trailers in that amount. The playtime is just over 4 hours and in that time you get to see laughing houses, killer nuns, mutant chickens, and killers on motorcycles. Now if you just want to watch the trailers that is fine, but you do have the option of watching this with film herstorian Kat Ellinger.

Ellinger does a fantastic job of leading you from The Girl Who Knew Too Much the beginnings of Giallo to A Blade in the Dark while not the end of Giallo by any means, but definitely hanging on by a thread then. Kat painstakingly takes the time to describe each film within the trailer talking about actors, directors, plots, and anything else about the film or other projects. Just to hear her talk on Mario Bava, Massimo Dallamano, Dario Argento, and Fulci is fantastic. Kat doesn't hold much back she will be honest if a trailer is misleading. You should be able tell by the end of each trailer with her commentary if you want to add a film to your watch list or not. The good thing is you can watch the trailers individually if you want as well. You can't ask for much more.

Disc 2 I am going to be brutally honest about. I didn't purchase this release for Krimi so it's a nice to have edition, but after spending over 10 hours watching disc 1 I am in no hurry in watching this soon. Plus I already have enough addictions as is with films.

Disc 3 The Strange Sounds of the Blood Stained Films CD Soundtrack

As always a random set of scores on a disc, means you may like some and may dislike others it really depends on your music preferences. You might be a fan of Goblin, but dislike Morricone. In the pictures above I attached a list of songs and their credits you decide for yourself. My personal favorites on there are Ennio Morricone and Bruno Nicolai. This CD is just a nice add on touch.

Closing Thoughts: If you are a fan of giallo or just looking for a reference guide to giallo style horror films this BluRay/DVD/CD set is a steal at $28, but you may find it hurting your pockets in other ways. I own 29 of the 82 films in the Giallothon and honestly I want to own probably around 20 more in this set. So you can understand why I don't want to watch the Krimi part because that can burn even more of a hole in my pocket. I wish the documentary was more in English vs. Italian, but that is just me. Either way it is a fun laugh at times. This maybe the Ultimate Guide to Giallo that comes in a home media format.

Overall 9 out of 10

An In Depth Look at Vinegar Syndrome

An In Depth Look at Vinegar Syndrome 

There are alot of specialty boutique home media labels out there doing a fantastic job. Personally, I love Arrow Films, Redemption, and Anolis Films. That said I think one specialty boutique label deserves a special look at and a moment of your time. That label is Vinegar Syndrome.

VS, how I will refer to Vinegar Syndrome for the rest of this blog, was started by a couple of die hard exploitation film fans in Bridgeport, CT. They decided their goal was to search and recover the rarest and most interesting exploitation films ever made. In some instances, VS was able to obtain the only known existing print in the world.

So without a company like VS, alot of these films would never see the light of day on home media or are receiving their first home media release in almost 40 years. So essentially these were dead films waiting to escape from the grave. In a way, I think the name VS is appropriate for them considering they were named after a process known to film as Vinegar Syndrome.

Essentially it is a process in which the film begins to deteriorate because of the organic compounds in used to make the film and gives off a distinct strong odor from the acetate the same chemical that gives vinegar its smell. Once that deterioration starts you can't stop it. That print will die from vinegar syndrome.

So VS wants to get their hands on these rare and interesting film prints before they die from this disease and are possibly gone forever. VS will be able to scan the film in it and save the film digitally. However, VS's goal in restoration is not to do a super duper over the top restoration that you might see Criterion or Arrow do. The reason for that is if you caught the typical film VS releases when they first came out in the theater you most likely saw the film at a drive in or dive theater. These films were not meant to look like they were made with the best film technology. So VS does no noise/grain reduction and only tries to repair the biggest damage on the print and leaves the rest in there. Sure the films might get some color correction and minor stuff done so they don't look faded, but the idea is minimal is better. Just look at the image from the Candy Tangerine Man above. I just saw the film at the Film Bar a few days ago and the common complaint I get on BluRay releases is films look fake on that medium. I'm not sure with a VS a release that you can tell much difference from a 16mm or 35mm print to that of a VS restoration.

I think that is the beauty of a VS release. Imagine watching Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song at your local arthouse theater. VS's source material was from the original negatives scanned in at a 4K. VS did some minor color correction to make sure the film looked liked it did when released, but for the most part left all the other imperfections in. To the average person, they will think they are watching from a print right off of the projector with most of the imperfections left give the film a luscious color look, but at the same time gritty and rough like sandpaper was taken to it. In most instances I would be complaining, but for grindhouse style exploitation films I think this actually adds more character to the films for much pleasurable and sometimes hypnotic viewing that seems like only VS has mastered.

Not every film needs or deserves or needs the VS treatment, but those that do watch out. VS recently released SHOT on BluRay. I had never seen or heard of the film before. Now normally that doesn't mean much, but this film was shot in Champaign-Urbana, Il. That is my hometown of around 100,000 people or so. Films just don't get made there and the town is extremely proud of its history including that HAL 9000 was made in our town. So you think I would have heard of this film, but nope. What I got to was a rough side of my hometown in a different light. No gangsters that I know of exist there, but it was a
fantastic throwback.

So yeah maybe they have released that rare film made in your own small hometown. That release is special to you.

VS's must own flagship release is Wonder Women. Their logo and theme music is all taken from this film so I highly suggest this release. Other than that, just get films from VS that directly speak to you because honestly not every film is a must own release. You should know by description of the release if you want to buy the film or not.

Being that VS is a small company I highly recommend buying directly from them to support small business. As a benefit from buying from VS directly if you are a slip cover lover you can get a limited Edition slipcover directly from them. Then there is a cool shipping option of having a BluRay shipped directly to you in a 35mm film canister.  You never know what film may be listed on the cannister, mine came in They Call Me Bruce Lee.

Check them out and have fun.

Spotlight Look: The Wild Boys

The Wild Boys (2017)

Written and Directed by Bertrand Mandico
Composer - Pierre Desprats
Cinematography by Pascale Granel
Cast
Vimala Pans as Jean-Louis
Pauline Lorillard as Romuald
Mathilde Warnier as Sloane
Anael Snoek as Tanguy
Diane Rouxel as Hubert
Nathalie Richard as the Literature Teacher
Sam Louwyck as The Captain
Elina Lowensohn as Dr. Severin 

Opening Thoughts: I was supposed to see this film back in September of 2018, but life got in the way. What stood out to me around that time from back then was that when I saw the preview the imagery was like watching an intoxicating hallucination version of J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan. Simply breathtaking and gorgeous. I had to see the film at some point even of I know nothing else going into the film.

Plot: Tanguy, a young boy, finds himself on an island exhausted in a state of panic. To escape the madness, Tanguy tries to commit suicide by throwing a box of explosives onto a fire with him in the blast radius. A few moments later, a group of sailors come upon Tanguy's body and begin to rape him, but there is something odd about Tanguy he appears to have one breast. Why?

Moments later from the agony, Tanguy's life begins to flash before his eyes. Tanguy, a schoolboy, is apart of a gang of 5 individual boys who have a passion for mischief and danger. The gang led by Jean-Louis, the alpha male, have the hots for their Literature teacher.

Jean-Louis plans to rape their teacher in the name of Trevor, a diety they can't control. The boys end up murdering her and stand trial. Each of the 5 boys said she seduced them and they murdered her to protect themselves. Unsure of how to proceed, a Captain of a sailboat says he jas a program that takes troubled individual boys and turns them into docile members of society.

The council agrees to let the Captain take the boys into his custody. The Captain, by himself, takes the boys onto a ship and embarks on a trip to an island. The boys under torture are forced to man the ship in different positions. Jean-Louis at this time decides it is time for the boys to rebel uet fails. It's a rebellion attempt that will keep happening theoughout the film.

When the boys arrive they are exhausted and led to a special spot on the island that has everything they need to survive. Plants that look like cocks in which they have to suck to get the liquid they need and a special fruit that appears to be Rocky Mountain Oysters with pubic hair all across them. The boys are disgusted by this, but are told to stay in this spot while the Captain leaves for a meetup elsewhere on the island. The boys are told to stay in this spot because the island has dangerous secrets that can be deadly.

As the Captain leaves, one boy tries to follow him, but appears to get trapped in a cocoon. What is happening? Will the boys survive the island? Will they be able to fight off the Captain's attempts to make them docile human beings? Who is this mysterious person the Captain is meeting up with? One thing is for sure it is not Tennille.

Review: The Wild Boys marks the directing debut of Bertrand Mandico. So I have seen no previous works to compare this film to and wonder if Mandico will be a one film wonder, but what I can do is compare this film to other films with similar concepts.

Children being stranded on an island and forced to fend for themselves is not a new concept in films by any means. The two best examples are Kinji Fukasaku's Battle Royale and Peter Brook's Lord of the Flies. The Wild Boys shares traits of Royale with the island and how society tries to deal with troubled souls. The film has more in common with Lord of the Flies boys forced to fend for themselves on an island, an alpha dog pecking order, turn of the 20th century setting, and filmed mostly in black and white.

Yet the film also has similarities with Stanley Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange. Like Clockwork their is a psychotic violent youth gang leader who murders a lady of standing. That would be coincidental in itself, but Mandico also uses the plot element of a rehabilitation program to make an individual docile. While you may look at this as a remake of Clockwork, Mandico has done enough to make this film his own to where only a huge Kubrick fan or dedicated  Cinephile will see the similarities.

Yet Mandico's best achievement of this film is how he used beautiful cinematography, use of sets, and special effects that this film is a unique achievement that reminds of Michael Gondry's Science of Sleep just for imagery and Christopher Nolan's Inception because so much is happening in this film that I could literally think The Wild Boys is about something else with each viewing. One thing is for sure there is so much happening one viewing is not enough.

What I can't believe after viewing this film is that it was shot in 16mm. The film in my opinion is the most gorgeously shot film since The Revenant. For a first time director, Mandico has just set a high bar for himself that he may never be able to live up to again.

Should you rush out to rent, buy, or see this film in the theater? Yes and No. I think everyone should see this film, but some of the themes of the film forced feminization, rape, and LGBT may make this film a tough watch for some. If you can't handle LGBT theme movies then this film is probably not for you. If you can't handle feminism and the recent trend of social awareness again I caution. However, if those themes don't bother you should try this film. Either way I will not judge your character for whatever reason if you choose to watch or not. Too much hate in the world already.

One thing should be pointed out the 5 actresses who play the boys in the film deserve a special shout out. While there was that beginning of the film sequence with Tanguy in which you could tell he was playing played by an actress during the rape scene, curves of the body, the rest of the film while I had some sense that was what the visuals were meaning transformational of the body you couldn't tell until the transformation was about to happen. They were believable and that led to the allure of the film.

Closing thoughts: I can see why  some of my friends love the film it was like they took Lord of the Flies, Clockwork Orange, and Peter Pan and threw them in a Blender and ended up with this magnificent piece of Jackson Pollack work. The Wild Boys is truly a masterpiece of perfectly blended hallucinatory imagery, story, suspense, and comedy into one film.

It's only a matter of time before this film becomes a cult classic and a must see film on all LGBT list of great films. Priscilla Queen of the Desert was my favorite LGBT film, but not anymore The Wild Boys is. I would honestly rank The Wild Boys on my top 25 films I have ever had the pleasure of viewing.

For myself, this film is a solid 9.5 out of 10. That shot sequence in the beginning of the film with Tanguy's body being exposed and I could tell it was an actress not a boy gave a little bit away too early. That said you should look out for Anael Snoek the actress who played Tanguy she might just be the next Tilda Swinton.