Saturday, July 29, 2017

This Is Meg (2017) - Movie Review Dan's Movie Report

This is Meg- Cover from the official Facebook Page



Relaxed paced, quirky comedy from the director of popular action shorts 'Broken' and 'Red Princess Blues'. “This is Meg' follows the daily trials and tribulations of a comedian on the fringes of the acting realm looking to book new gigs. Jill-Michele Melean plays Meg and her style and script provide the life of the film.


She interacts with and meets with several emotionally and mentally diverse characters. The impatient casting director, who seems to care less about the audition she is doing.

Her agent is berating, condescending and decidedly Jewish haha. She chats about Meg's social media and scoffs at her list of Facebook, saying what do you have My space to0? She asks her manager for a bite of her food and she says no saying 'you look boxy.” Also she says 30 is the new 50, and basically continues to insult her which is rather hysterical.

A wispy and rather annoying yoga instructor tries to um calm her nerves, after and auspicious start romancing her friend Eric.

Debra Wilson of Mad TV comes in and I swear I thought it was lead singer of Skunk Anasie at first. Her character Sasha is entertaining and animated, obviously with way more experience in emoting. She chats about this mythical love drug Ayahuasca, a tropical root known for hallucinating properties. Debra handles the daunting dialog with ease, and her interaction with Meg is perhaps one of the better scenes in the film.

Having seen documentaries on the use of Ayahuasca the journey Meg and her cohorts take turns weird and silly, with nonsensical gyrations. Actually I did not think this entire scene length was necessary unless used to lengthen the story. It goes on far too long, A 2-4 minute interlude would have sufficed.

After that scene we are given a glimpse into how she adapts. She ends up auditioning with the same casting person again, but with the improv she does amazing. Thus the story roles on in the life of Meg a struggling comic looking to make a splash in the pool of Hollywierd!

The technical aspect of 'Meg' is great with the talents of Alex Ferrari. He not only uses great camera angles to film his subjects, he manages to capture their facial expressions so detailed that the characters do not even have to speak to display emotion. 'This is Meg' is clear, loud, and a verbal wonderland of subtle humor. The lighting on the drug induced sequence conveyed a real sense of mania. The entire sound and editing department is also to be commended for the efforts as well with tight cuts and clear audible dialog regardless of the actors vocal volume. A great effort for such a small budget, makes the film very watchable.

Overall I liked 'Meg', but for the drug induced silliness this would have been an even better flick. 'This is Meg' rates a solid 7 out of 10. The film is a festival darling, and should find a home market in the comedy genre crowd. Watch for Krista Allen, and Joseph David Reitman in some hysterical moments as well. The over the top crazyness of comic Lahna Turner and her pasty wearing sexy self is a salacious sight to behold!

Check out the film on Facebook @ https://www.facebook.com/thisismegfilm/

Alex does a very cool and informative podcast on the trials and tribulations of indie film making called Indie Film Hustle check it out! https://www.facebook.com/indiefilmhustle/


Friday, July 28, 2017

The Assasin's Apprentice: Star Trek stars meet Tarah Paige! Dan's Movie Report

Above photo: Official Facebook page for movie.


Greetings valued Dan's Movie Report readers, my two favorite genres of films Sci-Fi and action! Actors Marina Sirtis and Robert Picardo join star Tarah Paige in this upcoming short film. The Assassin's Apprentice is not a sci fi film of course! Check out this plot:

A master assassin (Robert Picardo) sends his rebellious apprentice (Tarah Paige) on her first solo hit - but things don't go according to plan.
 
Teaser Trailer Original From Indiegogo page.

Teaser Trailer will appear at this festival:
We are pleased to announce that The Assassin's Apprentice teaser trailer has been accepted into the 21st Annual Avanka Film Festival in Avanka, Portugal, playing during July 26-30! Go Team Assassins!
http://www.avanca.com
CINENTERTAINMENT 6, um espaço dos 6 aos 17 anos. Desenvolver uma história e concretizar um filme é o desafio que jovens de várias idades vão encontrar este ano no Festival de Cinema AVANCA 2017.
avanca.com

Marko Zaror 2017 Acting Demo~ Interview Link! Dan's Movie Report!


Greetings valued Dan's Movie Report Readers
MARKO ZAROR has unleashed a new acting Demo for 2017~ 
Check out my exclusive interview on The Action Elite!
Exclusive Promo for Dan's Movie Report!

Thursday, July 27, 2017

Man At Arms - Art of War Series Review Dan's Movie Report



Image from Danny Trejo Facebook page.


Greets valued readers of Dan;s Movie Report. Tonight is the final episode of season 1 of Man at Arms on the El Rey network. The show is reminiscent of older Discovery Channel weapon age shows but with the twist of having a forger making weapons. Host Danny Trejo and weapon's expert Crystal Santos among others test out the weapons on various items of including fruits, human formed gel molds etc...

Where the show gets going is the fact that it seems or it is for the most part unscripted, the weapons are explained, forged then the cool part comes actually in the banter of the various actors on the show once they have the weapon in their hands.

Some weapons, like the three bladed knife, actually appear to cause more damage to the person actually wielding it then the intended target. The great thing about having someone who has 25 yrs of martial arts and weapons training like Crystal Santos on the show, is to watch her adapt to using the weapon, and slowly do the movements while wielding it. Danny Trejo adds cool commentary and the hour show moves fast, with backstory of the weapons and informative parts on forging.

I am very impressed with the controlled environment, lighting, mood,  and they show slow motion hits after full speed. An on set medic describes the locations of wounds and the possible injuries. Overall a great first season, tonight is the season finale and airs on The El Rey Network http://www.elreynetwork.com/

Check out The official Facebook Page of Danny Trejo @ https://www.facebook.com/officialdannytrejo/


Check out The official Facebook Page of Crystal Santos @ https://www.facebook.com/officialcrystalsantos/

Monday, July 24, 2017

One Penny- Movie Review 2017 Dan's Movie Report 8 out of 10!

Above photo: IMDB poster for 'One Penny'


Special thanks to actress Erin O'Brien for the heads up on this film. 'One Penny' is a raw drama that opens with an older homeless man giving a kid sitting on steps a bagel as he walks buy, the kid has no where to go and follows the man, who eventually becomes his defacto protector.

'One Penny' is a creative gem of a film. Producer and writer David A. Melendez and director and writer Michael Devita craft a clever tale of deception. One of my favorite scenes in the film is when Dylan comes upon a shell game scam for money. Harrison Samuels as Dylan, figures their little scam out but hold on, instead of getting the real money he is owed he gets one penny, thus the title. This is like an allegory for life, Dylan represents the poor in society even when he wins he loses.

Being that this is a first film for the creators, obvious time was taken to develop Dylan's complex character, and his interpersonal relationship with his buddy Collin (Will Roland) and his mentor professor Allen portrayed with verve and vigor by Carson Grant. Empathetic Jordan is portrayed with soul and heart by Erin O'Brien. The cool thing here is all of the acting is really natural, not forced, the audience feels the character pain and struggle throughout 'One Penny'.

Towards the end of the film, let us just say, “whoa that escalated quickly”, it was crazy. Normally I do not like the tight shaky cam style of fight filming, but in this case not only does it work, but it adds to the grit and tension of the scene. A high five goes to the stunt people involved and stunt coordinator Erik Aude for crafting what I term to be, “not beautiful” but more random and how a real fight would unfold.

Overall 'One Penny' is a damn fine example of great independent cinema, and rates at solid 8 out of 10. The film has won numerous awards on the Summer festival circuit. For the latest info, check out the official Facebook page.

More info: Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/OnePennyMovie/