TagWarped Dimension
3 stories
Film FestivalsIndieMoviesReviews
If you are in the mood for something decidedly different and altogether intriguing, give writer/director Alexander Roman’s neo-noir mystery The Black Market: San Francisco (ASMR) a whirl. It’s a modern take on classic mysteries using autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR) elements to engage viewers deeper into the proceedings. Besides offering what the store name promises, San Francisco business O’Hara’s Art Gallery & Rare Books also sidelines in hot items and organ transplants. Elsa (Christina Ros) is the face of the retail business, and works the behind-the-scenes illegal businesses with Jess (Stevie Vallejo) and Ava (Max Reeves). When Jess’s father, ringleader Boss Joe (David L. Klein), finds himself needing an organ transplant quickly, he finds it isn’t easy locating a donor as forces work against him. Side plots include a retired judge turned writer and someone he sentenced to jail time, and a detective suspicious of the goings-on at the bookstore who takes a personal interest in Elsa. Briefly, ASMR is
Continue reading →
Film Festivals
Writer/director John Darbonne has created a new type of supernatural entity, one that doesn’t let the humans it encounters know of clear rules involving it. This leads to mystery and confusion for both the characters in Companion and, to some extent, viewers, as well. Mind games, duplicity, and deceit rule the world of this film, which has a decidedly grim edge to it. Gus (Marcus Anthony) and Ella (Anna Flynn) Grace are a married couple who viewers meet three years after a war and in the throes of an apocalypse. Since that time, entities called companions have inhabited the world, seeking out those who show fear. Companions look like some other-dimensional cross between the dead from Carnival of Souls and zombies. The Preacher (Eric Hanson) and two sidekicks burst onto the scene, gravely injuring Gus and brutalizing Ella. Just as quickly as the villainous trio showed up, Abner (Russell Shealy) arrives, and he has reasons to hunt down The Preacher.
Continue reading →
Film FestivalsReviews
Phone app horror and the newer trend of Zoom-based fear fare meet in The Cloud, an anthology film from San Francisco’s Awesome Theatre group. Created and curated by Awesome Theatre’s Artistic Director Colin Johnson, the film features a good deal of tension and some solid performances. A new, invitation-only app called ReKomoZe is not only addictive in the usual sense — it also won’t let users quit without dire consequences. It’s also more intrusive than its downloaders could ever imagine. In The Cloud’s main thread, Eric (Marc Abrigo) and Lacey (Sonia Sawkar) become concerned about their friend Jules (Puja Tolton), who has been using ReKomoZe and is now withdrawn. As Eric begins some online sleuthing, the app creeps into his life as well as Lacey’s. All three actors turn in nifty work, and the mystery build pays off handsomely. In the first installment, “Dolores,” — written by Alexandria Love and directed by Nikki Meñez — celebrity vlogger Kennedi (Sharon Shao)
Continue reading →
More from Warped Dimension
Film FestivalsIndieMoviesReviews
If you are in the mood for something decidedly different and altogether intriguing, give writer/director Alexander Roman’s neo-noir mystery The Black Market: San Francisco (ASMR) a whirl. It’s a modern take on classic mysteries using autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR) elements to engage viewers deeper into the proceedings. Besides offering what the store name promises, San Francisco business O’Hara’s Art Gallery & Rare Books also sidelines in hot items and organ transplants. Elsa (Christina Ros) is the face of the retail business, and works the behind-the-scenes illegal businesses with Jess (Stevie Vallejo) and Ava (Max Reeves). When Jess’s father, ringleader Boss Joe (David L. Klein), finds himself needing an organ transplant quickly, he finds it isn’t easy locating a donor as forces work against him. Side plots include a retired judge turned writer and someone he sentenced to jail time, and a detective suspicious of the goings-on at the bookstore who takes a personal interest in Elsa. Briefly, ASMR is
Continue reading →
Film Festivals
Writer/director John Darbonne has created a new type of supernatural entity, one that doesn’t let the humans it encounters know of clear rules involving it. This leads to mystery and confusion for both the characters in Companion and, to some extent, viewers, as well. Mind games, duplicity, and deceit rule the world of this film, which has a decidedly grim edge to it. Gus (Marcus Anthony) and Ella (Anna Flynn) Grace are a married couple who viewers meet three years after a war and in the throes of an apocalypse. Since that time, entities called companions have inhabited the world, seeking out those who show fear. Companions look like some other-dimensional cross between the dead from Carnival of Souls and zombies. The Preacher (Eric Hanson) and two sidekicks burst onto the scene, gravely injuring Gus and brutalizing Ella. Just as quickly as the villainous trio showed up, Abner (Russell Shealy) arrives, and he has reasons to hunt down The Preacher.
Continue reading →
Film FestivalsReviews
Phone app horror and the newer trend of Zoom-based fear fare meet in The Cloud, an anthology film from San Francisco’s Awesome Theatre group. Created and curated by Awesome Theatre’s Artistic Director Colin Johnson, the film features a good deal of tension and some solid performances. A new, invitation-only app called ReKomoZe is not only addictive in the usual sense — it also won’t let users quit without dire consequences. It’s also more intrusive than its downloaders could ever imagine. In The Cloud’s main thread, Eric (Marc Abrigo) and Lacey (Sonia Sawkar) become concerned about their friend Jules (Puja Tolton), who has been using ReKomoZe and is now withdrawn. As Eric begins some online sleuthing, the app creeps into his life as well as Lacey’s. All three actors turn in nifty work, and the mystery build pays off handsomely. In the first installment, “Dolores,” — written by Alexandria Love and directed by Nikki Meñez — celebrity vlogger Kennedi (Sharon Shao)
Continue reading →
