DVD Review: Jonah Lives

Jonah Lives is a good little horror film about a group of bored teenagers who use a Ouija Board to raise the corpse of a murdered man, and then suffer the consequences of doing so. It opens with a close-up shot of Tony (James Barrett), glancing around, frightened, telling his friends that what they’re doing isn’t funny. His friends all have their hands on the planchette of a Ouija Board, and seem possessed, until Tony takes the piece from them and smashes it. The film then takes us to a cemetery, where Jonah Matthias, “Beloved Husband To Zora Matthias,” is crawling out of his grave.

I’ve always wondered, whenever watching a movie like this, how the corpse managed to get out of the coffin. It’s one thing to dig through the dirt – that’s fairly believable – but how did he push the lid open, what with several feet of dirt packed tightly on top of it? Or are we to believe he somehow punched his way through the lid? Either way, it would take a lot of work, and Jonah seems fairly exhausted when he makes it out of the ground.

The film then takes us back to earlier that day, when the four boys are tossing a football around, and the two girls are talking about their relationships. Typical stuff. It’s Friday night in a suburban town, and the kids plan on spending it playing cards and fooling around in the basement, as usual. And of course they make a point of saying they don’t have cell phone service down there once they reach the basement (which you have to do in horror films these days). The girls are bored, and so Francis (Ryan Boudreau) goes upstairs to the main part of the house, where his parents and other adults are having their own party, to retrieve a Ouija Board (after, oddly, handing a young girl a copy of The Bible and telling her it contains all the answers).

Five of the six teenagers are into the Ouija, but Tony warns them not to mess with it. The idea is that with two people, Ouija is just a harmless game, but with six people it becomes something more, that their combined energies could actually have an effect. It’s an interesting idea. Francis tells them: “Six is the magic number…We could even raise the dead if we wanted to.” Francis says a little prayer of protection before they start. What’s interesting is the question of how much of what he’s saying Francis actually believes, and how much of it is just screwing around. I like that we don’t know. Maybe the whole thing with The Bible was just a goof too. He is certainly one of the more interesting characters.

I also like that when the kids start playing the game, they ask harmless questions. Jessie (Aaron Peaslee) asks whether a classmate finds him attractive, and Lydia (Nicole Lasala) asks about a long lost family pet. But soon they contact a spirit who says he was poisoned by his wife, and the teenagers become interested in inviting him over. Lydia says: “Tell us who did it. I guarantee you’ll feel a lot better if you do.” The film actually has quite a bit of humor like that. What I like is that the comedy of this film is kind of subtle and twisted, rather than silly. The film hints at something in Francis’ past, when Tony tells him, “You especially should know about karma,” but unfortunately this is not really explored.

Well, Jonah doesn’t seem pleased with being called from his eternal rest. But with these teenagers and the adult party up in the main house, he has plenty of people to take out his displeasure on. There are some really nice moments and some surprises in this film, such as the way one of the teenagers dies. After each of the first two deaths, Lydia wonders aloud, “What will we tell his mom?” A lot of the humor in this film centers on her character. I love Lydia’s reactions to things. She’s one delightfully fucked up teen.

Meanwhile, Zora, Jonah’s drunk widow, in another of the film’s twisted comedic moments, proposes a toast to her departed husband: “Let it be known in the company of friends that I love you even more now that you’re dead than when you were alive.” By the way, Zora is played by Brinke Stevens, whom horror fans will know from such films as Nightmare Sisters, Teenage Exorcist, Vampires Vs. Zombies and of course Sorority Babes In The Slimeball Bowl-A-Rama. The adult party gets wacky and includes jam session with a tuba.

Jonah Lives is a good low-budget horror film that was certainly influenced by some of the 1980s horror films. The makeup looks great, and there are some shots that should please horror movie fans. It also stars Jocelyn Padilla, Rob Roy and Cesar Periera. It was shot in Fall River, Massachusetts.

Special Features

The DVD contains a few short special features, including a behind-the-scenes featurette that includes shots of some pieces from the Luso American Gallery Of Antiquities which were used as set dressing, as well as footage of the shooting of a couple of the party scenes. It’s only approximately four minutes long. Oddly, there is also a behind-the-scenes teaser. There is also Fall River Celebrates The Arts Screening, which shows the mayor of Fall River speaking before the film, and the actors signing posters after the film, but no Q&A. This is approximately two minutes long.

The DVD includes a teaser trailer and the film’s main trailer, plus trailers for another dozen horror films.

Jonah Lives was written and directed by Luis Carvalho, and was released on DVD on April 21, 2015 through Wild Eye Releasing.

Film Review: Eastern Boys

Eastern Boys is an excellent and often intense drama about a man whose life suddenly changes when he propositions an illegal immigrant. This unusual love story features some excellent performances by Olivier Rabourdin as Daniel, Kirill Emelyanov as Marek, and especially by Daniil Vorobyev as Boss.

The film opens with wide shots of young men meeting on a city street, our view being mainly from above, from a distance, like we’re spying, or like we’re snipers waiting for the perfect shot. It’s kind of eerie, kind of unsettling, as we watch the young men move through the crowd without a destination. But soon it becomes clear what they’re doing, as we see them glancing at older men who walk by them. It’s done without dialogue, just street sounds, but again these sounds are fairly low, as from a distant perspective. And after a while we see them together in a fast-food restaurant, and now the camera – perhaps because of restrictions of the location if not by design – is closer to them, when they are relaxed among themselves. I love how long this opening sequence is allowed to go on. Eventually, we begin following a man as he follows one of the boys. And we’re ten minutes into the film before the first actual dialogue, where the man, Daniel (Olivier Rabourdin), propositions the boy, Marek (Kirill Emelyanov), and they set up a date for the following evening at Daniel’s home. The film then returns to a brief shot of the crowded street, and then a wide shot panning over the city, perhaps implying that this is happening all over.

Then the perspective switches a bit, and we’re with Daniel at his place, just before their scheduled encounter. But when the knock comes at his door, it is a much younger boy standing there, claiming to be Marek. He is inside Daniel’s apartment before Daniel can think, and then threatens to scream if Daniel touches him. Soon the rest of the gang arrives, including its leader, addressed only as Boss (Daniil Vorobyev). Daniel is clearly at a loss as to what to do, and the scene is quite tense as the boys (and one girl) make themselves at home, using his computer, drinking his liquor. They begin dancing, and after a while Daniel gives up and joins them (while boys in the other rooms begin removing his possessions). There is an interesting moment when Marek finally does show up and the Boss leads him over to Daniel. So much is done without dialogue in this film, and particularly in this scene, which is wonderful. The actors are quite capable of expressing their thoughts and feelings with body language and looks. There is a reason for it within the story as well, that being that the boys are from Eastern European countries, and not all of them speak French or English. Daniel watches as the boys begin removing more things from his home, now right in front of him. This scene does go on a bit too long, past the point where it feels tense, and to the point where you begin wondering if the film will move on.

But eventually we get to the aftermath. The camera pans with Daniel’s gaze, and we see, as he does, the state of his home. The film stays with him as he slowly begins to replace his possessions. And we wonder how he plans on dealing with these boys, or if he does. But answering a knock on his door one afternoon, he finds Marek standing there. And thus begins an unusual relationship.

Watching this film, you first feel for the boys on the street, then for Daniel, and then you begin to feel for them both. Which is lonelier? Which is sadder? Whom can we trust? We remain with Daniel for a good part of the film, but we don’t see him outside of his apartment for a long time. We know he has acquaintances and a job, but we don’t see him out. His world is quite small as presented to us. And then, interestingly, the film later takes us inside Marek’s world, and even Boss’ life at the hotel where the gang stays, and we begin to understand where everyone is coming from.

Mostly the film is done extremely really well, without a heavy hand, with the possible exception of the fireworks scene (but that is brief). There may be a few moments when you question why a character is handling things the way he is, but the performances are so good, and the tone is realistic, that you believe these people. And the film takes us in some surprising directions without feeling at all contrived.

Eastern Boys was directed by Robin Campillo. It is presented in English, French and Russian, with English subtitles for the French dialogue.

DVD Review: Antarctica: A Year On Ice

Antarctica: A Year On Ice is an excellent and often beautiful documentary about a part of this world that most of us will never have a chance to visit. The film’s director, Anthony Powell, is someone who has spent a good deal of time there. He grew up in New Zealand, but has worked much of his adult life in Antarctica. People often ask him what it’s like to live down here. This film is in part an effort to answer that very question. And it is a film that took him more than ten years to complete.

In voice over, Powell tells us: “There really are only two seasons in Antarctica: a busy summer, when most of the science happens, and a wild and lonely winter that few people will ever experience. To understand the place properly, you really need to spend one full year down here on the ice.” And as most of will never do that, this film works as a brilliant substitute, giving us a sense of what the place is like, what its people are like, detailing both the dangers and the beauty. The film offers us some facts at the beginning, such as that Antarctica is larger than the United States of America, and that only five thousand people work there in the summer, and fewer than seven hundred remain through the winter.

Early in the film, we are shown people on a plane going to Antarctica, and so it’s as if we arrive with them, experiencing the place as one would who traveled there. It is an exciting way of presenting the film. McMurdo Station is the largest base in Antarctica, with up to 1,200 people in the summer. Scott Base is more typical, with a summer population of eighty people (with only ten there during the winter). The film introduces us to several of the people who live there and work at those bases, with Powell interviewing people who spend the winters there, as well as a few people who only are there for the summers.

All of it is quite interesting, but of course it’s the spectacular nature shots that really draw you in. And there are many in this film, some of them presented without voice over, so we’re able to take the views in ourselves. There are shots of the sky in winter that are just astounding and gorgeous. And yes, there is some wonderful footage of penguins, some of it quite funny. There is also some fun footage involving an Antarctica 48-Hour Film Project. The footage of the icebreaker ship is also great.

Partway through the film, we see footage of folks leaving at the end of summer. And in voice over we learn that when the last plane leaves, that’s it. Those remaining are stuck there for the next six months, with no way out. And that’s when things get really interesting. We learn that winds equivalent to a Category One hurricane occur weekly in winter, and these storms are frightening. The sun sets at the end of April and there is no daylight for four months. Powell and his interview subjects talk about a condition called T3, involving short-term memory loss, which occurs as those winter months drag on.

By the end of those winter months, you feel an affinity for those people on screen. You don’t realize just how strongly you’ve identified with them until the footage of the first plane arriving the following summer. The first time the film provided footage of a plane arriving, we were on the plane. Now the perspective has switched to that of the winter folks, and when the first plane arrives, the people on it are seen as strangers, almost as invaders. And that has become our perspective as well. It’s incredible how the film is able to do that.

Special Features

As you might expect of a film that took ten years to make, there are a lot of special features. There are two commentary tracks. The first is by director Anthony Powell. He talks about his process of filming, and how he got his interview subjects. He gives some very specific information on how he got certain shots. He also talks about how it was important to get an editor who had never been to Antarctica so that there would be a fresh perspective. The second commentary track is by director Anthony Powell along with his wife Christine Powell, who is seen in the film. They married in Antarctica, and there is footage of their wedding.

In Outtakes And Behind The Scenes, Anthony Powell offers more information about the area, such as the surprising fact that it doesn’t actually snow all that often. Ship Offload Time-lapse is footage of the McMurdo Station annual supply ship offload, including an icebreaking ship moving the old pier out of the way. This whole sequence is kind of amazing. A Penguin Ate My Camera is seriously funny footage of a penguin attempting to eat the camera.

Perhaps the most interesting of the special features is Saving Scott’s And Shackleton’s Huts. The Antarctic Heritage Trust works to conserve expedition bases used by explorers Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton, and this special feature is a short documentary on that project, with interviews with many of those involved.

The DVD also includes a radio interview with director Anthony Powell. This is audio only. He talks a bit about his job and the daily routine at the base, and also about the winters and the effect of the cold on his cameras. The theatrical trailer is also included.

Antarctica: A Year On Ice was released on DVD on April 14, 2015 through Music Box Films.

DVD Review: My Little Pony Tales: The Complete Classic TV Series

Long before we learned that Friendship Is Magic, but not long after the first My Little Pony television series, there was My Little Pony Tales. My Little Pony Tales was on for only one season, in 1992. This one is mainly aimed at young children, and unlike the earlier show, features no human characters, but does feature adult ponies, both male and female, along with the children. Like Friendship Is Magic, these episodes provide plenty of lessons for young ponies and people, and also feature musical numbers. Fans of Friendship Is Magic will be happy to learn that Cathy Weseluck directed the singers in this series. My Little Pony Tales: The Complete Classic TV Series includes all thirteen episodes on two discs. Each episode features two stories. The DVD also includes the commercial break bumpers (“Looks like a commercial, let’s check it out”), which is cool.

This series features ponies like Bright Eyes, Starlight, Clover, Patch, Bon Bon and Sweetheart (Sweetheart might remind you at times of Fluttershy, and even has a weak spot for animals in need). Though this series is clearly aimed at young children, every once in a while there is a reference for the adults who might be watching. For example, one story is titled “The Play’s The Thing,” a reference to Hamlet.

The first story of the first episode, “Slumber Party,” finds the young ponies having pillow fights, playing charades and telling ghost stories. Well, actually, there is no ghost in the story, but rather a dragon and a pony named Squire. The ponies get frightened anyway and sing a song about how “Things are not always what they seem,” which was the theme to every story we read in grade school. That episode’s second story, “Too Sick To Notice,” finds Bon Bon acting sick in order to get attention from her family. And there is a little joke on all those 1980s teen magazines.

In one episode, the ponies have a masquerade party, where they are told to dress up as whatever they wish to be when they grow up. Patch plans to be a circus clown while Bright Eyes wants to be an environmentalist, but it’s the one who wants to be a model that gets the song. The second story in that episode has pro-environmental message at one point. Plus, I love the horror movie music cue when Clover’s unlucky teapot shows up.

The second episode has Clover singing a song about indecision: “I find it so confusing to be faced with a decision/I even dread choosing what to watch on television.” The series’ best song, however, comes in “The Tea Party.” Titled, “Boys! Boys! Boys!” this song features lyrics like, “Boys! Boys! Boys!/Most of them make such noise/Ugly grunts and nasty snorts/Some write lovely book reports.” Wonderful. It’s interesting that several episodes deal with girl-boy friendships. In one episode the ponies sing about how to attract a member of the opposite sex: “When a girl is there, act like you don’t care.” And then: “It’s a common fact/Putting on an act/Helps you to attract.” Of course, they eventually learn to be themselves.

The series improves as it goes along, with most of the best episodes being the later ones. The ninth and tenth episodes are two of my personal favorites. In the ninth, the ponies want to see a UFO, and Patch sings a song about desiring adventure in her life. The teacher takes the class to meet a hot-air balloon enthusiast who seems more interested in flirting with the teacher and drinking tea than in teaching the students. “I never discuss ballooning before tea,” he says. Plus, this episode has sharks and Pegasus ponies. And the tenth episode has the ponies searching for an endangered species of bird. They get lost in the woods and survive on what they’ve learned. While fishing, three fall in the river, leading Bon Bon to say, “I guess I’d better go rescue them if we’re going to have any lunch.” This episode has a great pro-nature message about preserving the old forests.

The final episode features two wonderful stories. The first, “Ponies In Paradise,” finds Bright Eyes signing up to be an exchange student for a week on an island. The other ponies warn her about sea monsters and cannibals and hungry volcanoes. This funny, adorable story teaches the lesson about keeping an open mind about other cultures and to not let their differences frighten you. The second story, “Who’s Responsible,” has an environmental message about pollution and littering and has cute lines like, “And anyone who makes school books can’t be completely on the up-and-up.”

Special Features

The second disc contains four sing-alongs, with the lyrics printed at the bottom of the screen so everyone can join in. These songs include the “My Little Pony Tales Theme” from the opening credit sequence, “Sweet Music,” “Boys! Boys! Boys!” (which is the series’ best song) and “The Adventure.”

My Little Pony Tales: The Complete Classic TV Series is scheduled to be released on DVD on April 28, 2015 through Shout! Factory.

DVD Review: Happy Valley

Happy Valley opens with a shot of a quiet, pretty countryside. Soon several cars enter and folks begin setting up tents, and we see that they’re arriving for a football game. There is then footage of Penn State’s head coach Joe Paterno talking about how college football is something special, and he is speaking really of the fans, and as a fan. Then interestingly those opening shots are duplicated, but this time it’s news trucks and journalists arriving and setting up, for the case against assistant coach Jerry Sandusky.

Most of us know about the Penn State scandal involving Jerry Sandusky, but this excellent and completely engaging documentary is not really about child abuse, and it’s not really about football. It is more about the community and how it reacts, both in support and opposition to those who worked with Sandusky, and whether they should have done more to stop what happened. It’s about hero worship, and how we treat those heroes who we feel have betrayed us in some way. It takes a hard look at the seemingly simply solutions implemented to a much more complex problem.

Jerry Sandusky was found guilty on forty-five charges of child molestation, and was sentenced to thirty years in prison. No one seems to contest that. But his conviction in some ways is just the beginning of the story. The larger issue is whether head coach Joe Paterno and others within the Penn State organization knew, or should have known, what was happening, and should have done more. In an area where football is the center of the community, Paterno and Sandusky were like royalty, and that certainly colors and affects the way in which the community reacts.

Jay Paterno, Joe Paterno’s son, talks about how the media portrayed the entire community as being complicit. He says: “The truth is this is not a Penn State issue. It’s not a Joe Paterno issue. This is a Jerry Sandusky issue.” Obviously, others felt differently about it. It seems to me that the official reaction against the Penn State football program (removing all Paterno’s wins from the record books, not allowing the team to play in any bowls for four years, etc.) is absolutely nutty, because of course football isn’t the problem. Why punish the players and fans of a college football team? Rewriting history does not change anything that happened, and also does nothing to prevent any future abuse.

The film does provide background on the careers of both Joe Paterno and Jerry Sandusky, and does get into the charges against Sandusky, so if you’re unfamiliar with the case, you’ll soon be up to speed. The film also includes many interviews, with Paterno’s family members, with his biographer, with a professor at Penn State, and with a student/football fan who makes some valid points. But perhaps the most interesting and the most compelling interview is that with Matt Sandusky, Jerry Sandusky’s adopted son. The story of how Jerry Sandusky adopted him, and how the court ordered Matt away from his biological mother is incredible. But what’s even more interesting is how his story fits into the stories of the others who were abused by Sandusky, and also how Sandusky really did a lot to help the kids. Matt says: “Ninety percent of the time when you were around Jerry Sandusky for me was enjoyable, was things that you would want. But, you know, there was another part also that destroys you.”

Special Features

The DVD includes a PRX radio interview with director Amir Bar-Lev. This twenty-one minute interview was conducted by Andrea Chase, and is audio only. There is a lot of interesting information in this interview. Amir Bar-Lev talks a bit about the film’s music, and the inclusion of an Old & In The Way song at the close of the film, and how his next film is about the Grateful Dead (I can’t wait to see that one).

The DVD also includes the film’s trailer.

Happy Valley was directed by Amir Bar-Lev, who also directed My Kid Could Paint That. It was released on DVD on April 7, 2015 through Music Box Films.

DVD Review: Three In A Bed

Three In A Bed is a sweet romantic comedy about a young man discovering his first real love while also trying to take care of his two sisters. It stars Brennan Reece as Nate, a struggling singer/songwriter who runs a record store and does his best to look after Jay (Verity-May Henry) and Sammy (Coby Hamilton), who have relationship troubles of their own. Jay’s boyfriend, Jase (Jody Latham) has cheated on her, and Sammy has been sleeping with a married man, and so both sisters end up staying with Nate (thus the film’s title). Their mother, when dying, had written Nate a letter telling him to look after his sisters, and it’s a responsibility he takes seriously, perhaps even to the detriment of his own happiness.

Nate meets Jonny (Darren Bransford), a downstairs neighbor who is instantly attracted to Nate. Jonny asks Nate what his type is. Nate replies, “I don’t know.” An honest response, as Nate is clearly not quite sure about who he is in that area just yet. Nate is also unsure about his voice. He wants to pursue a career as a singer/songwriter, but hasn’t yet performed in public, and even as Jonny encourages him, he shies away from performing at an open mike club. This is a young man who hasn’t had time to search for his own identity, as his focus has been following his mother’s wishes. Jonny wants Nate to be happy, to look after himself. “You just have to put yourself first sometimes,” Jonny tells Nate.

His two sisters are in some ways a sharp contrast to Nate, in as much as they are more outgoing, a bit louder. Much of the film’s comedy comes from them. Like when Jay says, “I’m going for a shower, ‘cause I’m really dirty,” her none-too-subtle flirtation with Jonny, who couldn’t be less interested. For in large part, Three In A Bed is sweet, quiet film. The film overall has an honest and natural feel to it, and the characters are quite likeable.

One of the supporting characters that I really like is Poppy (Kimberly Hart-Simpson), Jay and Sammy’s friend, who has a little crush on Nate. In one scene, Sammy and Jay tease Nate after he comes home the morning after sleeping with Jonny (thinking, at that point, that he’s slept with a woman). Poppy looks genuinely hurt and concerned. You totally feel for her, especially in a later scene when Jay tells her to leave and Nate tells her she can stay. It’s a situation we’ve seen before, where she misunderstands his words as indicating a sexual interest in her, but these two actors really make it work. And Poppy is heartbreakingly adorable.

There is another girl interested in Nate, and the scene where she follows him into a bathroom at a club is one of the few things that does feel contrived and unnatural in this film. And that is what leads to a little tiff between Nate and Jonny. And Jonny leaving for a job in France also seems a bit forced. I’d prefer to have the two characters needing to work it out rather than separating at that point. But for the most part, this film has a natural feel, and that is due in large part to the capable cast. However, I would have liked the film to delve a bit deeper into these characters. And I would have liked a bit more with the record store. It seems that Nate runs the store, not just works at it, and his apartment is above it, so we wonder if it was his mother’s shop and he inherited it. Or did he use an inheritance to purchase it? After all, he seems too young to have worked his way up. Though that obviously isn’t the film’s focus, I think this information would have added to the reality of the character and his world.

Special Features

The DVD includes a behind-the-scenes featurette titled 3 In A Bed: B-Roll Footage, which is approximately six minutes of footage including a little bit with Tamara Higgs (production manager) and Adam Shelton (director of photography). There are also approximately five and a half minutes of deleted scenes, including more about Nate’s music, as a scene where he talks with Jonny about his music and his mother, as well as Jonny’s mother. The DVD also includes the film’s trailer.

Three In A Bed was released on DVD on March 24, 2015 through TLA Releasing.

DVD Review: First Period

First Period is an odd comedy about two girls (played by boys) who strive to gain popularity before one of them turns sixteen. It opens with Cassie Glenn (Brandon Alexander III, who also wrote the screenplay) telling us in voice over that her sweet sixteen party is going to be this weekend. “This is the point where I go from being a cute, fashion-savvy girl to a sensual, sexual fashion-forward woman.” We learn that she just moved to town and doesn’t know anyone, but has an upbeat, optimistic outlook. She thinks of herself as a “totally rockin’ superstar extraordinaire.” (Though of course, anyone uses the term “fashion-forward” ought to be shot out of a cannon.) Right away we know this film is a nod to 1980s comedies, but with a twist. Though played by men, the two main characters are female, much the same way that Divine played female characters, not drag characters, in John Waters’ films.

Immediately in the first bit of dialogue between Cassie and her mother (played by Cassandra Peterson, by the way), a tone is established which doesn’t bother getting anywhere near realistic. So we know this is going to be fun, silly, and a bit over-the-top at times. Some of this dialogue is wonderful, as when Ms. Glenn says: “That’s my curious Cassie. Always asking questions. Like, Why don’t I look anything like you? How come I don’t have a father? Why do I look like the girl on the milk carton? Oh, that reminds me, I need milk.” I like these little hints that Ms. Glenn stole Cassie from the hospital (“I’ve never regretted not taking you back”), and it’s all right that this is never really explored.

At school, Cassie goes straight to the popular kids – Dirk, Brett, Heather and Heather (that being a reference to one of the worst 1980s films, Heathers – seriously, try watching it, it’s awful). They dismiss her, but she doesn’t realize it. She then meets and befriends Maggie Miller (Dudley Beene), an awkward, shy girl who becomes her best friend. The two want to become popular before the weekend, and plan on winning a talent show. I love Dudley’s delivery whenever Maggie talks about killing the popular kids. The look on Maggie’s face is perfect.

One of my favorite scenes is the one where Cassie sees her guidance counselor, Ms. Wood (Tara Karsian). Ms. Wood tells her, “You can feel free to talk to me about anything,” and Cassie opens up to her, asking, “When you’re on your period, do you like to aggressively eat Buffalo wings and pretend that they’re people?” Lines like that had me laughing out loud. Cassie also asks her, “Do you think I would do well in prison?” The question is funny, but the serious delivery is what really sells it. And Ms. Wood is fantastic as a counterpoint to Cassie’s demented view of the world.

What’s interesting is that the counselor comes across as a believable, real person, which is what is needed to offset Cassie’s world. But almost all of the other adults in the film are nutty, particularly the teachers like Mr. Klein (Jack Plotnick) and Ms. Mallow (Diane Salinger). Some of it doesn’t quite work, like Mr. Klein having never heard of tampons, which just comes across as stupid. Though I do like his line, “We’re going to learn about the female human anatomy, what’s biologically wrong with it, and one day hope to find a cure.” And the 1950s film strip on womanhood that he shows is hilarious.

When this film is good, it’s very good. There are lots of great lines like, “My mother always says, when a woman’s alone, a man’s probably watching somewhere from a tree, so, you know, look your best.” But some of the jokes fall flat, and some of the film feels like it could be trimmed, such as the fight sequence. But there is a heart at its core. Cassie says at one point, “It’s hard having to constantly remind yourself that you’re special when no one else seems to think so.”

The film takes place in 1989, and there are plenty of 1980s references throughout, including references to Pac-Man and to films like Sixteen Candles, Pretty In Pink, Teen Witch, Die Hard, and Jumpin’ Jack Flash. There is a specific reference to The Breakfast Club, the scene where Claire shows the others her talent. (The film also refers to Ghost, which actually didn’t come out until 1990. And there is a reference to the “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, which wasn’t instituted until 1994.) Of course there’s a montage of Cassie and Maggie trying on clothes. And there is a musical number about life in prison. Enjoy!

Special Features

The DVD has several special features, including a commentary track by Dudley Beene, Brandon Alexander III, Charlie Vaughn and editor Corey Ziemniak. They talk about the cast, the look of the film, and the production. They also mention losing the audio for several scenes, and having to loop them, and they point out insert shots they failed to get.

First Period: The Totally Rockin’ Featurette is a behind-the-scenes featurette, with interviews with Charlie Vaughn, Dudley Beene, and Brandon Alexander III. Charlie Vaughn says they had only ten days to shoot the film, and that he wanted the film to look like a 1980s cartoon. Dudley Beene and Brandon Alexander III talk about playing girls.

There are also three short deleted scenes, including a bit more from the art class scene (which mentions A Midsummer Night’s Dream), and also a song that was deleted from the film. That song is audio only.

First Period was directed by Charlie Vaughn, and is scheduled to be released on DVD on April 21, 2015 through Screen Media.

DVD Review: Population Boom

Like perhaps many people, I’ve long believed overpopulation to be a major problem facing us, and I held that belief long before dealing with the traffic on the Los Angeles highways. It seemed natural that hunger, dwindling resources, global warming, and so on all stemmed from just too many damn people. Population Boom, the new documentary by Werner Boote (who also directed Plastic Planet), provides a much different perspective on this issue, working to dispel this notion of overpopulation.

At the beginning there is some news footage of how the world’s population has grown so much in recent years, from five billion in 1987 to six billion in 1999 to seven billion in 2011, and voice over asks, “Is the world too small, or are there too many people on my planet?” Werner Boote narrates the film, and makes himself a part of the subject, appearing in scenes throughout, as he travels to various countries to see how the problem is being addressed.

He asks Babatunde Osotimehin (director of the United Nations Population Fund), “Would it be better if there were fewer people on Earth?” Osotimehin says it’s a difficult question, because we don’t know the exact number of people the Earth can sustain. It is a difficult question, and one that has been addressed for much longer than I’d guessed. Werner Boote gives a bit of the history of the issue, mentioning that the subject of overpopulation first came up as early as 1789 (that alone should make us take another look at the issue). It’s also come up in some interesting and rather frightening ways – such as the Georgia Guidestones, a monument built in 1980 which reads, in part, “Maintain humanity under 500,000,000 in perpetual balance with nature.” For that begs the questions, “How do we get rid of all the other people?” and “Who decides who is to stay and who is to go?” And in 1974, when Henry Kissinger was Secretary Of State, a memo was issued stating that the top priority for U.S. foreign policy was overpopulation reduction, and named twelve countries that should lower their populations immediately. The film explores the idea that it was an effort for the United States to maintain its dominance, this reduction of populations in other countries.

Werner Boote visits Beijing, China, where, five years after the Kissinger report was issued, the one-child policy was introduced. The film features footage of a wedding, where someone, in his speech, actually mentions the policy, which is weird and unsettling: “We hope that you’re committed to family planning and you observe the one-child policy with the aid of scientific methods in satisfying your parents’ most heartfelt wish.” The film goes into the short-term benefits and the long-term problems of this policy, which is some of the most interesting material.

Boote also takes us to Mumbai, India, where in certain regions women receive blenders or televisions if they have themselves sterilized. An official there talks about how families with two or fewer children are able to use certain government facilities, and Werner Boote asks if that is fair. The official says yes, that families should only have more than two children if they can afford them. I have to agree with that, but of course that’s a slightly different issue. And a man in Kenya makes an excellent point, noting the difference between congestion and overpopulation, and that the problem is poverty, not overpopulation. “Money buys space,” he says.

There are moments when Werner Boote comes across as a bit obnoxious, like when he’s deliberately standing in traffic or in front of a train, or when he stands up in a guy’s boat, nearly tipping it (while the guy is politely asking him to sit down), but he certainly makes us look at the issue in a new light and also ultimately delivers a very positive message, that what matters is not how many of us there are on the planet, but how we treat each other and how we treat the planet.

Population Boom was directed by Werner Boote, and is scheduled to be released on DVD on April 14, 2015 through First Run Features. The DVD contains no special features.