Don’t Miss Indies: What to Watch in September
And in a blink of an eye, we move from summer’s blockbusters (refreshingly scary this year), to the beginnings of award season once again. You know it’s really September when half of Hollywood escapes the late summer heat by heading to Colorado, to get a sneak peek of the next year’s Spirit Award winners at Telluride.
But have no fear, if you didn’t grab your gondola ticket to the fest, September still has plenty of indie gems for you. Let’s take a look at what you can look forward to at a theater near you this month.
PREPARATION FOR THE NEXT LIFE
When You Can Watch: August 25
Where You Can Watch: Film Independent Presents
Director: Bing Liu
Cast: Sebiye Behtiyar, Fred Hechinger, Alicher Adill
Why We’re Excited: Based on the 2014 novel by Atticus Lish, Preparation is a drama from Spirit Award winning documentarian Bing Liu (Minding the Gap). This romance pairs kitchen worker Aishe (Sebiye Behtiyar, Kill the Roses) with an American soldier named Skinner (Fred Hechinger, Thelma) on the streets of New York City. As they learn more about each other, their commonalities, trauma and concerns for the future rise to the surface. In an interview with IndieWire, Liu notes the similarity between his mother’s story and Aishe, crediting casting director Jen Venditti (Uncut Gems, Euphoria) for finding first year grad student Behtiyar. “Sometimes, you just see somebody who just has something that’s so watchable and magnetic, and that was very true of her. She has a hard time of not making it real, and so we recognized that right away.” Produced by Film Independent Members Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner, edited by Anne McCabe.
THE BALTIMORONS
When You Can Watch: September 3
Where You Can Watch: Film Independent Presents
Director: Jay Duplass
Cast: Michael Strassner, Liz Larsen, Olivia Luccardi
Why We’re Excited: A Christmas movie in September! In this romantic comedy co-written by Film Independent Member and Spirit Award nominee Jay Duplass (The Puffy Chair) and lead actor Michael Strassner (Modern Family), Cliff (Strassner) breaks a tooth on Christmas Eve. Under the care of an attractive, no-nonsense dentist (Liz Larsen, Madoff), Cliff finds relief as well as a ride to pick up his towed car. As the unlikely pair faces a locked impound lot, their stories begin trickling out, instigating a series of misadventures around Baltimore. Despite the age gap – he’s in his 30’s and she’s a grandma – the two click, helping each other face unique difficulties in their respective lives, from a wedding celebration for Didi’s ex to a comedy show performed by Cliff’s friend, which poses a temptation for Cliff’s sobriety. THR’s David Rooney calls it “a stealth charmer with a low-key ‘After Hours’ vibe.” Film Independent Members Jay Deuby edited and Mel Eslyn was Executive Producer.
HIGHEST 2 LOWEST
When You Can Watch: September 5
Where You Can Watch: Streaming (Apple TV+)
Director: Spike Lee
Cast: Denzel Washington, Jeffrey Wright, Ilfenesh Hadera
Why we’re excited: This crime thriller is the fifth collaboration between Spirit Award winner Spike Lee (She’s Gotta Have It) and Denzel Washington (Spirit Award nominee The Piano Lesson), following bazillionaire record CEO David King (Washington) as his battle to regain control of his music company is interrupted by a kidnapping. Descending to the chaotic streets and subways of New York to deliver the ransom to Yung Felon (A$AP Rocky, Dope), we see the side of King that is a little past it – out of touch, missing the spark of the music that ignited his massive success. The music kicks in as King pursues and confronts the young villain and a rap battle ensues. “Some actors,” said Lee in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, “they freeze up when they’ve got to go against the greatest of the great. But Rocky, he’s from Harlem.”
A SAVAGE ART: THE LIFE AND CARTOONS OF PAT OLIPHANT
When You Can Watch: September 5
Where You Can Watch: Theaters
Director: Bill Banowsky
Cast: Tom Udall, Pat Oliphant, Adam Zyglis
Why we’re excited: Magnolia Pictures founder Bill Banowsky (Starving the Beast) takes his first turn in the director’s seat to showcase the work of Australian political cartoonist Patrick Oliphant (Writer/Animator, Choice Stakes). With interviews and a whole lot of cartoons, Art covers 50 years of Oliphant’s witty observations and critical eye, as well as the history of all political cartoons and their role in public discourse. Variety quotes Banowsky, “More than just the story of Pat’s life and extraordinary career, the film is a call to arms for journalists and citizens alike to speak truth to power in whatever ways they can.”
THE HISTORY OF SOUND
When You Can Watch: September 12
Where You Can Watch: Theaters
Director: Oliver Hermanus
Cast: Paul Mescal, Josh O’Connor, Chris Cooper
Why we’re excited: A mutual love for folk music brings together a Kentucky farmer turned opera singer, Lionel (Spirit Award nominee Paul Mescal, Aftersun) and upper crust musicologist David (Emmy winner Josh O’Connor, The Crown). As the two young men troop through Maine countryside in search of traditional songs, recording them on wax cylinders, along with the voices and stories of the people in the region. What starts as a beautiful project becomes a romance David and Lionel’s bond deepens. “It’s my attempt at a reflexive love story,” says director Oliver Hermanus, in an interview with Ellie Calnan at ScreenDaily.com. Hermanus was inspired by movies like The English Patient and Days Of Heaven.
SUNFISH (& OTHER STORIES ON GREEN LAKE) – PROGRAMMER’S PICK
When You Can Watch: September 12
Where You Can Watch: Theaters
Writer/Director: Sierra Falconer
Cast: Marceline Hugot, Adam LeFevre, Maren Heary
Why we’re excited: From Film Independent Lead Programmer Jenn Wilson:
Do you think about the lives of the people who live on the lake in Summertime? The year-round residents and the newcomers? Sierra Falconer’s debut film started on its journey earlier this year at Sundance. It’s an anthology film in four parts with different characters but all the action is based around the same Michigan lake. The first section is about a teenage girl who gets dumped with her grandparents after her mom suddenly runs off and marries a new man. She’s pretty unhappy about it until she discovers her grandpa’s little Sunfish sailboat, and once he teaches her the basics, she pretty much teaches herself the rest. The next vignette is about a stressed out teen music student who is studying at Interlochen, the arts camp, the third is about a man obsessed with catching the lake’s elusive giant fish, and the last one, a bittersweet tale of two sisters, the younger of which is about to lose her older sister who is leaving for school. All sections are so well cast, acted, and directed that it’s a pleasure to watch it all play out.
Film Independent Members: Sierra Falconer, Writer/Director/Producer; Marcus Patterson, Cinematographer
HIM
When You Can Watch: September 19
Where You Can Watch: Theaters
Director: Justin Tipping
Cast: Julia Fox, Marlon Wayans, Tyriq Withers
Why we’re excited: Oo, a football biopic! No? No. Justin Tipping’s second feature (after Kicks) is a horror movie that mixes thriller and mystery with an extreme pursuit of greatness. Cameron Cade (former college wide receiver Tyriq Withers, I Know What You Did Last Summer) is a dedicated quarterback recovering from a major injury. When celebrity football player Isaiah (Marlon Wayans, White Chicks) and his wife Elsie (Julia Fox, Uncut Gems) offer to train Cameron, things go beautifully. At first. But Cameron’s hopes unravel as he gets closer to Isaiah and what drives him. As Fox put it in a panel discussion reported by Complex, “… if you’re not into sports, you can relate to yearning and wanting… and wanting something so bad and getting it and being like wait.”
XENO
When You Can Watch: September 19
Where You Can Watch: Theaters
Writer/Director: Matthew Loren Oates
Cast: Lulu Wilson, Josh Cooke, Wrenn Schmidt
Why we’re excited: Film Independent Member Andrew Carlberg is an Executive Producer on this first feature from Writer/Director Matthew Loren Oates. Jim Henson Productions created the biological machine discovered by teenager Renee Rowen (Lulu Wilson, The Haunting on Hill House), who befriends the massive extraterrestrial and hides it in her basement. But unlike Elliott’s E.T., it turns out this is not the only other-worldly being who’s crash landed on earth. Jonathan Keyes (Omar Hardwick, Kick-Ass) tries to make Renee face the reality that her new buddy poses a desperate threat to humanity. But what Keyes doesn’t realize is that the threats Renee is already facing are a much more present danger.
CHAIN REACTIONS
When You Can Watch: September 19
Where You Can Watch: Theaters
Writer/Director: Alexandre O. Philippe
Cast: Patton Oswalt, Takashi Miike, Alexandra Heller-Nicholas
Why we’re excited: If your appreciation of the horror genre stems from The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, then you’re in for a treat. The love for Tobe Hooper’s 1974 classic is richly explored in this unique approach to documentary filmmaking. In addition to clips from the movie and behind the scenes footage, Alexandre O. Philippe (Leap of Faith: William Friedkin on The Exorcist) gives his five interview subjects the space to tell their stories all the way through – one after the other. To Nadine Whitney at The Curb, Philippe said, “… Stephen King almost becomes really giddy when he says, ‘I admire it so much,’ and you can see for a few seconds he looks like a little boy who has just discovered something pretty cool.”
DEAD OF WINTER
When You Can Watch: September 26
Where You Can Watch: Theaters
Director: Brian Kirk
Cast: Emma Thompson, Judy Greer, Marc Menchaca
Why we’re excited: This northern Minnesota thriller shows new sides of Spirit Award nominee Emma Thompson (Much Ado About Nothing) and Judy Greer (Jurassic World), each known for their comedic chops. In Winter, we get to see Thompson as an action hero disguised as a grieving widow (Barb) revisiting an important place from her marriage. When she crosses paths with a couple of kidnappers, Thompson goes up against Greer’s desperate villain in a way that The Guardian describes as, “quite outrageously enjoyable.” Like Liam Neeson’s Bryan Mills, Barb also has a special set of skills, though they originate from a very different sequence of life experiences. Leveraging familiarity with the Minnesota winters and outdoor sports like fishing and hunting, Barb is ready to bring the pain.
KEY
Film Independent Fellow or Member
Film Independent Presents Screening, Q&A
Microbudget
Filmmaker or Lead Characters of Color
Film Independent Spirit Award Winner or Nominee
Female Filmmaker
LGBT Filmmaker or Lead LGBT Characters
First-time Filmmaker
LA Film Festival Winner or Nominee
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