movie review/ discussion of 10 Years

10 Years
Director: Jamie Linden
Starring: Channing Tatum, Justin Long, Rosario Dawson,
Chris Pratt, Jenna Dewan-Tatum

10 Years is a small independent movie about the a group of high school friends getting back together for their high school reunion. It is that one nigh to look back on old memories and also realize if you are still the person you where back in high school or if you have really grown up.

The film acquired such a huge cast of recognizable faces that it can be hard to name everyone without getting into a long boring list but I will highlight as many as I can with some of the major subplots. The story seems to revolve loosely around Channing Tatum's character Jake who has come back with his girlfriend, played by his real life wife Jenna Dewan-Tatum, to see old friends. The one shock to his system is to see his high school sweetheart Mary, portrayed by Rosario Dawson.  Chris Pratt is plays a former jock and bully who decides to apologize to people at the reunion while in drunken stupor, much to the chagrin of his wife. Justin Long and Max Minghella are the class clowns that have risen above their former status. Finally there is Oscar Isaac who went off and back a well known musician and returns to this reunion only to see his friends as well as reconnect with the loner classmate that many people forgot.
Now that I have spelled out a lot of the movie for you I can tell you what I thought about it. All the actors did really well in their roles. Many of the characters are very low key people which makes them easy to relate to in the situations that they are in. This successful portrayal of human interaction is all thanks to writer/director Jamie Linden. Linden isn't a Hollywood heavy hitter but he worked on the screenplays as well as co-produced the films We Are Marshall and Dear John. With this being his directorial debut he does a nice job. There is room for improvement on future projects that Linden may create, like having a film that has a more condensed.

I even though I like the film there is not much reason to go run out and spend $10 on a ticket in the movie theater, if it is released near you. It is best to wait until the film is on Netflix or in a Red Box near you.

Fun Facts
 It appears that this may have been his labor of love project since he put a lot of personal elements into the script. At the screening that I went to last night it was revealed that Linden is a Central Florida native that graduated from Lake Howell High School and went to Florida State University. In the film he named his gave the high school that all the characters went to Lake Howell included the name of local bar that only exists in Orlando but he thought was a chain. 

Brooklyn Brothers Beat the Best as viewed from the Florida Film Festival

One film that I was able to see that had a great music theme behind it came from The Brooklyn Brothers Beat the Best. The film is about Alex, a guy that has reached a crossroads in his current life. Alex has lost everything that filled his life; his girlfriend, job, band and regular gig. With everything on the downturn, Alex is approached by Jim to join him to create a music revolution and tour the country.   Can Alex and Jim really pull off this crazy band and tour?   

  The acting talent in the film was really fantastic and fun. The lead role of Alex went to a relative unknown named Ryan O’Nan, he may be best known for the 2010 festival film The Dryland. O’Nan brought a great collection of emotions to the main character. He made me want to watch him play guitar all night. The eccentricity of Jim was given to the fantastic Michael Weston (State of Play, The Dukes of Hazzard). Weston brought a great combination of man/boy as well as unlikely wisdom that makes you want to be his best friend. There is no one else that could have probably played that role the correct way. Arielle Kebbel (John Tucker Must Die, CW’s 90120) round out the cast as Cassidy, a music loving chic who self appoints herself as the band’s manager. Kebbel did a good job as the girl with a ‘tude who is down for a random road trip and adventure.

   The Brooklyn Brothers is the brainchild of director, writer and star O’Nan. O’Nan, who attended the Florida Film Festival, found this story from pieces of his life but it isn’t autobiographical. He is a musician and played in a lot of bands but didn’t really make it big in the music industry. The idea for the two-piece that he plays in the film with Weston came from a group he saw open for one of his own bands a few years back. The band that O’Nan used as a catalyst for his story, which he befriended, also helped him with the music for the film. Beyond the music O’Nan used stories from his life and people from his life to define some of the characters.

  One thing that I am happy to announce is that even though the Florida Film Festival screenings are over this film has some legs. Oscilloscope grabbed the distribution rights for the film in February so there is still a chance to catch Brooklyn Brothers. Also O’Nan and I believe Weston, they actually played the music in the film, will be coming out with an album soon. 

  One thing that I am happy to announce is that even though the Florida Film Festival screenings are over this film has some legs. Oscilloscope grabbed the distribution rights for the film in February so there is still a chance to catch Brooklyn Brothers. Also O’Nan and I believe Weston, they actually played the music in the film, will be coming out with an album soon. It seems the best way to follow any progress on the film is to check back with their imdb page. 

Good luck Mr. O’Nan and I look forward to the album.

 

Florida Film Festival movie though - Dog Years

Since it has been hard for me to chronologically get reviews up from a day to day basis while I was at the Florida Film Festival I am going to just start posting my blurb thoughts about each films.

Dog Years is a film about two brothers in Tokyo; one teaching conversational English to young Japanese people and the other working on a short-term project. While in the oldest, Elliott, seems to be trying to distance himself from everything around him and in his life, Ben is embracing what ever comes his way. Can these two be able to bond in this country far away from their own?

The film was a labor of love for co-directors, co-writers, as well as stars Warren Sroka and Brent Willis. The film was very fun, funny and show cased a lot of Tokyo for those that did not have any first hand experience. Also the ease of the two having worked together for so long came across on that screen as they played brothers. I recorded part of the Q&A with the filmmakers after the screening and posted it on youtube. If you would like to find out more about the progression of the film and were it may be accepted next check out their facebook page http://www.facebook.com/DogYears. The Florida Film Festival was their world premier but I see more festivals in the film’s future.

Below I have attached what I recorded from their Question and Answer sessions post screening.