Jess (Dani Barker) is a struggling actress by day and a successful streamer at night. She arranges degrading sexual encounters with men on the internet and secretly films them for her stream. She maintains the men’s anonymity until one day she posts a video not realizing the man’s face was exposed. Jess has an internal conflict: take down the video or capitalize on the clout it’s currently receiving. When she’s invited by screenwriter Tom (Luke Cook) to a remote cabin to both work out the details of a new project while also secretly filming him. But the tables quickly turn as she realizes Tom is not as he seems.
Directed by Sylvia Caminer and written by Dani Barker, Follow Her is a psychological thriller that offers a stern warning about the dangers of streaming and surveillance in our digital age. It taps into the innate fears of the chronically online about sharing too much and being exposed for all to see. The first half of the movie isn’t very engaging and viewers will have to push through to the second half where the psycho-sexual elements really come into play. You’ll also have to suspend your disbelief as there are many red flags the female protagonist misses. If you enjoy thrillers about the digital age, give this one a try.
Bonus for Mad Men fans: Mark Moses has a role as Jess’ father.
Follow Her was screened at the 2022 Nashville Film Festival.
Not all bank robbers are like the ones you see in the movies. Many are petty criminals, just average folks, who are in a financial bind and the idea of a quick payout is just too alluring to pass up. That’s what happened with Johnny Williams. After a stint in jail, he tried to make ends meet for him and his wife Carol as an independent carpet cleaner. When a 1983 car accident sidelined him, he found himself in desperate need of money. Just a few years later he began one of the “longest running strings of unsolved bank robberies in the history of the FBI.” 56 robberies from 1986 until 1994. A slip up landed him and his partner-in-crime Carol in the hoosegow. He got life and she got 20 years.
Directed by Colin Barnicle, Carol & Johnny begins shortly after Johnny Williams was released from jail in 2021. He’s integrating back into society, checking in with his parole officer and living in a halfway house. Carol has been out for years. After suffering from a medical mishap, she continues to thrive with the help of her family and is determined to tell her life story by way of the documentary and a book.
The documentary interviews both Carol and Johnny, as well as the former FBI officer who tracked and finally caught Johnny. It shares the couple’s individual life stories as well as Johnny’s incredible criminal career. The film depends a lot on a “will they or won’t they” element regarding a potential reunion between Carol and Johnny. What the film does effectively is demonstrate that there are two sides to every story and that not everyone is a reliable narrator. It’s not a terribly engrossing film but a good watch for those who enjoy stories about ordinary people in extraordinary situations.
Carol & Johnny premiered at the 2022 Nashville Film Festival.
Lupe (Briza Covarrubias) is a hard-working Mexican-Navajo Diné woman just trying to make ends meet and support her family. When her mother Adamina (Paula Miranda) is hospitalized, Lupe will go to any length to acquire the funds needed for a possible life-saving procedure. Her quest to meet her father Carl (Micah Fitzgerald) and ask for his help leads her on a treacherous journey. Along the way she meets Maddy (Allee Sutton Hethcoat), a gun-toting cowgirl who is on the run from a dangerous cartel. The two form an unlikely bond as they join forces on a roadtrip through the Alta Valley.
Written and directed by Jesse Edwards, Alta Valley offers viewers a classic western style thriller as a platform to share the important story of the Diné people (given name: the Navajo). In his director’s statement, Edwards writes “this project is an honest and heartfelt attempt to make an action film, that starts an essential conversation around colonization, land ownership, and reparations toward Native American people.”
Alta Valley can at times be melodramatic and overwrought. However, its bolstered by interesting characters and its effectiveness as a message film. It explores themes of family, greed, language and land ownership with great respect for the Diné people. It flips the script on westerns of the past while also offering fans of the genre plenty of shoot outs and beautiful cinematography of the vast Utah landscape.
Alta Valley is having its world premiere at the 2022 Nashville Film Festival. Visit the official website for more details on the film.
Jada (Margo Parker) and her friends Sky (Daisy Lopez) and Bianca (Victoria T. Washington) are ready to take the music world by storm. It’s the 1990s and girl groups are all the rage. The Space Girls, as they call themselves, are preparing for an audition in front of an important music exec. They take the stage to perform their newest song and everything is going fine until Jada spots the exec. It’s Landon (Peter Zizzo), the man who raped her at a party months earlier. Jada must face the decision of whether to work with her assailant or to give up the dream she has long worked for.
Written and directed by Josie Andrews, Wannabe is a powerful short film, primed for the #MeToo era while also giving viewers a window into the past. It’s a reminder that these situations have been going on for far too long. The power dynamic in the aftermath of an assault has always favored the man and what Wannabe effectively demonstrates is how rape victims face impossible decisions for how they should live their lives moving forward. The film is a personal project for director Josie Andrews. In her director’s statement she says:
“Wannabe is not just a plea to believe those who have come forward, but a cry to consider the thousands who have not.”
Josie Andrews
I would love to see Wannabe developed into a full-length feature. But it’s also quite potent as a 13 minute short film. The three lead actresses are fantastic and by the end you’ll want to continue following their characters’ journey, wherever it may take them.
Wannabe is part of the 2022 Nashville Film Festival. Visit the director’s website for more information about the film.
The best kept secret in movies these days is the new mystery-comedy Confess, Fletch. Directed by Greg Mottola and based on the novels by Gregory McDonald, Confess, Fletch stars Jon Hamm as a traveling journalist turned rogue detective who tries to solve a murder, an art heist and a kidnapping all while dealing with a cast of eccentric characters along the way.
Jon Hamm in Confess, Fletch (courtesy of Paramount)
Ayden Mayer and Roy Wood Jr. in Confess, Fletch (courtesy of Paramount)
Annie Mumolo in Confess, Fletch (courtesy of Paramount)
John Slatterly and Jon Hamm in Confess, Fletch (courtesy of Paramount)
Fletch (Jon Hamm) has been traipsing about Europe covering the tempestuous world of art. He’s been hired by the Italian Count De Grassi (Robert Picardo) to solve an art heist and meets and falls for the Count’s daughter Angela/Andy (Lorenza Izzo). When he gets word that Harvard art professor Ralph Horan (Kyle MacLachlan) has recently sold two of the Count’s pieces, Angela helps Fletch out by booking him a luxury apartment in Boston so he can further investigate. Upon arrival, Fletch is greeted with a dead body at the apartment and police detectives Monroe (Roy Wood Jr.) and Griz (Ayden Mayeri) immediately suspect him as the murderer. Fletch takes it upon himself to solve the murder, the art heist and the Count’s kidnapping. He takes on numerous aliases and is always one step ahead of the detectives . Fletch must contend with the lustful Countess (Marcia Gay Harden), the drug addict apartment owner Owen (John Behlmann), the pot smoking airhead neighbor Eve (Annie Mumolo), his old boss Frank (John Slattery) and many other quirky characters.
“I loved Mcdonald’s writing — the books are witty, surprising, full of lively, oddball characters and crackling dialogue. And a great, original protagonist: an irreverent, smart-ass investigative reporter as the stand-in for a detective in a murder mystery plot. Between the banter and the investigations, there’s also incisive social commentary.”
director Greg Mottola
Confess, Fletch is pure delight. Jon Hamm is utterly charming as Fletch. He gives the role just the right dose of eccentricity without going too far. In fact, the entire movie does a great job balancing the comedy elements with the unfolding mystery. There are so many funny moments but it never feels cheesy. The supporting players all have excellent roles with their own story arcs and quirks. This really adds richness to the story. My favorites were Annie Mumolo’s Eve, a free spirit who is constant danger because she doesn’t take precarious situations all that seriously. Spotting the quirks is half the fun. These include Fletch’s penchant for taking off his shoes, Horan’s germophobia and love of EDM, Frank’s constant cursing, Griz’s bad luck and Monroe’s grogginess from too much work and being a new dad.
I wish there was more of Angela’s character and perhaps a bit less of the Countess. I felt that balance was a bit off. And of course we could have used even more scenes between Hamm and Slattery (a delight for hardcore Mad Men fans like myself).
As a native Bostonian, I thought the film made great use of on location shooting. The living quarters shown are very luxurious, out of budget for someone like Fletch, but it is adequately explained given the fact that he’s being funded by rich patrons.
Overall, Confess, Fletch is pure comedy gold. Solid storytelling, a great lead, full realized quirky supporting characters and a fun murder mystery plot. And it’s even better on second viewing.
Confess, Fletch is currently in theaters and available to rent or purchase on VOD.
