Faults (2014)

Written and Directed by Riley Stearns
Starring Leland Orser, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Lance Reddick and Beth Grant

A down-on-his-luck author and foremost expert on mind control is given one last chance to pay back his manager. To do so, he takes a job to try to intervene with one woman whose parents say has been brainwashed by a group called "Faults". But during the job, his life begins to fall apart more so than it had, as he struggles to maintain control of the woman he was hired to help.

While this would be a stretch to categorize this as a comedy, this film has comedic tones that are rich with Coen Brother influences. The dark, situational humor that the sibling directors have become known for has been attempted by few and achieved by an even smaller amount of film makers. Riley Stearn is now apart of that group.

I can't be sure if the similarities were intentional, but being a huge fan of the Coen's, I was very pleased with how this movie played out. It was dark enough to keep it interesting, but humorous enough to maintain a feeling of familiarity amongst it's viewers. And the cult aspect of the story was just an additional element to make it even more riveting.

This film shows just how truly powerful and controlling a cult can be. And how easy it is to fall prey to their message of peace and tranquility, only to realize that it was a thinly veiled lie to achieve the leaders true goal-- spiritual domination.

While sprinkled with a layer of comedy, "Faults" is pretty terrifying film that is not at all outside the realm of possibility. The realism that this could and has happened to thousands of people creates an exceptionally frightening sequence of events that is fascinating to witness.

My Rating: 7.5/10

Movie Trailer Tuesdays 2/24/15

The Gunman
Directed by Pierre Morel
Starring Sean Penn, Javier Bardem, Idris Elba and Ray Winstone
A former Special Forces soldier and military contractor suffering from PTSD tries to reconnect with his long time love. But first, he must go on the run from London to Barcelona and across Europe in order to clear his name.

To me, this just looks like another "Taken". I'm not sure I feel about it. It's got great actors and it looks action packed. But the story seems tired. Perhaps this one will surprise me, but I'm not going to get excited about it. In theaters March 20th.


Kill Me Three Times
Directed by Kriv Stenders
Starring Simon Pegg, Teresa Palmer, Sullivan Stapleton and Alice Braga
Professional hit-man Charlie Wolfe finds himself in three tales of murder, blackmail and revenge after a botched contract assignment.

This one could go either way. On the one hand, I love Simon Pegg. On the other, all of the gags and jokes in the trailer have been done and overdone. I have faith that Pegg could bring his A-game and make this a decent movie, but only time will tell. In theaters April 10th.

Unfriended

Directed by Levan Gabriadze

Starring Matthew Bohrer, Courtney Halverson, Shelley Hennig and Will Peltz

A group of online chat room friends find themselves haunted by a mysterious, supernatural force using the account of their dead friend.

So this is it… The end of movies… This is an all new low. At least movies like "Paranormal Activity" and "The Blair Witch Project" actually try. This is just lazy. Not to mention, that shot of whats her face shooting herself, that is a technique that would only be used in bad movies. This just looks terrible. Don't get me wrong, I'll still see it. I see everything. Except the movie that shall not be named. This hits theaters April 17th.

In the Hear of the Sea

Directed by Ron Howard

Starring Chris Hemsworth, Cillian Murphy, Ben Whishaw and Brendan Gleeson

The story that inspired Herman Melville to write "Moby Dick", this movie tells the story of the Whale ship Essex. The ship was destroyed by sperm whale and stranded many of it's crew in the ocean. The crew, all in separate life boats, drifted apart. Some resulted to cannibalism, others found land. But they were call changed by the event.

Initially set to be released in March 13th, the release date has been pushed to December. This could either be good or bad. It already had a PG-13 rating, so unless they plan to re-edit it or do re-shoots, I don't think it's to have more time to complete it. What I'm hoping is that they pushed it back to give it a better chance in next years Award season. Meaning they think it's good enough to contend. I have been waiting for this movie since October, and while I'm upset it was pushed back, I'm hoping it was for the latter reason and we have a truly fantastic movie on our hands. In theaters December 11th.

Faults

Directed by Riley Stearns

Starring Leland Orser, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Lance Reddick and Jon Gries

Claire is under the grip of a mysterious new cult called Faults. Desperate to be reunited with their daughter, Claire's parents recruit one of the world's foremost experts on mind control, Ansel Roth.

The trailer makes it seem like a dark comedy in the likes of the Coen Brothers (Yes, I stole that from one of the title cards). If that is the case, that is fantastic news. This looks very interesting and has a ton of great actors in it. It definitely seems like it's going to be weird, but what good is a movie if it isn't weird at all? This hits theaters March 6th.

Come back next week for more trailers!