All good things must come to an end and thus day 6 of South by Southwest was my last day covering the Austin based film festival. So being that it was my last day, I went all out and saw four films to complete a six day, twenty-one film journey that I consumed me and made me feel more inspired about film and filmmaking than any other week of my life.

The first film of the day landed me at the Zach Theater to catch Them That Follow, which premiered at Sundance, carried over to SXSW and is the debut film for directors Britt Poulton and Dan Madison Savage. The film follows Alice Englert’s Mara, who is the daughter of a preacher who runs a small community of people that are isolated from the outside world. When she becomes pregnant, it sets off a chain of events that could tear the fabric of the community apart and change their lives forever. The film has a ton of star power behind it that support Englert with Kaitlyn Dever, Walton Goggins, Thomas Mann, Jim Gaffigan and recent Oscar winner Olivia Colman. So with all of this talent, one would assume that the film they are in is worth their time but instead the film seems to waste most of their talent and feels like something we have seen before and can be slow in a lot of parts. The script, which is written by the directors, left a lot to be desired and left their actors out in the cold, leaving them to have to pick up a lot of the slack and thus the film became an exercise in patience and my biggest disappointment of the festival.

Once Them That Follow ended, I grabbed some lunch and then made my way over to the Paramount Theater for the documentary The Boy Band Con: The Lou Pearlman Story. The film, produced by former NSYNC member Lance Bass who also is in the film, is about Lou Pearlman, the man that built the two biggest boy bands in the history of music in NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys and conned not only those bands and many more bands out of millions but also conned investors into various other businesses he owned as well. Anyone that was born and grew up in the 1990’s to early 2000’s will be very interesting in seeing this film because it gives the true story behind all the music you love and the man that manipulated all it into existence. While the film doesn’t do anything to stylistically different than any average documentary, it is a good companion piece to Leaving Neverland because of its conversation about people in power and how they pray on the weak to do what they want them to do. The film will come out later this year on YouTube and I really think everyone should give it a watch because it is a nostalgic yet sad trip down memory lane.

Once the film was over, I jumped next door to the Stateside Theater for The Peanut Butter Falcon, which upon reflection, is one of my favorite films I saw while I was at the festival. The film, directed by Tyler Nilson and Mike Schwartz, follows Zak, a down syndrome kid who escapes from the nursing home that he lives in to go and find a wrestling academy and his favorite wrestler that runs it. While on the run, he encounters Tyler, a fisherman that has burned he last bridge and is on the run from the people that he has crossed. Tyler promises to help Zak out and they set out on an adventure that is extremely charming and moving. Nilson and Schwartz’s script and direction are top notch and you feel completely immersed into this world that they have created and makes you feel that every decision is real and authentic. The cast are on their A game, with what could be my favorite performance from Shia LaBeouf and Dakota Johnson. But the reason to see this film is for Zach Gottsagen’s lead performance, which is the biggest discovery I found at the festival. I don’t want to give too much of this film away but I challenge you to catch this film when it comes out later this year because it’s one that won me over on its charm and fairytale like storytelling that made me think this could be this year’s Mud or Beast of the Southern Wild.

As I left Stateside, I got back in line at the Paramount for my last screening of the festival for the new action-buddy comedy Stuber starring Dave Bautista and Kumail Nanjiani. The film, which is about a cop who hires an Uber driver to get him from point A to B to get solve a big case, was the perfect film to end the festival on. Though I’d love to get into the film more, the film was “a work-in progress” and thus we can’t fully review the film or talk about plot points or moments within the movies due to studio asking for us to wait for a full review till the film is one hundred percent ready. Though the film played all the way through, it was a director’s cut and it will be interesting to see what they keep in and what they cut out in the final theatrical cut. What I can tell you is that Bautista and Nanjiani are comic gold together and are having so much fun and the action in the film, directed by Goon director Michael Dowse, is some of the best that has appeared in a comedy in years. I look forward to seeing the film again and seeing if the next big buddy cop franchise like the 21 Jump Street films.

Thank you for following my SXSW recaps and I am so sad that the festival is over for me. But I had so much fun covering this festival for the website and can’t wait till next year to do it all over again! Continue to follow me on Twitter @ryanmcquade77 for more film coverage throughout the rest of the year.

The weather in Austin for Day 5 of my coverage at South by Southwest was muggy and damp but yet it was the perfect day to stay in the theater and catch up on titles that had already premiered at the festival. Film number one for the day found me back over at the Alamo Drafthouse watching the newest thriller Villains from directors Dan Berk and Robert Olsen. The film follows a couple who are on their way out of town after just robbing their last gas-station before they head to Florida. When the car they steal runs out of gas, they head to a house that is abandoned to look for gas or something to get them back out on the road. But once they enter the house, they realized they aren’t the only ones in the house, and must play a game of cat and mouse in order to leave. The film is a lot of fun and the cast are top notch with good performances from Maika Monroe, Bill Skarsgard and great performances from Jeffrey Donovan and Kyra Sedgwick, who steal the show the moment they come on the screen. I love the world that this film creates and it feels like a great companion piece to last year’s Bad Times at the El Royale, only I like this film more because the themes and overall approach to the story is better executed here by Berk and Olsen and will make for a highly enjoyable discovery for audiences later this year.

After getting out of Villains, I was able to get over to the Long Center, which is one of the premier theaters in Austin, to catch a screening of the Sundance breakout hit Little Monsters. The film follows Stephen Peacocke, who volunteers for his nephew’s field trip after seeing that Lupita Nyong’o is the teacher. But what turns into a regular field trip to a petting zoo turns into an all-out survival when a zombie breakout at the government lab to them goes on lockdown and the zombie outbreak reaches the zoo grounds. The film is a dark, hilarious action comedy in the vein of Shaun of the Dead with some very over the top language like something out of a Scorsese movie. It is a film that feels so real even though we have seen a lot of send ups to action-comedies over the last couple years and the direction of the action scenes are just a strong as the humor. I can feel this become a cult hit with it being a lot of fun to take your friends to a 9:30 screening at night and laughing a lot while also finding a lot of heart from these characters. Little Monsters might not be for everyone, and your enjoyment of the film could be judged by how much you like Josh Gad’s performance in the film. But for me this film was an absolute trip that I could see myself going on again and again like a lot of other films of its style.

My last stop of the day landed me back at the Drafthouse to see Christopher Morris’ The Day Shall Come. The film is about how a preacher of a small congregation starts to be investigated by the FBI, and their efforts to turn him into a home grown terrorists without him even knowing it. The film harkens to the ideas that Spike Lee brought up in Malcolm X along with the comedic timing of In the Loop or The Death of Stalin. It is a political film that talks about what someone will do to protect what they have while also being a film about what we will do to convict someone of something they didn’t even do. The films cast does a fine job, and it takes a while for the film to get going but by the end, the film is so heartbreaking and real that it makes you start to wonder how many of these incidents happen each day. Overall I would recommend the film, though I wish that it was tighter in the script but I liked it overall.

Check back here tomorrow for my day 5 recap and follow me on Twitter @ryanmcquade77 for more coverage of SXSW.

Day Four of my coverage at SXSW didn’t start the way that my other days began because I didn’t see a movie. I was invited to a roundtable discussion run by Leonard and Jessie Matlin to talk about film criticism and bounce off ideas about what makes a critic, how should someone write reviews for film, criticism in general and how to make the internet a more positive place to combat the everyday negativity we read. It was such an enlightening conversation and I got to talk to the Maltin’s after for about twenty minutes and they are truly some of the nicest people you will ever meet. Note to anyone out there going to their first film festival, go to panels or rounds tables because the information you can gather from those events are huge. Also don’t be afraid to talk to people, like the Maltin, because I’ve talked to a lot of people throughout the festival and they have all been so nice and open to speak if they have the time.

So once the roundtable concluded, I made my way back over to The Paramount to check out an “in progress” documentary from Morgan Neville, the Academy Award winning director who last directed the smash hit Won’t You Be My Neighbor. What I mean by “in progress” is that the project is not done by they should be finished with it soon. The project is called Shangri-La and, to my surprise and many in the audience, we weren’t going to be watching a film, we were going to be watching the first episode of a four-part documentary-television show. The show follows the life of one of the most influential music producers Rick Rubin and his one of a kind studio that has housed some of the biggest names in music, as well as some of the best album and songs to come out of all types of genres. The artists that were presents in the document included musicians of The Avett Brothers, Vampire Weekend, Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Lil Yachty as well as director David Lynch, producer Mark Ronson and magician David Blaine. To that this documentary doesn’t have big stars is an understatement but it’s not about the cameos, this film is about Rick and that studio that everyone comes from all around the world and based on the first episode, I can tell this is going to be Neville’s most experimental documentary yet. From what we get in the episode, he really takes a look into Rick’s life with such a visual style instead of words because Rick’s is such a private guy, thus making for some interesting choices. Overall, while I was disappointed it wasn’t a film, I will be checking out the rest of the series once Showtime releases it later this year, even though I know how they are going to end it.

Once the Q&A was over, I got in my car and drove to the AFS (Austin Film Society) theater to catch a screening of actor turned director Logan Marshall Green’s new film Adopt a Highway staring Ethan Hawke. The film follows a just release convict who has nothing to his name because he has been in prison for twenty years for committing his third strike, possession of a ounce of marijuana. One night, as he is taking the trash out at the fast food place he works at, he discovers a baby wrapped up in a bag, cry and coughing for her life. What then ensues is a story about how we should do the right thing and take care of each other regardless of the circumstance, while also being a film that is about second chances, not just for the baby but for Hawkes character too. This is a very good debut by Logan Marshal Green, who really gets the melancholy tone down that he is looking for, and thus leads to a very moving ending. Along with Green’s direction, the score by folk singer Jason Isbell is easily one of my favorites of the year so far and is used beautifully to tell this story and complements the characters. But the star of the movie is also the reason to go see it because just like last year’s First Reformed, Ethan Hawke gives another commanding performance in such a different film and with such a different character. With this performance, I can say with confidence that he is the best working actor on the planet and we are witnessing someone at the height of their acting talents.

Once I was done with Adopt a Highway, I decided to skip out on the headliner for the evening in Good Boys and went to the convention center to see a film that already premiered two nights before in Lynn Shelton’s Sword of Trust. The film follows a couple who comes home to find out what the grandfather of one has left them in his will. What they discover is that all that was left to them was a sword and nothing else. Without getting into spoilers, I will not tell you how the sword plays into the film and its backstory but what I can tell you is that it’s one of the funniest concepts I’ve seen here at this festival. So when the girls try to pawn off the sword, they, along with the pawn shop owner and his assistant, get wrapped in something that’s far over their heads and completely entertaining to watch. The movies script is downright perfect, with humor oozing all over the place and also real moments of sorrow for these characters, especially Mark Marin’s pawn shop owner Mel, who gives the best performance of his career while also bringing his same style of humor that goes so well with this story. It’s a film that also feels super timely considering how it ties in the major reveal of the film with our society and how we consume facts. The film starts off a little slow but once the reveal is made, the movie shines and becomes an unexpected delight and gives another show case as to why Shelton is one of the best comedic directors working today.

Check back here tomorrow for my day 5 recap and follow me on Twitter @ryanmcquade77 for more coverage of SXSW.

John Cassavetes’ acting career is in itself highly impressive, having starred in numerous television shows including Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Johnny Staccato, and Burke’s Law, as well as noted movies including The Killers, The Dirty Dozen, and Rosemary’s Baby. He also appeared in his own movies (some of which stared his wife, the brilliant Gena Rowlands) where he scraped enough money to finance himself through his work, enstalled improvisation to his actors, and shot it in the non-traditional, open flow style similar to French New Wave. Cassavetes is considered a pioneer in American independent cinema long before many others went to form their own production companies that worked outside the Hollywood system.

Cassavetes wrote and directed a dozen films with multiple other unproduced screenplays left behind after his death in 1989. A few are considered superior and astounding works that cut enough into the critics’ ranks at the time; some were panned but reevaluated afterward. Here are among his best works.

Shadows (1959)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1l-SuuOqwA

In his directorial debut, a white man has a relationship with a woman he does not realize initially comes from an all-black family, which shocks them that she is even going out with a white man. Her dark-skinned brothers are struggling jazz musicians who disapprove of her interracial relationship, but she is an independent woman who will not conform with her ways of life. Cassavetes shot this twice; first in 1957, where it was poorly received, and then in 1959, which was acclaimed and won at the Venice Film Festival. The cast were all non-professionals, made on location, and spent an extensive time improvising a young generation that was more open-minded and lively as the beat in a jazz club.

Faces (1968)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmGGXUHvqs8

Marriage Under Fire would be a fitting alternative title about the dissolving relationship between a couple who go off and spend a night with friends drinking and hooking up with others to fill in their sexual needs. This isn’t short and straightforward as his previous film. Faces was presented in various cuts, from three hours at its premiere to the 2:10 cut it had for general release. (That is the case above but the Criterion cut is 17 minutes longer than this version.) The turns in mood never changed as we cut back and forth and witness the couples’ head-first slide into the debacle of a crashing relationship. Even with the grainy black-and-white 16-mm, it is shot in, viewers can pick up on the extensive realism Cassavetes puts on that was virtually scripted, not improvised as Shadows was.

A Woman Under The Influence (1974)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RINU1ngwtQc

In terms of his direction, Cassavetes hit the highest note by letting his wife, Gena Rowlands, play a housewife who suddenly has a mental breakdown, forcing her husband, played by Mr. Colombo himself, Peter Falk, to put her in an institution. The first half watches the slow breakdown of Rowlands’ character and the decision by him to put her in a hospital for 6 months. The next half is how he struggles to handle their children all alone and then watch her come back as only a person held together with bandages. Her deterioration and Rowlands’ portrayal as a mother who is losing grip with reality, even when she’s told to be herself, is something of another range of acting and something right out of Cassavetes’ style that couldn’t fit more perfectly. The same can be said for Peter Falk’s character as the father struggling to keep things together even with the major fracture (“A loose screw,” he tells a co-worker) in the woman he loves.

The Killing Of A Chinese Bookie (1976)

Ben Gazzara plays a nightclub owner named Cosmo (yes, there was one before Kramer) who pays his gambling debt in full to a loan shark, only to fall into debt again after a poker game to the mob. To clean his debt, Cosmo is given the task of performing a hit on a rival bookie, who Cosmo learns afterward was actually the boss of the Chinese mafia in America. Suddenly, Cosmo finds himself double-crossed and has to shoot his way out of his debt. This was Cassavetes dipping into the criminal side of the dark spectrum and explore the uglier side of people. Cosmo is sleazy but he is no hitman, just a fool to go into the red again after just climbing into the black. Through its disorganized feel is a sense of uncertainty with Cosmo’s behavior and how he’s just a second-rate owner not cut out with the really rough stuff on the street.

Love Streams (1984)

https://youtu.be/REQByBHnAZA

Cassavetes and Rowlands play brother and sister, he is an alcoholic writer while she has just gone through a divorce. The writer is on a path of self-destruction that seems almost telling of Cassavetes own personal struggles; he battled alcoholism his whole life before dying. The sister tries to pick up the pieces of her life by trying to help her struggling brother. This was his last film (he technically did one more film, Big Trouble, but he was hired to take over after it started and later distanced himself from it) and is the closest to a mainstream film that he would direct coming out of his own fruition. Two people dealing with the difficulty of love shattered and hammering away is no new story, but Cassavetes takes a sledgehammer when they go off yapping.

https://youtu.be/-0-ZKSSqWys

John Cassavetes is an icon of independent cinema that spawned numerous directors to succeed outside the Hollywood system in order to get inside later for major works. There’s a reason an award is named after him at the Independent Spirit Awards. His ability to finance films on his own, control the rights to them (still owned by his estate), and tell the stories in his style made him a highly respectable figure for those who wanted to seek the same power. He made his acting personal, stripping and rebuilding the performances and threw away the glamour of what the camera sees, keeping a more raw look that was grainy. In its unpolished touch, there is no gloss that shields the bleak in the background or on the faces of his characters. That is the real life Cassavetes wanted and got.

Follow me on Twitter: (Cine-A-Man) @BrianSusbielles