Caffeinated Clint
As much as we might hate what’s become of our frighteningly dry paddocks, you gotta keep on watering them in the hope that things improve.
I have days where I don’t feel like playing the game anymore – we work, after all, in an industry of falsified lies and faux friendships – and, to some extent, I’ve jumped into a current by making a bit of a stand (I refuse to suck up; won’t be bought; and will tell it like it is — Paramount never forgave me for ripping “Crystal Skull” a new one; but If I hadn’t, I’d be left with as much dignity as a Danoz Direct Spruiker!) but you can’t go the whole “screw you all!” hog… Not if you want access.
If Kevin Smith were a journalist I’m betting he’d probably refuse to play the publicist game, may even skip media screenings and instead pay to see movies. He’s a man that – for his own reasons – doesn’t like playing the game.
Granted, Smith’s been burnt – like Willem Dafoe’s back from Candle Wax in “Body of Evidence” burnt – quite a few times so hardly surprising to hear he’s extended his finger to the corporates. But extending it all the way? Wow… Never saw that. Is it a good move? I dunno… All I know is, I don’t wanna be in the guys shoes.
Smith screened his new film “Red State” at Sundance tonight. Following the screening he had planned to auction off the rights to the film to whatever studio had the fatter wallet. But in a surprise twist, Smith walked on stage and announced that he would be distributing the film himself! To seal the deal, he handed himself $20.
Said Smith, “What we need to prove is that anyone can release a movie… Indie film isn’t dead, it just grew up. It is just indie film 2.0 now. In indie film 2.0, we don’t let them sell our movie, we sell our movie ourselves.”
Smith plans to go on the road with “Red State” screening it at various cities over the next few months before a general release in October.
How does Smith plan on getting his film onto screens without the pull, power and PR machine of a Warner Bros or Miramax? He’ll rent the flick to Exhibitors cheap. Oh, and on his ‘Roadshow’, he’ll just screen the thing on the back of a Fish ‘n Chip shop wall if he has to.
For the unversed, “Red State” “begins by following three horny high-school boys who come across an online ad from an older woman looking for a gang bang. Boys being boys, they hit the road to satisfy their libidinal urges. But what begins as a fantasy takes a dark turn as they come face-to-face with a terrifying “holy” force with a fatal agenda.”
Thankfully for Smith, the film has turned out OK. Here’s a taste of the more positive reviews :
“A subversive little comic horror film that represents a shot across the bow at extreme fundamentalist bigots but hits a few other targets along with them, Red State is cleverly contrarian enough to get a rise out of almost any audience.” – The Hollywood Reporter
“With ‘Red State,’ Kevin Smith delivers a type of film we’ve never seen from him before; one that’s raw and inventive in its technique, as well as overpowering with its performances. It loses direction and it talks too much — and it’s not an example of master genre storytelling — but Smith gave it a good try, and it’s not a film I regret seeing, nor will it be the last time I watch it.” – Moviefone
“Michael Parks plays the Fred Phelps-styled preacher, and if one thing about “Red State”‘s clang and clutter stands out, it’s his performance. Parks has the poisonous magnetism of a rattlesnake, uncoiling his madness slowly before he strikes. But it takes more than a great bad guy performance to make a great horror film” – The Playlist
