Day: September 24, 2012

REVIEW: Pitch Perfect [2012]

Jared Mobarak

“He is a hunter” Anything trying to capitalize on the now waning “Glee” craze and Step Up‘s surprising staying power probably should be dismissed sight unseen. How could a film dealing with the catty rivalries of the a cappella world be anything but an eye-rolling waste of celluloid? This is probably exactly what Universal Pictures thinks we’ll assume because they are throwing all their weight behind Pitch Perfect with an early release in select cities and a Twitter campaign putting one of its stars in the end credits to thank…

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REVIEW: Simple Mind [2012]

Jared Mobarak

“I would tell them that they better look behind them” In the vein of other psychological horror thrillers delving into the dark recesses of the mind, Phil Newsom‘s short Simple Mind captivates above its ultra-low budget. Shot over the course of two days with cinematographer Paul Nameck—his only other crewmember—the film succeeds or fails depending on whether or not you believe the two central characters engaged in therapy session dialogue. If you can look beyond the camera’s poor audio capture and meticulously abstract framing that hides things too well, there…

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