Okay, this is something new for me. I don't normally review DVD's, and I've never publicized the DVD release of any movie. But I saw "Suspension" at Cinequest (read my review here--first review of the post), I liked it a lot, and the director Ethan Shaftel cared enough to e-mail me kindly asking me to publicize it.
Anyway, it's out on DVD today (May 27th) and you can purchase it directly from the film's website here. It's distributed by Warner Home Video, but if you purchase from their website they get more of a cut of the sales. Not that I have anything against distributors, but if you're reading about the release here, then obviously Warner Home Video hasn't publicized it well enough. So reward the filmmakers by buying direct from their website!
By the way, one extra thought about the film, since it has kinda stuck in my mind since Cinequest. They don't use much CGI, the frozen time effects are done mostly with practical effects and overlaying multiple takes with a locked down camera. Now this can seem downright quaint, especially in these CGI blockbuster times when even the most innocuous shot needs a swooping, motion-controlled camera. A static shot can stick out like a sore thumb nowadays. However, in this movie it completely works for the frozen time effect. When time stops, so does the camera. And besides being a technical limitation, it's actually an effective artistic choice. And if nothing else, the fact that I can still remember details like that about this movie proves it's good enough to stick in my mind (I've seen 93 movies on the big screen since watching "Suspension").
3 comments:
On the subject of DVD releases, might I add the following:
Several beloved Indiefest films of the past have recently (? - actually, I'm not sure when they actually came out) been spotted on DVD..
Murder Party
The Living and the Dead
Jack Ketchum's The Lost
I've actually picked all three up (the first two I snagged while at a Fry's and the last one while hanging out at Amoeba waiting for Funny Games to start at the Red Vic), but haven't had an opportunity to sit down and watch them. I will say that Murder Party seems to have numerous extras including "Extreme Truth: The Making of Murder Party, Valediction in Black (Lexi's Art Installation Video), Outtakes and Bloopers, 'How to Make Your Own Brown Knight Costume', Pumpkin Bread Recipe, and Filmmaker Commentary featuring The Lab of Madness". So I'm definitely looking forward to that.
The Living and The Dead DVD has a making-of featurette, deleted scenes, and apparently a short film by the director.. That should be interesting.
The Lost has commentary and some other things. I almost didn't get it at first (a $28 price tag for one movie is a bit steep), but I managed to find a 'used' (It was still sealed!) copy at Amoeba which I grabbed for 16 and change.
Anyway, just thought I'd update you on that.. Also, I couldn't remember the name of the flick we'd heard about from that guy on opening night at Indiefest (the one we were hoping to get into Holehead this year), but the keyword feature on IMDB (especially when you use "zombie" as the keyword) is pretty damned powerful. Looks like Wasting Away has a release date of July 4th. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1027762/
That is all. Hoping to be able to attend as much of week 1 of Holehead as I can, seeing as the second week will all be in the Little Roxie.. See you there.
pt...
Ira...
D'oh!
Okay, so I didn't fully read the Holehead schedule....
....and notice that we're going to get to actually *see* Wasting Away next week!
Okay... well, that's sweet.
Cheers, dude.
Ira
Thanks for updating those DVD releases, Ira. I'm especially excited about "The Living and the Dead" (and Murder Party, but I already have a screener of that). And I hope "Wasting Away" is as good as it sounds.
There are a lot more DVD releases I could write about, of course. But I haven't decided if I want to take on that much of an unpaid publicity role. I mean, this is just a hobby, not my business. So for now, if the filmmaker or distributor is kind enough to e-mail me (or better yet, send me a DVD), I'll write about the DVD releases as a one-off thing.
--Jason
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