Independent films offer different fare from Hollywood but probably share the same track record in terms of quality. Last night I viewed one of the winners, A Single Shot (2013), featuring a cast of indy all-stars, headed by Sam Rockwell, who received an award from the Newport Beach Film Festival as Best Actor. The ubiquitous William H. Macy, under a ridiculous wig, lends support as a disease-ridden lawyer. Kelly Reilly, whose series The Black Box (cleanse your dirty mind) is about to debut on ABC, plays the main character’s estranged wife. The much praised Jeffery Wright also is on hand. The story is grim and seedy but absorbing. It plays like film noir, although it is set in the Pacific Northwest. The sun is either obscured by trees or clouds, and rain is frequent. The action begins with a fateful hunting trip that leads the protagonist on a downward spiral. Only one instance stretched credulity, and even in that the man had no choice but to do what he did. I loved the closing scene, on which contributors at IMDb were deeply divided. I have a perfect phrase for it, but it would be a spoiler. The film was the fourth full length feature of director David M. Rosenthal, a New Yorker. I am unfamiliar with his others. I will be interested in his future work. Matthew F. Jones adapted his own novel, currently rated 3.5 of 5 by 39 reviewers at Amazon. This was an instance where I missed my old DVD player. I had to watch in letterbox, which I hate. Also, there was no close captioning, and the rural accents were very hard to understand at times. On a scale of five, 3.75. Those who rated it at IMDb were not as enthusiastic, 5.8 of ten.
A federal agency has given the Northwestern University football team the okay to unionize. The administration will appeal. This is likely to drag on in the courts for years. I’m against paying college athletes. I know that academic standards have been lowered and that many pseudo courses and majors exist these days, but a degree still has value. Besides, many student athletes in the major sports programs are frauds, especially in basketball, where it’s often "one and done." The NBA’s developmental league should be expanded to take in such prospects. The NFL gets away with murder, as college football serves as its minor league at no cost to it. If those who wish to be paid win the argument, I wonder if many colleges will drop football and basketball, killing participation as unions often do in the real world.
It was the warmest day of the week, but still cold. I forced myself to work a summer-like shift in length, as the forecast calls for rain the next three days. My thanks to those who bought, swapped and donated books.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Horror Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx
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