We Got This Covered
It’s weird to boast so much about the fantastic collaboration between Bloom and Therese, because Teenage Cocktail is a much darker film than my review lets on. Frank is a despicable bastard, but he’s beaten down both emotionally, and physically, by two tweenie lovebirds who act recklessly in the name of schoolyard love. But, we’re drawn in by the genuine nature of both leads, and left elated by their anarchistic romance and dreams of something more. Carchietta’s vision is dangerous, dark, and daringly dreamy, and while some might find minor qualms with the more genre aspects of Teenage Cocktail, it’s still a poignant warning about unchecked, free-wielding emotions.
Variety
Crafting a convincing tale of survival against steep odds in a harsh, unforgiving landscape would seem to be out of the reach of most low-budget independent filmmakers. Fortunately for twin-brother directors Alex and Andrew Smith, they’re able to rely on a key visual effect that won’t show up on any ledger sheet: the mountains around Montana’s Paradise Valley. Gorgeously shot in Big Sky Country, and stripped down to its most elemental components, “Walking Out” strands father-and-son hunters played by Matt Bomer and Josh Wiggins in the wilderness after an accident, and its unabashedly folky, less-is-more approach proves quietly moving.
Variety
If you can imagine a multi-movie-mashup of boardroom suspenser, “Die Hard” redux and zombie apocalypse — well, too bad, director Joe Lynch and scripter Matias Caruso have already beat you to the punch. “Mayhem,” their rousingly gonzo thriller about the violent commingling of infectious disease and corporate malfeasance, is a smartly constructed and sardonically funny indie with attitude that somehow manages the tricky feat of being exuberantly over the top even as it remains consistently on target.
The Hollywood Reporter
Actor Michael Shannon serves as one of the executive producers of this timely drama centering on the romance between a Pakistani and a Mexican-American woman.
