Movie Review - The Indian (2007)

directed by James R. Gorrie featuring Matt Dallas, Sal Landi, Jane Higginson, Alison Haislip

The Indian is a story about a rebellious teenager Danny (Matt Dallas), who is raised by his aunt after the death of his mother, and the abandonment of his father Skip (Sal Landi). When Skip learns that he needs a partial-liver transplant, he returns to make amends with his only hope of a donor, his grown son Danny. The title is of an old motorcycle (the 17 Indian) that Skip's father had hoped to rebuild with his son, but Skip never had the time of day. Skip finds the pieces and hopes to win Danny over, seeing Danny's interest in bikes. The movie is worth a watch, I definitely enjoyed it -- and not just because of Matt Dallas. The comments that follow might contain spoilers, so if you haven't yet and would rather watch the movie first, you can find some good links here. The movie bagged a couple of awards, including Best Newcomer for Matt Dallas at Monaco Film Festival (2007); see more as listed on the movie's webpage. The Indian has a very real feel and isn't overdone with artificial drama. Yet, it is captivating right from the start where the audience begins to feel for Danny. He is lost, angry, and most of all has no faith in himself. Matt Dallas did a great job in this movie, his face shows all kinds of frustration and anger that Danny is feeling. The very first scene where he is humiliated and thrown out of a party wins me over. When his father suddenly returns, Danny understandably rejects him outright, shouting at him to leave. Slowly as Danny lets Skip in, I start to dread the moment when Danny would find out why Skip has returned. Predictably, he does. The movie's climax is unsurprising, but yet so touching as Danny breaks down and asks the real questions of his father: "Why did you leave me? What was wrong with me?" The ending is sad yet satisfying, and the last thing Skip leaves for Danny to find is a nice little surprise.

Movie Review - As Good As Dead (2009)

directed by Jonathan Mossek featuring Andie MacDowell, Matt Dallas, Cary Elwes, Frank Whaley
The movie starts off with a regular day in the life of your average, 40-something, separated-and-shares-'custody'-of-daughter, white male. Loves his dog. Loves his daughter. Flirts with his separated wife, and is cordial to the much younger girl-next-door. He is the last man standing in the way of his building being converted to some sort of a complex. The land-lord really wants him gone, and is drawing close to do anything to make that happen. Then, in the middle of one night, a man in dress-clothes along with an angry boy in a baseball cap pay him a visit and try to break down the door with a fire-extinguisher. He finds them in his apartment the next day, wanting him to fess-up to something that nobody but the two of them seem to know about. Until a call comes from someone on the outside. The next thing we know, our protagonist is locked in his fridge, which is chained from the outside. Creepy. I know. Overall, I'd say the movie was worth a watch, and maybe a second just for Matt Dallas fans. The comments that follow might contain spoilers, so if you haven't already and would rather watch the movie first, here it is:
It doesn't get much creepier than the chained fridge, maybe a little gross, but not creepy. The movie was featured in the 2010 International Beverly Hills Film Festival but didn't bag any awards. The direction was not that greatest, and I found the acting a little dull. Frank Whaley was pretty much the only actor that was able to intrigue me, even if just a bit. I am not counting Matt Dallas because I can't honestly give an unbiased opinion of him, he intrigues me just by being Matt Dallas. He got some real exposure in this film, but I'm not sure that was such a good thing for him. He didn't manage to escape his innocent, lost-boy look (which I love, but that has nothing to do with the movie). Maybe he was supposed to be the character that came through. The fact that I can't make up my mind about that is probably not the greatest sign. The characters in the movie swayed between being good and bad, but not in a nice, rounded-character fashion, just a can't-decide-what-to-do fashion. For someone who has gone as far as she did, the mother (Andie Macdowell) is too emotional, and for a boy who has so ruthlessly beat a man and not to mention shot a dog, the son (Matt Dallas) is too feeble and indecisive in the time of action. The victim (Cary Elwes) is too cocky in the end, although he is convincing otherwise. The psycho/ex-con (Frank Whaley) is the only character that stayed true throughout. By the end, I wasn't sure how to feel about the turn of the story, although I wasn't surprised by it. I couldn't side with either of the parties, and that's not because I was crazy about both of them. The director was definitely trying to put some confusion in the good vs. bad theme, but it just turned out to be an unappealing mess in the end, rather than an enraged indecision to stick to a particular side. I think the problem was the direction; there wasn't enough attention given to human emotion and how any individual was feeling even though the movie revolved around very emotionally-charged actions and events. I still can't be sure what the title is all about. Criticism aside however, the story itself was pretty decent, and the eye-candy was sufficient.