Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Red White & Blue (2010)

Red White & Blue (2010)
Red White & Blue (2010)

Genre: Drama • Thriller
Director: Simon Rumley
Starring: Amanda Fuller, Marc Senter, Noah Taylor
Duration: 103 min.
Rating: 7.9  

Summary:
The lives of three young people intertwine in a fateful, tragic way and head down a rocky and violent road to heart-rending oblivion.

Red White & Blue (2010)


Red White & Blue is an independent film written and directed by UK filmmaker Simon Rumley.  It premiered at the 2010 Rotterdam International Film Festival.  It is set in Austin, Texas and follows the tragic intersection of the lives of three people, Erica (Amanda Fuller), Nate (Noah Taylor) and Franki (Marc Senter).

Even though this made the rounds at all the genre film festivals, this is definitely not your typical low budget horror flick.  The film begins with a slow psychological portrait of Erica, an emotionally troubled young woman who lives in a co-op apartment and spends her nights with random men she picks up in bars and clubs.  She develops an uneasy friendship with her new neighbor Nate, a mysterious and creepy looking dude, recently honorably discharged from Iraq, who takes a liking to Erica and helps her find a job at the local home improvement center.   

The acting is very impressive, both Fuller and Taylor (who I last saw in Submarine, and after seeing this performance, I now have a new found appreciation for) amazingly render their sad and tortured characters and give performances that are both unsettling and fascinating to watch.  When the story switches to include Franki, an aspiring rock musician who Erica had a one night stand with at the start of the film, the tension and foundation laid out in the first act builds to an unbelievably emotional and haunting violent climax.

Despite the budget limitations, Rumley's writing and direction is simply remarkable, from the dialogue free opening montage set to a dissonant piano score, the deliberate and extensive character development for all three leads, the perfect mounting of tension and mystery as events and circumstances are revealed, all the way through to the almost Asian thriller like, suddenly intense and unflinchingly brutal final act.

I highly recommend this to those who aren't afraid of some emotionally disturbing images (though nothing I would consider to be extremely gratuitous), and are looking for a well crafted and powerful indie film.

Bonjour Tristesse

Red White & Blue (2010)

Red White & Blue (2010)

Red White & Blue (2010)

Red White & Blue (2010)

Red White & Blue (2010)

Red White & Blue (2010)

Red White & Blue (2010)

Red White & Blue (2010)

19 comments:

Bonjour Tristesse said...

The man is a chameleon.

Moviemonstrosityblog said...

oh wow, this one i must see!

d_4 said...

You got me in the mood for this without telling me much at all. BT, that's talent. It'll go on the list now.

Hoi-Ming Ng said...

whoa hey, you didn't mark this as a horror film in the genre section!

blahblahblahtoby said...

 sounds amazing, i'm in the mood for these "horrors" after kill list blew me away.vwill definitely check it out as soon as possible.

derek rampersad said...

been a while since ive seen a good horror with a different idea. maybe ill check it out

The Angry Vegetarian said...

I must find a way to view this movie right now. Looks/sounds great.

Somewhat off topic, I thought that was Charles Bronson in the poster.

Bonjour Tristesse said...

I always try not to reveal very much of the story, films are always better when you don't know exactly what to expect.

Bonjour Tristesse said...

There are horror elements but I don't really consider it a horror film. 

Bonjour Tristesse said...

Yeah I think you might like this one.

Bonjour Tristesse said...

Haha now I can't unsee it

Bonjour Tristesse said...

Yeah I'm not exactly sure, but it worked for Audition.  and I was like, you've taken us this far without flinching, why not just go all the way.

Bonjour Tristesse said...

I think personally the part with the little girl was the most troubling to watch.

blahblahblahtoby said...

you have an inner gore hound? i'm not sure how this would have worked if it had shown everything though. would it have had the same powerful effect on you?

Colin said...

Yeah, I liked this one a lot. Hard to believe Noah Taylor played this role as well as the dad in Charlie & the Chocolate Factory!

blahblahblahtoby said...

a disturbing ending. truly. i can't say which scene made me more uncomfortable either. the family in peril or the final revenge. extremely well crafted ending that leaves you with many questions and keeps the story, not the images, in your brain for days after.

www.horrormoviediary.net said...

absolutely breathtaking and shocking movie, one of THE highlights of 2011.
IMO 10/10

Hermann Rorschach said...

Whoa, whoa!  This sounds horrible.  And awesome.  I'm in the mood for this.  I hope I can find a uh, a copy.
Also, I would never hear about these things if it were not for your blog.  I'm glad the ONE  "non-USA-summer-blockbuster movie blog" I decided to follow was yours.  You kept my summer from being completely freaking vapid.

Bonjour Tristesse said...

I would have scored it higher, but I found the music extremely annoying in some places, and my inner gore hound was disappointed in the cinematography and editing of the final act. 

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