New Release Review - "The Watched"

by Eric Hillis, TheMovieWaffler.com - published 2024-06-17
Ishana Night Shyamalan's feature debut, The Watched (or The Watchers as it's known in North America; who knows what's behind the name change?), shows she has her father's eye but few of his other talents. Like Brandon Cronenberg, Ishana seems set on embracing her father's influence rather than purposely shying away from any comparisons. On paper The Watched reads like exactly the sort of movie you might expect from daddy Shyamalan, but where Cronenberg Junior has proven himself capable of replicating both his father's thematic obsessions and talent, Shyamalan Junior displays none of her old man's storytelling skills. Watching The Watched, I couldn't help but wonder if this is what it's like to watch an M. Night movie if you're not a fan of his distinctive shtick.

First Look Review - 'In A Violent Nature'

by Eric Hillis, TheMovieWaffler.com - published 2024-06-10
Recounting his first time performing as a nervous young pianist on stage with Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock claimed that halfway through the show the legendary trumpeter leaned over his shoulder and whispered the words "Don't play the butter notes kid." Initially puzzled, Hancock tried to wrap his head around what Davis meant by this odd instruction. Then it clicked. Davis was telling the piano prodigy to leave out the obvious notes, to create something fresh through omission. Hancock had been playing jazz for a while by that point, but that was the day he finally understood jazz.

2024 New Jersey International Film Festival Winners Announced!

by Al Nigrin - published 2024-06-10
The Competition component of the 2024 New Jersey International Film Festival has just concluded! Here below are the Award Winning films and the Festival Director's Citations. All the works that we are screening are part of the New Jersey International Film Festival were selected by a panel of judges including media professionals, journalists, students, and academics. These judges selected the 34 finalists which were publicly screened at our Festival. The finalists were selected from over 702 works submitted by filmmakers from around the world. In addition, the judges choose the Prize Winners in conjunction with the Festival Director. Congratulations to all the winners and the official selections!

New Release Review - 'The Dead Don't Hurt'

by Eric Hillis, TheMovieWaffler.com - published 2024-06-09
Viggo Mortensen's Falling was exactly the sort of intimate, talky drama you might expect an actor to choose for their debut as writer/director. For his follow-up Mortensen has opted for something that seems very different on the surface, a western, but while there's gun-slingin', horse ridin' and a villain clad in black, it's very much a character-based western of the sort that were common before the Italians stripped the genre down to its action basics.

Don’t miss the amazing Shorts Program #2 at the 2024 New Jersey International Film Festival Today!

by Al Nigrin - published 2024-06-08
Shorts Program #2, which features an amazing array of films, screens at the 2024 New Jersey International Film Festival TODAY. They include: 

2024 New Jersey International Film Festival Video Q+A with Stakes is High Director Jean-Pierre Caner

by Vic Fern - published 2024-06-07
Here is the 2024 New Jersey International Film Festival Video Q+A with Stakes is High Director Jean-Pierre Caner and Festival Director Al Nigrin:

Claire Facing North screens at the 2024 New Jersey International Film Festival on Friday, June 7th

by Diego Arellano - published 2024-06-06
Claire Facing North, which screens online at the 2024 New Jersey International Film Festival on Friday, June 7th, starts off with images of greenery, sheep, and an awfully violent volcano. These images act as somewhat of a parallel to the unfinished nature of lead character Claire’s sentiments. She goes off into the mountains as some sort of search for self-discovery, which is peculiar considering the age of the elderly woman. Usually, there’s this notion of having a mid-life crisis, but here, it’s apparent she’s having it at a way less tender age. What then occurs to me while watching this is that I came to this conclusion having only seen moving images as there is no dialogue to help me get there. There’s this innately visceral nature to the film, even without much dialogue. The image alone conveys so much while vocally saying literally nothing. Even having interacted with other people who appear in the film, the woman’s only reactions come from facial expressions. There is no vocal retaliation, and the viewers are left then with an introspection, giving us the opportunity to really sit with the film in real-time and think. The nature of the thinking is not of a logical one, but more of a stream of consciousness. We as viewers are put into her place, living through the same moments and having similar thoughts.

Poignant Feature I Want to Live on Mars screens at the 2024 New Jersey International Film Festival on Friday, June 7!

by Mo Foster - published 2024-06-05
Mariya Somova’s I Want to Live on Mars portrays a stunning portrait of something that once was, offering the viewers a look in on what happens to those left behind by the rest of the world. Set in a nearly abandoned exurban town in Pennsylvania, the film follows Pickles, a young woman living alone and struggling to care for herself, as she begins to open herself up to others.

Two amazing docs Fencing for the Edge and Found: The King of Matsutake Ridge premiere at the 2024 New Jersey International Film Festival on Saturday, June 8!

by Anran Li - published 2024-06-04
Fencing for the Edge is an iced soda on a hot summer night. Much as we know sports are revelries of adrenaline, I was taken aback by the resonance I felt from watching this documentary about fencing. This piece, woven with real tears and joy, clenched and scratched my heart as I started fidgeting in my seat, wishing time would pass sooner to know what would come next. Despite Hollywood's successful portrayals of athletic prowess, the glitzy studio shots didn't strike me as much as this team of teenage girls, whose most sincere emotions through struggles and triumphs outshine even the most praised performance.