Approaching Midnight

I'm starting my first year of film school and let me start by saying that I'm a huge fan of Independent Film and when I heard this film was playing at the Louisville International Film Festival I was so glad, because i missed it in theaters during its regular limited run.

There were a slew of celebrities at the LIFF this past weekend so it was worth my ticket. The movie studio representatives were very kind who represented "Approaching Midnight" and made sure everyone got a seat, so I saw some folks in line for 'Approaching Midnight' and decided to jump in too. It was worth the wait alongside "The Wedding Pact" starring Haylie Duff which I also enjoyed. Those two pictures why my LIFF 2013 choices.

"Approaching Midnight" is great source material for independent filmmakers. The clam but action driven narrative with very detailed character descriptions from scene to scene. The amazing world that was created here by the cast and crew is measured in theatrical wonders.

The cast is stellar. A breakthrough performance by Carollette Phillips as the wife of Brandon T. Jackson's "AJ Culpepper" is flawless, and I felt for every emotional tie she gives each scene.

The film is rated PG, yet pulls off the war scenes with sweetness and the violence is not gloriously graphic for a younger audience (as a note, my little sister was with me and she liked it too).

The film strikes a nice balance between action, suspense and drama. The amount of personal loss and tragedy endured by the main character created a lot of sympathy, but wasn't overly depressing to the point of distraction. The story focuses more on a specific mystery that needs to be solved vs. making a larger obvious statement about the nature of war, (although I suspect many veterans can identify with the film's protagonist) and it certainly pays respect to our men and women in uniform. Approaching Midnight should not be written off as a purely action driven "guy'" movie, but an intelligent drama that manages to infuse some romantic tension as well. Definitely enjoyed it. A unique spin on the genre.

In Approaching Midnight, Sam Logan plays a 20 something special forces/ranger approved All American, and there's a scene that at a critical point that sums up this whole film and it's ambitions and thats when Wesley Kent (Sam Logan) comes back from the war and has to return his best friends locker room things to his widow (Carollette Phillips). I just rented this on the new releases at one of Nashville's last remaining video stories LOL. First off, I couldn't wait for the RedBox so it was an adventure, I saw the trailer on television and I had to just rush to the store to get it. I'm a country girl and I love Jana Kramer, her characters part in this movie is so sweet and heartwarming with her love for Wesley (Sam Logan). The opening scene is a really heartfelt date scene between the characters that sets up the whole drama of the rest of the movie. Toward the end of the film it thematically all comes back to the opening scene in an interesting way. There is a giant courtroom battle that flashes back to Jana's character Aspen. Aside from the plot of the film, the DVD itself is perfect and I enjoyed it slightly more than Heart of the Country's DVD (another movie with Jana) because Approaching Midnight's DVD does have a lot more special features with Jana in it, for example a Jana Kramer video journal in the making of, where she takes you on a tour of the set and there's fun moments with other cast members. The horseback riding scenes were so splendid, I love how they re-created a perfect country atmosphere. The filmmakers and production designers did such a good job, and the film could take place almost anywhere, that's why as they say this film could "play in peoria."

I just got my DVD from the store today. It was in a collection of Army movies, including "Tigerland" and "Behind Enemy Lines", it was an awesome 3 package DVD set that I couldn't pass up. I couldn't wait to come home and watch "Approaching Midnight" on DVD and let me say the special features are a surefire hit! Jana Kramer has a behind the scenes tour of the set where she shows you her costumes and talks about her character and gives us a tour of the craft service table too. LOL. I am a huge country music fan, and I saw Jana live in concert, she's a wonderful musician but an even better actress. In the film her character is so gentle and sweet, yet fiery and emotional that the love story works and when the love triangle is made when adding Michelle Balser's character of Natalie into the mix, it creates some on screen chemistry in a frustratingly amazing way. Not to mention, Mia Serafino's amazing performance as a daddy's girl who believes her father no matter what the cost to the rest of her town. She reminded me of a young I really enjoyed the villains in the movie as well, because they were humanized and we really felt bad for a couple of them. I give it a 9 out of 10.

This was a great independent film hailing from the state of Michigan, it discuss family relationships, friendships amongst soldiers and incredibly showcases the beautiful scenery of Michigan. Jana Kramer is a wonderful actress and did splendid with the rest of her cast.

The story is edgy, smart and dives into relateable human emotions and aspects of returning from war.

The film is action packed when it needs to be and curves around the corners with excellent aim character development. If you missed it in theatres it is on DVD and I do think its a good buy for those who like good music, good acting and independent film.