The Crimson Mask

The film had an interesting look. Modern noir with moments of pulp cinema to accent key moments. You can definitely see it was done on a budget but they were very clever making it look professional. The movie takes some bizarre turns but nothing is out of place. It takes a while for the viewer to realize this isn't our world, but this Twilight Zone-y world, that's close to reality but strange forces are at work. Note the color red throughout the movie that symbolizes this. My only real problem is the connection of various money men that manipulated Thomas. It came off disjointed. You didn't spend time with any of them long enough to hate the guy and root for Thomas. On the other side, Parker's nemesis Jeffries (played perfectly by Lee Sellers) stole any scene he was in. His charisma is what you want in this Faustian tale. The basic message of the movie really resonates. It was a smart choice to replay the lesson in the end credits for people who didn't pay attention when it was first shown.

This movie speaks well of greed and provides a very witty image of social differences by showing two separate stories that eventually blend together in an interesting turn of events. An ancient ritual combines the two characters and reveals parts of the truth. The storytelling in this movie is quite appealing, it doesn't get too vague and mysterious but it still holds that exciting vibe to keep you watching until the end. The movie in general is unique and not like anything I've seen before, it is an interesting point of view presented in a smart way, and sadly underrated. The movie was clearly done on a budget yet it didn't look cheap at all. The performances felt awkward at some points but were overall pretty good. This kind of filmmaking and fresh cinematic style promise a very bright future, especially with more attention and a higher budget. I would love to see different points of view from this director, and the movie definitely deserves an 8/10 from me.

I just saw this movie in the IndieFest USA 2009 festival in Anaheim. This review does not include spoilers, only my opinion on this movie.

First of all I want to tell the film maker: Dude, what the hell was that ? You call this a film ? I saw you in indiefest and I didn't want to tell you what I thought of the film in front of all the people. If you ever went to film school, you should go back and re-take all your classes cause your film making skills suck big time. One can't even call this a movie. Just a bunch of unrelated shots and scenes in order to deliver a stupid story.

It was my ever first time in life that I wanted to scream "rape" in a movie theater just to stop the screening and tell everyone that this film is raping my brain cells. It was my first time ever that I wished I had forks so I can shove them into my eyes because this film is HORRIBLE and I don't have enough words to describe how bad it is.

Usually the best part in bad films are the rolling end credits but in this case even the credits were 6 min. long.... C'mon.... The film maker even screwed the end titles by showing a very slow titles that didn't even had the right video field to them and were blurry as hell.

I only wish that IMDb had a 0/10 but it doesn't so I gave this film 1/10.

Story : 2/10 - I see what you were going after but you ruined the entire story.

Acting: 1/10 - Not even going to comment on that.

Cinematography: 0/10 - A blind man with Parkinson could have done a better job.

Directing: 0/10 - don't make me laugh. This un-matched puzzle you call a film is a total FAIL.

I was able to catch a screening of The Crimson Mask Directors cut at the Los Angeles Cinema festival where it won best picture. The director's version of the film changes many aspects from the original cut that I saw on Bluray. This cut of the film is actually shorter and focuses on the characters more than the secret society and supernatural elements of the first version. The film intertwines the stories in a traditional way rather than the originals time displaced chapter pacing. It opens with a focus on Thomas Caine played by Josh Burrow ( Captain Morgan ) and stays with him for a while before introducing Jack Parker played by veteran character actor Robert Clohessy. While some scenes have been cut from the original, we are given a couple of deleted scenes that make Parker more likable and I wish were in the original. The original film was very polarizing when it hit the festival circuit. Winning big awards at some festivals and being slammed by critics at others. If you liked the first film, you will enjoy this version. If you did not then I would not give this a try.

I saw Crimson Mask opening night last year in Downtown Disney. All I can say is what a complete boring disaster of an independent film! Watching the carpet was so much more exciting than this film. I would have to agree with iacon6 as I also share in his opinions about this film. A lot of people go to film school for a good reason, and my guess is that the film maker and writer of this film should have stayed in school for at least a few more years. You must learn to have appealing story lines for your audience, and not once was there a fragment of intellectual story telling. As an editor, I found this film offensive to the arts of film making. As it goes to show that I guess if this film can make it on a big screen, anything can make it.