Red Flag

It was an interesting independent movie. I saw it on IBS streaming so I could have sub titals. It was off center. After reading interviews they didn't have a script just an outline so 90% of the movie was ab libed. So some scenes are great and some scenes don't work.

Red Flag: No subtitles; poor audio level; no special features; marginally poor acting; was suppose to have some sub level of humor - I never even chuckled once; lots of credits overlapping the first five minutes of film to occupy film time. Conclusion: All an alert for cheap. As a compassionate person I gave it fifteen minutes but like music there are a zillion singers out there trying to make it and if a singer screeches like a barn owl for the first minute - well, it's time to move on to someone else (i.e. another movie). But, as a truly compassionate person I gave it another 15 minutes - no improvement. But, as a truly compassionate foolish person I gave it a 3rd try with a ff towards the end - no better. Plot: Someone's self documentary film on traveling about showing and selling another documentary about searching for an elusive woodpecker (i.e. searching for oneself, I think). He also has personal and girl friend issues which occupy the remainder of the movie. I didn't bother with the other movie.

Red Flag is a wry, sardonic look at love, friendship, depression and failure told from the vantage point of a struggling filmmaker who's lost, wandering around the Southern United States on a screening tour that's largely attended by elderly cinefiles. Karpovsky offers us a small, humble yet whip smart and hilarious little dirge that's a mixture between The Puffy Couch and The Death of Ivan Ilyich. It features a cameos from a plethora of indie actors and filmmakers and is shot in a minimal, naturalistic way that accentuates the beauty and simplicity of the story and it's characters. There are clearly autobiographical themes throughout the film, and it's an enlightening and honest portrayal of a starving artist who's struggling with many issues in his day or day life.

Alex Karpovsky, the writer and director, is my new favorite indie movie guy. Having watched through a fair share of indie movies, I can say that Karpovsky has a lot going for him and his talent for independent movie making should be treasured. Watching 'Red Flag' was such a refreshing experience - even though the storyline is pretty straightforward (an up-and-coming young filmmaker takes a road trip hoping to resolve among other some of his personal and emotional dilemmas), Karpovsky manages to breathe a breath of fresh air into the standard 'on the road' movie story and does it so beautifully. I love it how the story makes a full circle and the end of the movie marks a hopeful new beginning. A new day, a new beginning and still, an age-old conundrum - why doesn't US hotel policy allow one extra hour of check-out time, even in the most dire of circumstances? :)