Upstate Story

Proving in powerful fashion that, with a great idea and strong filmmaking talent, anything is possible, Upstate Story proves a surprising and engrossing piece of independent cinema from start to finish. It's a relatable, down-to-earth story that features impressive emotional depth, bolstered by unique narrative and visual techniques throughout.

Upstate Story is as small as independent cinema gets, made on a minute budget compared to the titans of Hollywood, and featuring a very small cast, almost entirely centred around the performance of writer-director Shaun Rose. However, if ever there were proof that you don't need thousands of A-listers and billions of dollars to make a great movie, it's Upstate Story.

Using its small budget to ingenious effect throughout, the film paints a powerfully intimate portrayal of life in modern society, uniquely blending a dour, pessimistic view of the world with striking bittersweet emotional depth.

The story of a man struggling through the working week just to get to the weekend, it's a deeply relatable tale of a feeling that everybody knows well, but is often reluctant to voice out loud. However, while Upstate Story provides a striking and often heavy-going look at a soul-destroying working routine, you'll see that its heart is absolutely in the right place.

Starting off in brilliantly captivating fashion as our leading man, Ellis, explains how the end of his weekend is the most depressing moment of each week, the film cleverly unfolds with multifaceted and surprising depth throughout, ultimately looking at more than just the struggles of getting through the week, but a deeper, more heartening look at the meaning of life.

It may sound like an enormous topic to tackle in just 61 short minutes and on a tiny budget, but Upstate Story does an incredible job at just that. Starting from that relatable standpoint of working just to get to the weekend, the film opens up brilliantly in its latter stages, with a surprising and brilliantly effective visual twist that subverts all expectations.

There are admittedly times when Upstate Story can drag in its middle portion, when all seems without hope, however it comes good in the end with that striking and resonant finale.

And with a screenplay that delivers captivating narration, filled with both dark humour and powerfully introspective emotion, the film proves an enthralling watch right the way through, overcoming any prejudices you may have going in with regards to its budget, and delivering a genuinely impressive, memorable and uniquely powerful drama.

On the main page for this film, someone made the broad opinion and without a spoiler warning, that this film made no sense due to certain events taking place. I feel that the surprise was quite fitting. I feel it was meant to be a twist of sorts. Was he going to live it up with friends? Potential suicide? Murder? When it comes... it's very real. No seeing of dead people. No shower scene. No forced narrative shock. The unexpected flow of this project is what makes it so unique. After a 2nd viewing, visual hints are there. The voice over writing was really quite good. The delivery even better. Recommended to those looking to inspire no-budge creators and those looking ro pursue more immediate filmmaking. Greetings from Russia!

Embracing a long lost medium in the form of Mini -DV, Shaun has created something so thought filled and deep. It's not a film for everyone, as some rare point ratings show, but the majority of so many viewers out there in the world will easily be able to connect with the plight of the central character, Ellis Martin. An everyman struggling through the grind of a work week, anticipating a break from the dread. For what? It's a delightful surprise. His humor is blunt as we hear his thoughts throughout the film. He provides commentary on almost every aspect of his routine. The commentary is delivered with a nice, dry and sarcastic tone. The scenario and voice over writing are definitely the strongest points of the film. Visually speaking, the film is rough due to the old medium used for its making. Somehow, it's easily acceptable due to the nature of the story. I'll have to give strong point to the film composer as well, Jacob Veitch. His tunes nicely run parallel to the rhythm of the film. At times, a nice mix of jazz with a splash of metal/hard rock. Great job to all involved! I look forward to seeing more.

SPOILER: Look, It doesn't take long to realize that while dated visually, There's something there. There's a reason people respond to it so well and think of it so highly. Upstate Story delivers a message that we are all familiar with in a way and I think that is the driving force behind it.

But, and I still stand firm on this point, I disagree with the ending. The character steps into his home after finishing the work week and we are transported to the magically land of color where we get to meet...his children. It genuinely threw me through a loop. While I understand it as a kind of saving grace after the mundane work week, There was just no set up for it. Not a single piece of dialogue used to even hint at it and that is where I dock points, good sir.

No spoilers ahead, but the movie hit me hard and came from out of nowhere. Being filmed so modestly really helped this work when it came to telling the story. It's bold and heavy at times, but honest all throughout.