Across the Line

Nice screenplay writer who did the nice directing. The casting was great, the acting of all the actors on both sides of the border were also top-notched. There was a very strong nostalgic feeling and melancholy touch throughout the whole movie. Rarely a movie would portray from so many angles from so many different parties: The FBI agent in charge with a big heart, the loyal FBI young agent with a dubious gender mix-up, the two past prime Russian mafia, the hired hit-man and hit team from U.S., the desperate Don of the Mexican Northern Cartel(Andy Garcia was so great in this movie), his younger brother(a very cool Mexican actor), his wife, then, there's the lonely Mexican whore, the scamming con artist(Quinn also did a great and very reserved job) who's so desperately trying to locate his estranged Mexican lover and their love's product, a daughter the guy never met before. All these ingredients were put together so smooth, and sometimes, very poetically beautiful.

The gun fight scenes were carried out pretty good, the sound track, the camera, the editing, the colors...they are all very classy. An obvious low budget movie, but definitely not a B movie, the production money was well spent. Absolutely worth watching.

Perhaps the symbolism was heavy handed, but I thought this was a really good low budget movie. What I walked away with was three men, at the end of their prospective careers, each having a decision to make about their next step. And the casting was superb, all men who have had good careers in their own right, but have, for whatever reason, dropped out of the limelight of blockbusters. Andy Garcia never disappoints, but his acting is incredible in this movie (compare his delivery in this movie as a beaten man vs. Oceans Eleven). But I was really surprised at Aidan Quinn, whom I have acknowledged as a good actor, but he really did a great job in this movie. Cinematography was OK, the acting had some gems, there was no good use of sound or music, but the layered story of three men facing their end was compelling. Like I said, given the budget, I thought they did a good job.

It is the biggest story of the last five years, yet H-wood will not touch Bernie Madoff because he sold them out and he sold out his own people.

Instead we get films like Across The Line, a shaky shot that takes Bernie's story and dumps it on an anglo guy seekng redemption.

Shaky camera equals tension in this one - to the director that is...to the audience it plays like an episode of 24.

Low budget...original dramaesque.

The real story of a billion dollar ponzi is right there: The criminal Madoff, the son who pays the sins of the father. Is Hollywood brave enough to tell it...only if they change the name of the man.

The Exodus of Charlie Wright works on many different levels. The story, by R. Ellis Frazier is timely considering the recent Bernie Madoff scandal and Frazier gives us a behind the scenes look at a man who scammed 11 Billion dollars from investors and got away with it.

With the FBI on his trail, led by Agent Hobbs (Mario Van Peebles) who is determined to save face with his superior officer, a crass and effective Corbin Bernsen.

Hobbs sets off to find Wright, (Aidan Quinn) but soon finds others on the money trail, including vigilantes hired by one of Wright's victims ( led by Luke Goss) and a Mexican businessman (Andy Garcia) and his brother Danny Pino) who need to find Wright's stashed away money to save themselves from some kind of big debt they have in Mexico City.

With all of the action brewing Tijuana is the perfect backdrop for finding Charlie Wright. Charlie, however is more concerned with finding his long lost daughter and making up for the time he's lost and the lives he's destroyed.

One of the strong points in the film is the consistent depth of acting. All the performances are solid. Van Peebles brings a mature and reflective depth to his role. Garcia adds vulnerability to his strong exterior and Quinn has a depth of soul in his life's reflection that makes watching him so enjoyable.

Strong performances are also turned in by the scene stealing Claudia Ferri as an prostitute who helps Charlie find his daughter and his way. And also Luke Goss as the intense hit-man bent on killing Wright.

The performances can be attributed to strong direction by Frazier and solid editing. Scenes move quickly and the pace is fluid while maintaining the depth of the performances without lagging on any moment too long. The camera moves fluidly and cuts are pinpoint getting to the point and driving home the emotion and action. The action scenes work without any big budget effects, so kudos to the sound, music and editing departments for making it work.

Also solid camera work and lots of hand-held or steadicam shots put you in the action and keep you there. The cinematography really helps set the tone. There are many interesting angles and movements which really help define the character of the film.

Exodus is woven together with a beautiful score. A virtuoso blend of guitar mixed with some orchestral arrangements and strong percussion make listening to the film a pleasure. Some great original songs are also scattered throughout the soundtrack. I especially liked the end title theme.

Another strong point is the sound mix. Really great clarity on blu-ray. My surround speakers picked up the subtle background sounds and a lot of the accented effects punctuated the sound mix to give it a surreal yet realistic feel. The mix was harmonized and balanced.

This is great low budget filmmaking. Judging by the credits list, Frazier did a lot with a very little. This seems to be about a quarter of the staff of a studio film and the results are on par with any major indie, so hats off to all the people who worked on this.

I'm going to watch La Linea this week because I think this is an up and coming writer/director to look out for.

Radio Times said this was a 'busy little crime drama with a Michael Mann feel and an impressive cast.' and awarded a credible 3 stars, so I thought it worth checking out on Sky Movies. It follows, based on a true story, a stockbroking tycoon who's made billions ripping people off and now the Feds and some unhappy and disgruntled people are after him.

So, as this second feature from writer/director from R Ellis Frazer went straight to DVD, what's wrong with it - and is it worth watching?

The cast is certainly good; a grey-bearded Andy Garcia, Aidan Quinn as the unscrupulous billionaire in the title, Mario van Peebles as an FBI agent and Gina Gershon. Oh, and Luke Goss, of course, who actually is OK and now looks much more distinguished than he did with his baby youth looks in band Bros.; tanned, stubbled and with a close- cropped haircut - a more youthful, smoother Jason Statham, if you like.

First things first, this is not an action movie, certainly not at first. It meanders and ponders, with impressive but slow camera-work and music that is sparse and suggestive. It picks up after half an hour as more characters get in on the act of hunting down Mr Wright. The story itself is quite difficult to follow, not helped by its un-rushed feel. It made me lose interest in what was going on at times and it often changed scenes and characters at the drop of a hat.

The landscapes of Mexico looked evocative enough which helped it roll along but overall, it was all a bit too ponderous and needed tightening up. The lack of any urgency made it more Sunday afternoon than Friday night viewing and whilst I would say it was 'OK', I wouldn't buy the DVD, or recommend it too highly, either. The performances are generally good, but forgettable, as are the people they play.