Threat

Threat is not a perfect film. It is a flawed hodgepodge of scenes that look like in some cases they were shot months if not years apart on whatever film stocks happened to be lying around. It is probably one of the least refined, most unglossy films to be released this decade. That said, the whole is far greater than the sum of its parts. If you think that a film is only revolutionary by blowing up buildings or spouting off Pennywise-lyrics as rhetoric, then this movie probably isn't for you. But, at a time when America is more polarized than its been since the Vietnam War if not the Civil War, a social critique like the one in Threat is probably more revolutionary than just about anything else on the DVD shelves today. All that said, it's pretty obvious that the film is from a neophyte film-making team and it is often too earnest (occasionally cringe-worthy). Plus it's ridiculously rough around the edges. But that's what you get when you see a guerrilla film that's been carved out of concrete. IMHO, some of the negative commentators here may have been looking for the wrong things in Threat. It is not a movie about being straightedge or being hardcore. It takes place in the hardcore scene and has characters who are straightedge, but it's a movie with complex characters who suffer for their flaws and for behaving like zealots. It's weird to see a movie with straightedge characters that isn't about being straightedge, since it is a little known subculture. But I haven't seen one ad saying "the first movie about straightedge!" so I don't think this film intends to sensationalize the culture one way or the other. This film shows characters going from being ordinary kids on the block to doing horrendous things, and I personally felt empathy for them the whole way. Threat is different from films like Menace II Society where everyone is apologetic at the end. Threat isn't about redemption, it's about accepting damnation, and that's pretty cool in this Hollywood world.

i was lucky enough to see this film when it played in Montreal. i have seen other people cite the violence as what is so amazing or over the top about the film, but it's the character and subtlety i most enjoyed. here's a surprising example: one of the first scenes in the movie is nearly five minutes long, shot black and white in a very sparse room, with two talking heads: the main characters discussing philosophy of all things. what's so amazing about this? well the entire audience was wholly absorbed and engrossed in the scene. now that is film-making. if you can write and direct a scene where there's no action, there's not even color on the screen, and you can entertain with a philosophical discussion: then staging an exciting riot is an afterthought. i really thought the riot was just that: an afterthought to an otherwise very thoughtful and entertaining little movie.

'Threat' contains some of the lamest dialogue I've heard in a while. The acting is generally poor too. I got the distinct impression that the filmmakers thought they were doing something special. What a joke.

The only reason I saw 'Threat' was because I found out Slug (of the hip hop duo Atmosphere) is in it. But I didn't even notice Slug while I was watching it. Had to look closely at the credits and see that he was credited as 'Crusty punk'(!). Then I figured out who he was in the movie, but it doesn't look or sound at all like him. Moreover he was only on screen for all of 10 seconds.

The only positive thing I can say about 'Threat' is that the animation that is interlaced into the movie is not bad, and the editing is sometimes interesting. Despite the "real threat" alluded to above, I'm not entirely pessimistic about the next offering from the production group ('King's Mob').

when Threat works it's like the second coming of Martin Scorsese. when Threat fails it's like the second coming of Abel Ferrara. luckily for me, i like Bad Lieutenant just as much as i like Mean Streets, so i have nothing to complain about. director Matt Pizzolo goes for broke on this hard-edged film about how extreme philosophies can drive ordinary people to obscene lengths. using black & white film for daytime, color for night, and interlacing animation throughout, Threat runs like a comic book gone haywire. everything is over the top, especially the philosophy: "if the suit don't see you as a threat, then you are the suit" or "how many people watched those towers burn, and were really just (expletive) angry that somebody beat them to it." brave words. it's no surprise this kind of anger would be coming direct from the streets of NY, the biggest surprise is that it's taken so long in coming.

Threat is a lousy film. Childish dialogs, amateurish editing and in general a failed movie. That said, it's not a boring flick. I could not find any dramatic line leading to the violent ending, everything seemed to be just pasted, mixing all ingredients without a functional recipe, some of it worked, animation fitted in quite smoothly, in fact I missed more of it, soundtrack is again quite suited to the action. I didn't regret watching it, in all fashion is what this movie is really about, not a line of fashion, but many styles, not only in dressing but also talking and even walking. It tries to present another catalog of urban tribes, but it fails on that too. In general, watch it only if you don't find any other thing to do.