'LE SEQUEL': Four and a Half Stars (Out of Five)
A comedy/mockumentary spoof about a veteran indie filmmaker that's trying to make his biggest-budgeted film to date, and everything keeps going wrong with the production. It was written and directed by actor turned filmmaker Jason Croot (who also plays a part in the movie). The film stars Kyri Saphiris (as the director), Hadrien Mekki, Seye Adelekan, Denise Moreno, Leila Reid, Victoria Hopkins, Julian Lamoral-Roberts, Andrew Tiernan and many others. It's about 90 minutes long, and it was made on an extremely low-budget. I found it to be hilarious at times, and it's also a beautiful examination of what it's like to try and make a film with a really low-budget, and no good resources. I loved this movie for that reason.
Carlos Revalos (Saphiris) has directed 22 low-budget films already, when he goes to a small studio asking for his biggest budget to date. He's told by the studio head, Dirk Heinz (Tiernan), that if he can come up with $500,000 of his own money, they'll invest $10 million in the production. Carlos reluctantly accepts the offer. Then he begins working on a horror feature that becomes an actual living nightmare, when everything goes wrong on the production. Thanks in large part to a con artist Nigerian film producer, named Efi Womonbongo (Adelekan).
The movie is surprisingly well acted, and hilarious. What I liked most about it though, is how beautifully it illustrates what an utter frustration it can be to try and make a film with no money. I've made several ultra low-budget movies myself, and they can be a nightmare to try and produce with no real resources. I've never attempted anything as large-scale as the film in this movie, but it's still really relatable to me. The humor of the whole situation, I think, is relatable to almost anyone as well. Saphiris is fantastic in the lead, and Croot does an excellent job directing. If you like hilarious comedy, you really need to see this movie.
