Stressed to Kill

Just watched it on Amazon, frame rate was a bit off at some points but that could just be my connection... apart from that there's nothing really wrong with it, in fact it was really entertaining, didn't mind the acting at all, didn't come across too cheesy, budget was low but I've seen way way lower... the lead actor I liked, his buddy I liked, everyone they hated I hated... the crazy cop was fun... yeah I had a good time... I'm no movie critic but it is what it is and if you try and pick at things like a lot of the reviews do then you probably don't want to enjoy it, where's the fun in that? Give it a watch, if you like it you like it, if you don't you don't, it's that simple....

I thought this was going to be like Falling Down or something equally as cool.

It is not.

It's a bore. It drags. It's horribly acted with massive holes in the story and horrible dialogue, stupid settings and atrocious casted actors.

The setup was fairly good, but 5 minutes in, it fell flat and then remained there and started to sink shortly after.

Armand Assante mumbles his way through his lines horribly and stumbles around like a drunk on his 2nd bottle of Jack Daniels in 20 minutes.

The characters are horribly written and the developed story is anything but developed.

It could have been made a dark comedy with different comedic actors delivering the same lines and better performances, but as it wasn't made into a comedy - this just sucked.

Totally different cast could have turned this mess around.

If you doubt me now, you won't doubt me later.

Mark Savage is well-known world-wide as a genre director, a hat he is more than happy to wear. Yet, this does limit his image somewhat amongst mainstream cinema circles, both for funding and garnering audience. And that's a shame. 'Stressed to Kill' comes from a similar place as 'Falling Down'(Dir.: Joel Schumacher, 1993) but has been crafted to a very tight budget which occasionally shows on the screen. However, don't let that deter you from seeing it. Accept it for what it is - a film that sticks to its purpose with skill and care. There is discipline apparent in the acting and direction and that is applause-worthy. As a story, again, it is true to form and the acting of Bill Oberst is the star turn here as the unwell hero-anti-hero (depending on your POV). He makes this flawed, edgy chap very likable and credible with razor-sharp emotions and a build of tension that last through the narrative. Now I would like to see Mark Savage step out of the genre and for someone to give him a wad of $$$$ so that a wider audience can see his work which clearly is applicable to a very broad range of film languages and devices.

02/03/2019 Don't waste your time. Even with Armand Assante in the movie it can't help the damage done by NOT funny PRETEND actor Bill Oberst Jr - He SUCKS. IMDb gives this garbage 5.7 stars??? more like less than 4 stars. Bon Appetit

I know it's not nice to accuse other people of fake reviews, especially when it's my first but I have no choice. I really can't believe someone could actually praise this film. First of all: it's not low budget, it's extremely super uber low no budget. Nothing wrong with that itself but be aware - it shows. The story itself isn't too bad. Sure, it was done before and all but it doesn't have to be original to be good. Unfortunately, to make a film that takes itself seriously you need a few things, like good casting which means - good actors. Sadly that can't be found in 'Stressed to Kill'. The film 'stars' Armand Assante and I'm sure all the actor's budget went to pay his salary. Assante was a decent actor once. He delivered few really memorable performances but it was all 20+ years ago. Since then...drugs, booze, I guess. Now he's one of these small names, affordable for super low budget movies because nothing better comes his way. Here, he plays the detective and like the other reviewer have said 'mumbles his lines'. It's not even acting, this guy couldn't speak properly and I had trouble understanding what the heck were his lines. Luckily enough, he only has a small part. Lead actor in the film is Bill Oberst Jr. (I hope Oberst Sr. wasn't an actor as well) and he's the worst casting choice possible. He looks like a combination of devil/psychopath/bum/local creep/. Definitely not someone you will feel sympathy for. Ever. Under any circumstances. Plus, Oberst can't really act. He's one of these actors who will do any film that pays 100 bucks/day and well, that's the quality you will get. He will pass as someone who needs to look scary but won't carry your film because he can't act. Marshall Hilton plays his best pal and overacts pretty much every scene he's in. Must be another 100 bucks/day Wonder. I checked his profile on here and saw he was in kids show 'Beetleborgs' many moons ago. All these years later, he still overacts like he did before, except that it made sense in 'Beetleborgs'. It doesn't make sense in 'Stressed to Kill'. Sonia Curtis who plays Oberst's wife might be as well best actor in the entire film but trust me...that doesn't mean much. Curtis had a small part in another film I watched recently 'Relentless Justice' and while she wasn't too bad there, it's obvious she had much stronger competition. Have to say she looks pretty good for her age, though. So the acting pretty much sucks. That's one huge problem. Another problem is it's running time. It drags for way too long. I mean it runs for almost 2 hours and should be at least 40 minutes shorter. Some say it's a dark comedy but really...It's a boring thriller with absolutely horrible acting, directing and lack of production value. Do yourself a favour and don't spend your money on this joke of a film.