Stressed to Kill

I was actually excited to screen this. I heard mixed reviews, but the negative reviews were from colleagues that I don't necessarily respect. This is a nice mash up of a dark comedy and a thriller, the concept is fresh and the characters are well developed for the most part. The technical side isn't really newsworthy, good or bad, about what you'd expect from a higher end indie which is certainly my cup of preferred tea. Although some of the continuity errors stick out, in particular a magic coffee cup that can't seem to find a consistent home(you'll see what I mean when you watch it) I'm a big fan of Bill Oberst Jr and this role was right in his hot zone, the perfect role for him. I'll pretty much watch anything he's in. Without having access to the script, I can venture an educated guess that some of his dialogue that fell short was a writing issue and most of the dialogue that was on point was likely improv on Oberst's part. The other lead, Armand Assante, complimented Bill well but unfortunately struggled to hold his own from a pure talent standpoint. The supporting cast was passable, bright in some spots but fell short in others. Not sure if I can chalk this up to poor direction or poor casting by the producers. I'm familiar with Mark Savage's work and skill so I'd probably put this one on the producers. Savage puts out work that I am happy to pay to see. All in all I am pleased with this film. It drags a bit in the second act, but not horribly. Some of the performances are uneven, but overall good.

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.

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.

Checked this movie out because I'm a fan of Bill Oberst Jr. He is an awesome actor. But I do admit he has been in some low budget messes. This is not one of them! It's indy and I expect the budget was not that of a big Hollywood movie but it really doesn't show. Production quality was good, lighting & sound were decent and surprisingly the actors were all pretty good! Usually indies spend their budget on a couple big stars and the rest are..... well to be nice not as good quality. This was different though. I of course feel Bill was the stand out but the other actors who played his best friend and the cop who was after him carried their weight. Even the smaller roles were filled with actors of quality. That made all the difference in the world for me! As someone else stated it is more of a black comedy then a thriller. I think we can all relate to Bill on some level. He does what we wish we could do. There were a lot of "hell yeah" moments when he took someone down. I thoroughly enjoyed this flick from beginning to end and more then likely will watch it again. May have to buy the DVD for the collection.

Idea for the plot was good, but the acting was ... not. Almost coukd have worked as a spoof, but acting wasn't quite good enough for that. But couldn't stop watching. Does pick up at the end.