A Cold Summer

Self indulgent? amateurish? well, yes, actually. This is a really ugly film made without constraint and guidance. A 3 hander with long rambling scenes where the actors improvised their performances. It is actually experimental.... If it had 20 minutes cut from the pointless talking it might have had a chance. In its present form it was released for a week or so, and avoided by anyone with money to spend. Apparently young urban film makers like these feel they have to have films depicting disgusting and stupid characters and revolting behavior peppered with unbearably foul language topped by grubby sex to be 'cutting edge' or 'now'. Yawn. I saw it on tape and decided to take a break after 40 minutes and do the dishes. After a shower, I was prepared to watch the rest. I did. Then I want to bed. In the morning I felt better.

I'm afraid I walked out after an hour of this self-indulgent, amateurish posturing by actors "improvising" unattractive, deceitful, unfathomable characters photographed in gloomy surroundings. I couldn't care less what happened to these people and I didn't want to waste any more of my life watching them.

The film starts with a string of expletives just to let you know it's going to be really "in your face", as one of the leads has just had her bag stolen by a junkie, an incident which really leads nowhere except for her to meet the second lead, whose explanation of why he is on the run is unintelligible. Seconds later, of course, they are having sex in public in daylight and the film's credibility can only deteriorate further.

I applaud a director who puts out a movie like this, it is well-shot with three good leads but a lack of budget is well-evident (not as though that fact is a crime).

Each of the characters has "issues", which are revealed through the story-line. They are all a little off-centre but we have to deal with their personas they reflect to each other to try and like them. We rarely see them away from this environment to learn more about who they are, so we feel a little detached while they get naked and do the wild thing but unashamedly this is not a love story.

I understand the script was developed through taping the rehearsal process. It is novel and very natural to the actors but it lacks the drive on the narrative and the understanding of the characters.

I gave it 6/10,as I wasn't moved nor did I care but I certainly was not not bored.