Intellectual Property

I just watched the movie and decided that while it was good, there was quite a bit missing that could have just made it step over the line from being an indie film into something special.

The movie tells the story of a gifted inventor who slowly descends into a state of perpetual paranoia where reality and fantasy become difficult to tell apart. We also cannot tell whether reality is as messy as it appears or if it is merely paranoid delusions taken to their conclusion, even by the end. This makes the conclusion difficult to digest as things are still not clear, and we find that we do not understand the character as we find ourselves with little to sympathize with in the story with all the characters. Perhaps that is on purpose (aka M Night Shy.... something) but people don't commit themselves to a movie unless they see characters they can empathize with. That's why cool movies about alien invasions are usually more of a drama than a sci-fi action flick.

The film also has difficulty making its point. Is it anti-communist? Is it pro-America? Is it telling us about the human condition? Is it telling us about paranoia? By the ending, I felt like I had watched a movie with a great deal of creativity and expression that had something to say and succeeded on some level but due to budgetary constraints and inexperience had limited itself. If the story was rehashed with more obvious yet subtle clues, more energy, more connections with characters and much more coherence, it would have been more memorable.

I'm not sure what my title means. It sounded clever in my head.

"Dark Mind" is a very stylish film about a young inventor in the late 1950s who is threatened by things such as, but not limited to: the mob, the Russians, the Communists, the police, the landlady, the girlfriend's jealous ex-boyfriend, the rat in the walls, the rat exterminator, and if you can't surmise... his own mind. It takes a very expressionistic approach with visuals (in particular, lighting) that present an increasingly claustrophobic & self-focused existence not unlike an old film noir but ramped up on steroids.

I have to say, in the last 20 years and probably 2000 movies, I haven't been so utterly impressed with a director's visual style as with "Dark Mind". The last time something blew me away like this, it was "City of Lost Children" in 1994 by French directing team Jeunet & Caro (Jeunet went on to achieve international fame with "Amelie"). Here, as with "City", we get a revolutionary approach as can only be made by a young director who doesn't answer to big budget studios. Nothing is dumbed down for mainstream appeal. The result is a masterpiece which will certainly not be popular in its own time. But if you're looking for a movie that will challenge your mind & senses & blow the socks right off your butt, look no further. I should also add that the movie, despite its heavy theme, has some spots of great humor. I don't hand out perfect 10s very often, but I'm not hesitating one bit.

Although the style is truly unique, I'll name a few directors & films that can be compared, just for the sake of giving you an idea of what's in store. Terry Gilliam ("Brazil", "12 Monkeys", "Tideland"), Darren Aronofsky ("Pi"), Alex Proyas ("The Crow", "Dark City"), early Tim Burton ("Batman") and of course the aforementioned French geniuses Jean-Pierre Jeunet & Marc Caro ("City of Lost Children", "Delicatessen"). Something that all these directors have in common is a masterful use of darkness while presenting vivid, exaggerated colors that are pleasing to the eye. The result is a captivating, nightmarish style that will both delight & unsettle you.

Our hero is "Paul" (expertly played by Christopher Masterson who, you'd never guess, was the little kid in the 1992 comedy "Singles" whose debut line was "And then something comes spewing out of the penis... SPAM!"). Paul is a very strange and lovable nerd, complete with thick George-McFly glasses, who is consumed by the quiet arrogance of genius as well as his blind patriotism to a country at the height of McCarthian paranoia. This makes a chilling combination which leads Paul further into his tiny, isolated world of notebooks, wires, and big machines that go "bing". Appropriately, the entire film is shot on small indoor sets. No sunlight ever. And yet, like the mind of an eccentric genius, these small rooms are filled with interesting details. Camera angles are quirky, colors are exaggerated, and there are lots of closeup macro scenes of little objects.

Into Paul's life come a host of memorable characters who are almost like scifi creatures. Everyone seems to be certifiably insane except the gorgeous waitress at the local café whom Paul develops a nerdy crush on. And all the while there is the spectre of McCarthianism which we see in propaganda-like posters all over the place. All these elements fuse together and build up to a spectacular climax bordering on Kubrickian genius (the final, mind-bending act of "2001: A Space Odyssey").

Something else that also struck me as genius is the FANTASTIC musical score. The composer Jasper Randall chose the cello as the primary instrument conveying Paul's "voice", and I couldn't agree more. The pieces are intimate & haunting, yet grand in their own way. More than simply atmospheric background like we may be accustomed to in other films, the music in "Dark Mind" is as much a part of the experience as the visual style.

In short this film blew me away, and if the things I've said make any sense to you, I guarantee it'll blow you away also. I had never heard of director Nicholas Peterson before this, and according to IMDb this is his only feature film. I'm seriously prompted to stalk the guy just to tell him what a great job he did.

Imagination, creativity and story telling are the three things Hollycrap are incapable of, that is why they feed on accomplished independents to steal their life force and package it woven with their government propaganda. This is a rather imaginative movie with a very sexy Lyndsy Fonseca that is obviously inspired by the script of "a beautiful mind" but goes places that script could never go.

PLOT: A wiry small inventor spaz is a child prodigy that has fizzled in his adult years and is trying to invent the next big thing. The pressure of creating it has obviously twisted the poor boy up pretty bad and now the mob might be after him to try and collect their money or is it the government trying to steal his hard work to use it for their profit? Seems like everyone has an angle to try and steal his work and so much of it has been stolen already for corporate profits at his expense so he must always watch his back, but it just keeps getting harder and harder....

Highlights- a very sexy leading lady- meow to Lyndsy Fonseca I want one for Xmas. A midget- midgets are good for surreal films like this. The apartment reminded me of Naked Lunch or Barton Fink's apartment- very claustrophobic and old. All in all this is a study of the wiry spaz inventor's mind and if that isn't interesting to you, the movie won't be. No special effects to speak of but some decent suspense and a fairly strong attempt at being a credible movie on a low budget- this movie winds up being better than several more expensive ventures because of the imagination used.

Well, first off, this film has lots of dramatic turns and events. I'll leave you to see it yourself, instead of being a spoiler. And second, the most amazing thing about this film, is that the director' Nicholas Peterson, is actually related to me. No kidding!!! I met him in person also! Well, I definitely recommend any "Drama Lovers" to watch this film. It's logically clever and makes you just feel plain sorry for the main character.

The story line was great, and the music will blow you away. The acting was perfect, and there's actually some comic references in the story. Well really small comic references, but at least it delivers a small, short laugh, due to the whole film being serious, and dramatic.