Stories USA

What the hell was that?! The actors had to have been blackmailed or did a very generous favor to someone to appear in this thing. I've seen cartel beheading videos with better production quality. I cannot overstate how terrible this was.

Yes I understand it was a compilation of short stories. What was missing is that something that normally would tie these stories together or at least if they are all unrelated stories make each one stand on it's own merit. Merit is the missing factor here. I guess I made it thru about one half of this 90 minutes before I had to walk out of the theater. This one should have come with a money back guarantee. Interestingly the plot outline here on IMDb reads, "A compilation of short films about desperate lives in America, starring many of the world's top actors." and I wonder if any of these 'Top Actors' bothered to look at this piece of truly unwatchable garbage after receiving what must surely have been overpayment for services rendered. Did anyone working on this bother to read the script? I think my dog could write more lucid and entertaining stories. Please people that worked on this, don't do it again. Life is too short. This movie was about desperate people and it certainly achieved that, it made me desperate to leave the theater. You have been warned.

Let me preface this by saying that I am a great appreciator of short films and short film collections. Any collection of short films presented as a feature presentation is going to run high risk of being uneven, but I'm able to judge it solely on the sum of its parts. And in this case, the sum is woefully meager. Each film is thinly plotted with ludicrous or non-existent conclusions. The distributors clearly scrapped together any short film they could find with a familiar face, and use those names to market the assembled product. They have two other collections that follow this same principle. Its obvious the distributor has no appreciation for the short film form and is just looking to make a quick buck. That in itself is a greater offense than any of these forgettable shorts alone. Anyone seeking a quality short film collection would be better served by any of the recent Oscar-nominated short compilations, or the web site Short of the Week.

Every scene in this film is rank amateur. It looks like a student film by someone who didn't do any studying. Though there is allegedly a plot, no story really plays. Like everyone else suckered into watching this, I was drawn by the cast. One involved a line-less skit about dodge ball, another involved a few barflies, and so on, and so on. Now I wonder how they got conned into appearing in it? If it was for the money, than so much went to the actors, there wasn't any left over for sets or a screenplay. So I can't help but wonder if any were blackmailed into starring in it. Nothing else begins to explain it. Yeah, it's that horrible.

"Instead of the end maybe we just found the beginning." A series of short movies that involve people looking for meaning in their lives. This is a movie filled with symbolism, most of it I am not smart enough to fully get. Like "Guilty Hearts" this is a series of movies that have the same idea but are not connected. Unlike "Guilty Hearts" this one is easy to watch. There is really not much to review here as it is not a typical movie. If you are into art-house like independent movies this is a great one to watch. The cast and acting is great, the movie is OK, if you like this kind of thing. Overall, not bad, but again this is the type of movie that only appeals to certain people. I give it a B-.

Would I watch again? - I doubt it.

*Also try - Guilty Hearts & New York I Love You