Roadside Attractions

Can a short film be a director's masterpiece? When CJ Roy is directing it can. CJ has already cut his teeth directing music videos for the bands In Like Sin, Luminar, Never and Soul Asunder. Short films like i Bitch and Human have wowed audiences at filmfests. ROADSIDE ATTRACTIONS combines the all the visual style of a music video with a flair for telling dark, twisted, and humorous tales. In fact, if ROADSIDE ATTRACTIONS was condensed to four minutes it would make a great music video. The story would also make a great comic book.

A quiet stranger enters a diner carrying a crystal ball. The visual metaphor of this object: religion, lifestyle,philosophy, etc. The mullets who make fun of the stranger are the same bullies we've all encountered. They imply that the man must be a psycho, which he is. Yet, the blending of music, performance and visuals allow us to empathise with him. The mullets may be laughing at him, but we are laughing with him. It's not every director who can do that. The music in the film will have you wanting to replay this. So will the visuals. Like Spike Jonze, CJ Roy should have a bright future. Whether he continues doing videos and shorts or can expand this kind of experience to feature length is immaterial.

I had the pleasure of seeing "Roadside Attractions" at the MEIC Conference in Kentucky. The short has won numerous festival awards and I can see why.

"Roadside Attractions" was well written, well acted and well directed. It's a slick piece with a great visual style. I won't spoil the plot, but it grabs you from the first frame to the last. Even though it's laced with humor, the short has an ominous undercurrent that leads to a twisted climax.

It's one of those shorts that entertains and makes you think.

It's hard to balance humour and suspense, but CJ succeeds. He has a great sense of style and a solid grasp on story telling. Keep an eye out for this guy. He's got I see a bright future ahead of him.

Let's say that this film was the reason that I purchased a Panasonic DVX-100 to shoot my first feature film STASH. I had the pleasure of meeting CJ a few years ago at a film convention in Lexington, KY. He was a really nice dude, and also a very talented one. I remember asking him what kind of film camera he used for the production, and when he said it was DV I about fell over. It was then, and still to this day in my opinion one of the best DV shot movies I have ever scene. Let's not skimp over the storytelling here which is also superb! You could tell CJ put A lot of thought into this project before shooting. The lighting and cinematography were really great and caught the perfect mode at all times. This all leading up to one of the BEST endings I have seen in ANY movie period, mainstream or indie. If you have not seen this one, I think CJ has it over at his website for view. IF not I'm sure it can be found out there somewhere with a search, and I highly recommend it!