Lover

Ralph Sepe jr, aka ralphthemoviemaker, is a prolific and unique youtuber known for making movie reviews alongside his own personal film projects. The amount of dedication he has towards his passion is beyond admirable, so much so that one would only wonder if he ever made his own full length feature, which he has. Initially funded through kickstarter in 2015 and made between that year and 2017, Lover is quite possibly the most ambitious project Ralph has ever made. As of now, it has gained a decent reputation online, and I can definitely see why after watching it.

The film focuses on a young man named Howard, who meets a beautiful young woman named Christina (Delilah as an alternative). They bond well throughout a whole year, but they eventually realize that their relationship is built on dishonesty. With that said, it's obvious that this film is a character study, and it plays on that angle in a rather creepy manner. The black & white cinematography works well within the disturbingly unpredictable tone. In addition, the usage of social media is shown as a series of motifs. This symbolizes how much personal connection is at a distance these days. That plays a key role in what goes on during the character's lives, and the suspense never fails to keep one at the edge of their seat. In general, every character's cold deceit appropriately paints the film with the right amount of tension and fear needed for a flick like this.

What's interesting to note is that Ralph and crew shot the movie over the span of an actual year, fitting with the film's main period. It genuinely feels like time has passed, and any given change that occurs to the characters or setting really looks accurate to our world. The long span keeps us guessing what is happening to the likes of Howard and Christina, as their own lives come off as properly vague to keep the mystery up. The music by Elias Ortega is another nice bonus, as it relies more on chilling atmosphere than shock value. Also, the acting varies depending on each character, but everyone did their best. Whether it'd be charming and subtly charismatic like Ralph as Howard or Victoria Beaudoin as Christina, or scarily subdued like Davinder Singh as Kyle, Carmeron Hallinan as Raymond and Ardit Bufaj as Ardit. Even though everyone worked for free, their hard work really payed off.

If I do have any complaints with the film though, it's that I personally found it to be too slow much of the time. I get that's the point, but often the film can become too sluggish for its own good and it would have been nice to pace things a little quicker, though not too much. Also, the moments of dark layers around certain shots can be hit or miss, as some come off as too blurry to be interpreted by the eyes. However, presentation is not as important as sound, and the mixing does have its fair share of flaws. The audio can sound too quiet and muffled to understand what the characters are saying half of the time and even most of the sound effects don't come off as effective as they should have (except for the fight scenes).

However, regardless of its issues, I am still very proud for Ralph that he got this pet of his finished. Everyone has said it's easier to make films nowadays than before, and Lover is a pure example of taking that knowledge to a pretty high degree. Sure, the film does feel more like an above average film school project, but as long as the heart is there, then the end product will come out fine either way. If you're a fan of Ralph's content or student films, then definitely give this one a look. It might not be everyone's cup of tea, but it is a nice starting point for even grander things to come in the young filmmaker's future.

When i first started watching this movie i expected a drama between two lovers with fights, tears and and lots of emotions. And while I did get that, it was not in the way i was expecting.

Lover is a movie about Howard, a man who stalks a girl called Delilah, who grows more and more attached to Delilah until they both do things they regret. It is a very slow movie and not very much happens, and the first 30 minutes or so are mostly there just to set the tone and barley any words are spoken. But does it work?

Yes, absolutely.

This is not a type of movie i've seen before, and it's not just because it's black and white. The camera angels, the lights and the music are doing an amazing job at setting the creepy tone for the movie. The acting is not spectacular, but still very good. It feels like almost every single move and expression from the characters tells a story. I never expected such a slow and silent movie to make me feel sp many emotions.

So why 8 stars?

First off: it feels very original. Not in the storyline, but rather how the story is showed. If i wanted to watch a movie like this again, this is the one i would want to watch because there are no other movies like this.

Secondly,: While the first part of the movie is pretty slow and almost boring, it was necessary to set the tone. In the end, it was completely worth it.

Lastly: The story and script was great and amazingly written, but i think the low budget made it very difficult to execute it in the best way possible. It was also a little bit to slow for my personal taste.

So do i recommend this movie? Yes and yes. Do i expect everyone to enjoy it? No. This is not a movie for everyone, but i think most people can at least appreciate what Ralph Sepe has made.

This movie had a lot of good things in it, but also had a lot of bad.

I will first talk about the pros

PROS I felt the female lead was amazing The cinematography for about 90% of the film was great The audio design besides the first phone call scene was very good The music really helped make each scene more and more powerful The second half was very good even if the ending was a little rushed, but for the most part was thrilling

CONS The acting from Ralph at the beginning was not very good The first half of the film before we are introduced to Raymond was very slow and boring The cinematography for 10% of the film was not very good, there were dialogue scenes with so much empty space towards the other side of the shot, it made it feel like someone was going to walk in the shot, but nothing happened. I didn't fully get as engaged with the characters as I was with King Candy The black and white is really overused in these films and I feel on some shots I can't see anything unless I turn my brightness up all the way on my computer. The dialogue sometimes felt very cartoonish

Overall the movie had a lot of good and a lot of bad, but I hope Ralph sees this review and improves because I truly believe he is an amazing filmmaker with a bright future. I think maybe his next film needs to be a bit more lighthearted and not be about a guy who goes crazy and starts hurting and killing people. I also think he'd be best served as a supporting character than a lead so he can spend more time on the script and the camera work. Overall a decent start, but at times, I expected more.

For a low budget film done by a film student, this is a pretty good movie. I found the cinematography to be very well done, I enjoyed nearly every shots framing, angles, and lighting. I really enjoyed the pacing and the tone of the film as well. The movie being released in black and white was a very nice touch and adds to the noire style Ralph was going for. I've read some people saying that the film was confusing or possibly pretentious, but I find it to be neither of those things.

Now don't get me wrong, this is not a perfect film, and even Ralph himself has said this. There are a couple of scenes where the two main characters are talking and the ADR is clearly noticeable. When the characters in the film are smoking cigarettes, it's very noticeable that they are only pulling the smoke into their mouths, but I can easily forgive that due to the fact that they are disgusting to anyone who isn't a regular smoker, which I can say from experience as a previous smoker. Another small gripe is nothing is ever said about how the main character is able to afford his nice apartment in the city and a Mercedes, but none of these issues took me out of the movie.

Overall this is a fantastic film done by someone of Ralph's age, and I honestly cannot wait for more work from him.

The film is very theme oriented. Everything is dark, film is black and white, music builds up tension and the plot spirals downwards. It's so engaging and interesting with all the quirks it has and the pacing was spot on.

The only real problem I have with the film is some of the acting, but it's downplayed a lot by the excellent music and writing.

Watched it twice and I'm excited to watch it again.