jesuslovinmommy

If you are a lover of movies but have a very short attention span, I'm pretty sure you will love "GUILTY". I read somewhere early on that this was actually a 48 film project / contest that Mrs. Beard wrote in 2011 but the director of the film completely botched the project in editing and when it showcased at the 48 hour film presentation, it was a huge embarrassment so Mrs. Beard vowed to re-shoot this with her own cast and crew at a later time.

She kept her word and in 2012, Mrs. Beard came together with a few independent actors to re-create what she had originally intended to be a great little film in a genre that she admits she had never even watched a (fantasy film) before getting the genre assigned to them in 2011 as part of the 48 hour film project.

So, with that said, I really did enjoy this 10 minute film when I came across it on You Tube. For having independent actors, a shoestring budget and a first time fantasy genre writer, I will say that this film is really quite awesome. I myself do not normally go for this genre, nor do I normally go for thrillers, (I like family dramas that I can totally relate to, and I like rom-coms), but for a fantasy film, I really do recommend this and whenever it pops up in my recommended feed, I will re-watch it just to reminisce. I've met these filmmakers in person at some of their local premieres and church screenings and they are really down to earth people just trying to make a positive difference in the world (However this film in particular does have a scene that should be viewed with caution - not intended for children under 16, IMO).

Pay no attention to the very first troll who left an ugly review out of spite back in '13. It's a neat project and it is a unique storyline with good acting. The actress, Sara Bakay is a good actress and I am surprised she has not pursued acting a lot more. I was looking over her IMDb credits and she has very little of them, which surprises me. Then Mrs. Beard (the writer and producer) put her husband in the lead role as Jonathan Baxter and it was his very first acting job and he did well for not being a seasoned actor. But Bruce Royer, after Guilty, went on to act in many of Mrs. Beard's films. Though his part in this film was very small, he has really done well in the other films since.

All in all, I give it TWO THUMBS UP.

WOW! This film may only be 26 minutes long, but it packs a punch! By the title, you can guess that it is a tear jerker. Young Karen is bullied in school, as is her only friend in the world, Georgia. And at home, Karen is abused by her mother.

In this film, the adults around her know that she is being abused at home, but no one comes to her rescue, leaving Karen to take matters into her own hands.

This film, in my honest opinion should be shown to all CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) workers in training. Not that CASA has anything to do with this film.

The outstanding performances by both Karen (Taylor Moss) and by Victoria (Shawn I. Chevalier) are both award worthy, honest to God!

I also enjoyed the actor who played Victoria's Landlord, Mr. Ramsey. And that one bully, Holly was a real pistol.

I see this film has not won any awards, which is both shocking to me, but kind of not surprised due to the difficult to watch scenes. When I say difficult to watch scenes, I merely mean that they are extremely emotional and pull at the heart strings especially for anyone who has ever been abused by the ones who are supposed to love and protect them. But the reason for no wins is likely due to festival directors and judges feeling afraid to award a film with such difficult topics, because it seems that in the independent world of filmmaking, everyone wants to favor and praise the films that sugar coat everything and act as if we live in a perfect world where abuse, racism and bullying do not exist.

I'm glad that there are a few filmmakers out there that are not afraid to tackle subjects such as these. Thank you, Dreams Come True Films. Though this one is not a feel-good movie, I still have it in my DVD collection and still watch occasionally. If you ever get the chance to see it, do have your tissues handy and be ready for a good cry!

I will start by addressing the elephant in the room. If you are a "review checker" of films, etc before you try it yourself, you will notice that on March 30th a very ugly review was left by someone who also trolled the short film Guilty that this production team did in 2012. Mrs. Beard explained who the troll was and why "He" left the derogatory comments. So pay no mind to his hateful comments. This TV pilot comedy is actually very good and has rave reviews on their You Tube channel. That's how I saw this comedy. It was so popular with the fans that they actually did a part 2, so there's that.

Do they have famous actors in this? NO! But they do have senior and seasoned stage actors who love to perform and make people smile. Did they have the greatest sound you have ever heard on a film? NO! But Mrs. Beard explained that their entire sound crew bailed on them at the last minute the first weekend of filming away from home; that is very unfortunate and sometimes in life you just cannot control what happens to you and you have to accept it and make the best of it.

Was the laugh track a little off? Yeah, okay. But what does it have? Old Folks Like Us has an original concept, it has funny actors (most of them!) and it is clean enough for the entire family to watch together without embarrassment or shame. In other words, there is (Don't fall over in shock when I tell you!) no nudity, no profanity, no sex and no violence. So for this reason, I must highly recommend it. I am so sick and tired of the garbage that rolls out of Hollywood. And I am frankly so sick and tired of all the re-boots! Give me a break, Hollywood. If you can't come up with new projects, maybe it's time to give independent creators a shot at the brass ring!