Black Wine

I happened to have the chance to see the World Premiere of this film at the Hollywood Film Festival last weekend at the Arclight and it blew the audience away. What starts out as a romantic good-hearted movie quickly turns wilder and wilder to the point where everyone was on the edge of their seats. I never had a clue what was going to happen next and the story is so layered that it continuously keeps you guessing. There's a scene in this movie that had the audience going absolutely crazy and something I have never seen before in a movie. Trust me, you'll know what it is when you see it. It's "the scene" that everyone talks about.

The description in the program described the movie as film noir and Hitchcockian, I was skeptic as that's a lot to live up to, but to filmmakers credit they really came through with both. Solid acting, intense scenes, and a movie that will have you guessing until the very end. Try to catch this movie if you can - it's one that stays in your head for a long time.

I signed up for an account just to give this movie a real rating.

Terrible acting, writing, and directing. The camera work was awful. I'm sure it's better than anything I could make, but that in no way makes it a good movie. I'm inclined to believe the 9s and 10s this movie received are from people who worked on the film.

Save yourself and skip this movie altogether.

Wooden acting, stilted dialogue and uninspired cinematography plague this boring, predictable thriller from the word go.

I am baffled that this has a rating of 8.8. I can't imagine anyone thinking this movie was that good, and am tempted to believe the rating is being pumped up by friends and family. The acting is a travesty, even for a low-budget indy film. It's impossible to relate to, empathize, or even tolerate the main characters.

Make-up should have been fired. Or, at the very least, the director ought to have realized that the bruise on Ashley's face switched from left to right very frequently, sometimes multiple times in a single scene, and done something about it.

Absolute garbage. Give this one a miss.

This is one of those rare movies that you can see and thoroughly enjoy, and then watch it again and enjoy it even more. It has a great depth of plot, with unexpected twists-- however, I hesitate to say that because plot twists are so often contrived and either predictable or ridiculous. The twists in this movie, on the other hand, are realistic, unfortunate, and out of the characters' control. Seeing how the main characters grapple with what has occurred is a fascinating study in human behavior as they struggle to remain sane in an increasingly insane situation. Those fortunate enough to see this film will lie awake many nights wondering how they would have behaved if they had been cast into this nightmare. Like the trap the characters are in, this movie will grab you and not let you go... even long after the curtains have closed. I highly recommend seeing this movie...again, and again.

Just saw this on DVD and all I can say is Kudos to the filmmakers/actors. Wonderful story, wonderful performance. It was gripping and it kept me stuck to the screen. Never knew where this was going. I wish this had the budget to have been shot on 35mm film and also wished it had a wide theatrical release with the same actors. I specially liked the guy that played Trevor and his Fiancé. They held this film together so well. They seemed like the perfect couple and you'd never have had an idea of how this was going to end. I cant wait to see what Anson Scoville (great actor and no I don't know him) and Jennifer Marlowe (she has a Jennifer Connelly thing going on here)are going to do next. The writer/director Ryan Rossell is so creative I know he'll have a long lasting career in Hollywood. Anyway, find this, rent it, own it! its definitely worth watching. Do watch the DVD Extras, its fascinating to see and hear how it all came together.