Approaching Midnight

The first thing to say is that as a parent is that I am glad to find a film that's rated PG so I can take my kids to see or rent and watch as a family.

The younger crowd may not understand how resonating this film is for people who actually served in the Army or other branches of the military but I would put the characterization of this film on par with "The Hurt Locker" or "Jarhead". Granted this is not an Oscar winning big budget battle-war-centric film, but the elements that went into understanding the path of a returning soldier from war was very realistic. My father served in the military therefore I appreciated this picture. I savored every element of witty script writing and banter between the characters. I was delighted to see that yes like other reviewers pointed out, cast members with military experience were actual supporting actors in the film in addition to the star power of the leads.

The plot is about a soldier (Sam Logan Khaleghi) who comes back from war as we know, and now has to utilize his skill set to solve a winding mystery about the death of his ex-girlfriend (played by country music star Jana Kramer) and make public or open details of her father who may or may not have information. I don't want to give anything away that would spoil the twists and turns of the second and third acts of the film, but if you like war genre and mystery genre, this is a splendid mix of both. I noticed people having arguments about where the film takes place (be it Michigan or Louisiana) however, the director was on a Morning News broadcast today (FYI - I bought the DVD after hearing it came out today on TV); the director said that the film does takes place in a fictional city, and so I didn't care what accents the actors had because when I googled the name of the city, it is indeed fictional, southern or mid-west, it doesn't show up, it's fanciful either way. I was more into the plot of the movie, the military themes and the characters which I found charming and emotionally grasping.

I didn't get a chance to catch this in the movie theater, but as I said, I was able to watch it on DVD today with my kids (my daughter is a huge fan of "Tropic Thunder"), and she liked Brandon T. Jackson, who has a jewel of a cameo appearance which reminded me of his Tropic Thunder character slightly but more dramatic because he actually plays someone who was a soldier in the war. The positive of watching this on DVD is that I was able to enjoy the incredible slew of special features, which included an informative series of making-of-documentaries including interviews with cast and crew. The special features on this DVD were awesome because it was an actual behind the scenes look rather than an extended trailer with b-roll of behind the scenes which is what many big movies do nowadays.

• Eddie

This film handles the returning war veteran subject brilliantly and distributes ample time from character development to action and back to the present from the flashbacks. I saw this film with military veterans who were members of the American Legion and sponsored this movie and we were all amazed at service it did. The Oakland Press called this film "a gripping edge of your seat thriller" and that is exactly what it was plus enthralling affection toward the subject matter. I thank the filmmakers for that. Finally there is a movie out there that deals with the reality of combat. That said, I am huge fan of movies like "Walking Tall" and "Desparado" and think the film was an interesting mix of both. The film doesn't withhold any emotions back. The funeral scene was by far the most visually arresting and riveting part of the whole picture. I thought the musical score by James Stonehouse took me right back to those experiences. The best performances in the funeral scene by far are from Michelle Lynne Balser and Bill Cobbs who plays Brandon T Jackson's father (the actor from Tropic Thunder and Fast and Furious series). On NBC News today they showed the filmmakers handing over a check with a portion of the proceeds from the theatrical box office to the American Legion, and it was such an amazingly kind act from the filmmakers and crew members of this movie as it has been brought to my attention are actual veterans, so their point of view was a brilliant epic in the consultation of this film. American Legion's official face book shown a standing ovation by 10,000 veterans as the American Legion National Convention in Houston this year who were treated to a charitable screening of this film as it was sponsored by the national American Legion out of D.C.

I'm starting my first year of film school and let me start by saying that I'm a huge fan of Independent Film and when I heard this film was playing at the Louisville International Film Festival I was so glad, because i missed it in theaters during its regular limited run.

There were a slew of celebrities at the LIFF this past weekend so it was worth my ticket. The movie studio representatives were very kind who represented "Approaching Midnight" and made sure everyone got a seat, so I saw some folks in line for 'Approaching Midnight' and decided to jump in too. It was worth the wait alongside "The Wedding Pact" starring Haylie Duff which I also enjoyed. Those two pictures why my LIFF 2013 choices.

"Approaching Midnight" is great source material for independent filmmakers. The clam but action driven narrative with very detailed character descriptions from scene to scene. The amazing world that was created here by the cast and crew is measured in theatrical wonders.

The cast is stellar. A breakthrough performance by Carollette Phillips as the wife of Brandon T. Jackson's "AJ Culpepper" is flawless, and I felt for every emotional tie she gives each scene.

The film is rated PG, yet pulls off the war scenes with sweetness and the violence is not gloriously graphic for a younger audience (as a note, my little sister was with me and she liked it too).

This film was truly superior in it's cinematography, acting and "007" like editing effects. The romance between Staff Sergeant Wesley Kent (Sam Logan Khaleghi), Aspen Malverne (Jana Kramer- TV's "One Tree Hill") was flirtatiously awesome and adding the character of Natalie Church (Michelle Balser) into the mix created an awesome "post-potential" love triangle. If you are a fan of the shaky camera thing (which is in all the Bourne movies) then you may not like this, because thankfully, some indie films like this one have returned to the smooth style of peaceful and horizontal cinematography and camera work, which is accredited to Carl Ballou (the movie's DP, who has done such provoking work as music videos for Eminem and the upcoming Luc Besson (The Fifth Element) Brick Mansion's'. I really thought this was a great movie, There seems to be a reviewer who keeps adding negative spam here, obsessed with the location of the film (the location of the movie is set in a fictional 'All America' village) ... but frankly speaking, I am from Michigan and I support movie's that are made in Michigan, it's a hard task to make a film let alone so many veterans who participated in the making of this picture. Aside from that fact, the film is genuinely good, in every way. The acting is natural and legit, the action sequences are demonstrated and all around positive story. Yes the film is rated MPAA PG, so I agree, families can enjoy without worrying about the action and gunplay being too much for young audiences.

This film was so awesome on so many levels, I don't know where to begin. Luckily, the film is being re-released in select art house theaters this weekend, and I will make sure to watch the film at the Uptown Film Festival. The DVD is a good watch, but nothing beats watching movies like this on the big screen.

After a flashback scene which sets up the character development between Jana Kramer's lead role and Sam Logan Khaleghi's lead part, The movie opens up in the best way with an action scene that is like "Saving Private Ryan" in the middle nowhere middle/far east. Upon these two scenes there is considerably to the strategic writing of this script than meets the eye. There is the perfect truthful chat between soldier to soldier. This is an intricately engineered "art movie" with "commercial" appeal and scenes like when Brandon T. Jackson and Sam Logan Khaleghi have a dialogue moment between fight sequences is a sublime way of allowing the audience to care about the characters. Although the true fight is Kent's as he is a solitary character who must find out the truth behind the death of his girlfriend due to a car accident.

The antagonist in the movie is depicted with such threat who is Mayor Steven Malverne, that the hero of the story Staff Sergeant Kent comes full tilt in a ferocious and earth shattering perfect character driven performance. The film's action sequences get inside of you and shakes your nerves like in such anticipation that you can't wait for the next scenes to come.