Full disclosure, I saw "Junkie Heaven" as a judge for the Macabre Faire Film Festival in January of 2016.
In my opinion, it's hard to portray a drug addict/junkie well. Many times, it's completely exaggerated and overacted. I have experienced addiction within my family and a lot of the behaviors and mannerisms exhibited by the person in question are usually completely missed by filmmakers and actors. I am happy to say that actor Joseph A. Halsey nails it in director Steve Sage Goldberg's "Junkie Heaven."
Writer Lee Kolinsky has written a story about a junkie that brings an entirely new element to the familiar story of drug addiction. I never give away too many plot details, but in "Junkie Heaven", Halsey plays Doyle Burkett. Doyle is an Iraqi vet who is suffering from PTSD, and who has turned to serious drug use to try to combat its effects. He is basically at rock bottom, and is the exact picture of what you figure a junkie to be. Again, the actor nails the role perfectly.
Doyle wakes up after a night of using, and he meets Alexander. Who is Alexander? Well, let's just say that he's not exactly human. Is he an angel, a devil? We don't know for sure, but what he does is give Doyle an assignment, an assignment to retrieve an object ob importance in a spiritual battle. We follow Doyle along on his mission, and the choices he makes along the way. Is what he's seeing and feeling real? Is it all just part of what's happening in his drug-addled brain? The tableaux and scenes that Doyle encounters have him questioning this as well. All of it leading up to a fantastic climax. Again, I don't want to give anything away, so I will just say again that the writer has done an excellent drop of bringing a new and interesting twist to what could have been an ordinary "drug addict" tale.
"Junkie Heaven" is a great indicator of just how good indie filmmaking can be when the cast and crew put a lot of time and effort into their work. The film is shot beautifully and the sets definitely give us a glimpse of what a drug addict's life is like. The acting is superb, as evidenced by Joseph A. Halsey's win for "Best Actor in a Short Film" at the Macabre Faire Film Festival in January of 2016. The award was justly deserved. Director Steve Sage Goldberg gets the most out of his actors and out of the script, and he's to be commended for this as well. The material is very dark and gritty, and it's handled expertly.
All things being fair, there are times when some of the budget limitations that plague indie film making show thorough, but this is a very minor nitpick. If you have the chance to see "Junkie Heaven", you really should. This is indie film making done right.
-The Horror Nerd
