Everybody knows the big Hollywood findstreamingsites scheduled to release this year. We all know what blockbusters will be lighting up the box office and hitting our theaters. However, all too often, some of the best movies of the years are the ones we never hear about. The ones that aren’t big Hollywood releases and don’t receive the publicity that your ‘Transformers’ or ‘X-Men’ receive. Thus, today I’d like to turn the attention to indie movies. Here is a list of 11 independent films that should be good and are worth watching out for in 2011.
Analysis: Kentis and Lau were the duo responsible for the 2004 sensation Open Water. In their follow-up film, Kentis and his wife Lau return to remake Gustavo Hernandez’s Uruguayan film by the same name. What’s impressive about this movie is that it is done in one long continuous shot. Now, a few movies have tried this before, but none really succeeded so well in presenting a good movie with it. For that reason, with the addition of tight spaces to film in, the original was quite the achievement in cinematography. The film itself was well-received by critics and said to be a fine addition to the horror genre.
So, that being said, we know the source material is good. We know the concept can be a good movie. Now let’s see what American filmmakers can do with it. I’m left somewhat skeptical due to the boring venture that was Open Water from Kentis and Lau. Not to mention, most of the time it turns to crap when foreign films get an American remake. However, that’s usually in reference to Hollywood remakes of foreign films, so it could be better with indies doing the remake. The material is there though and we could potentially have another Paranormal Activity on our hands, which I believe is a good thing. So I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out on this one.
Premiere: The movie has had a theatrical release in South Korea. It has also appeared at a few international film festivals late last year. However, it will be making it’s US Premiere at Sundance Film Festival 2011.
What is it: Kyung-chul is a dangerous psychopath who kills for pleasure. He has committed infernal serial murders in diabolic ways that one cannot even imagine and his victims range from young women to even children. The police have chased him for a long time, but were unable to catch him. One day, Joo-yeon, daughter of a retired police chief becomes his prey and is found dead in a horrific state. Her fiance Dae-hoon, a top secret agent, decides to track down the murderer himself. He promises himself that he will do everything in his power to take bloody vengeance against the killer, even if it means that he must become a monster himself to get this monstrous and inhumane killer.
Analysis: Kim Ji-woon was responsible for Tale of Two Sisters and The Good, The Bad and The Weird, both of which were good movies. The South Korean film I Saw the Devil has been met with good reviews. Ji-woon really is an entertaining filmmaker. And I Saw the Devil is said to bring that mastery of style that Ji-woon is known for. It’s also a highly violent, cold and disturbed film. While many say there’s not much depth to the story, it still provides for an entertaining film for those that can stomach it. Being as his two previously mentioned films have been a fun ride, I’m looking forward to seeing what Kim Ji-woon delivers here.
