Director:
Justin Morales
Studio/Production Company:
Cool Hand Pictures
Genre:
Crime
Length:
Feature
Website:
http://www.coolhandpictures.com
Score:
2/5
Ah, the lure of the streets is strong. Desperate, disillusioned and/or disadvantaged youth have often found that the tug of street life, crime and the trappings of both could be a way out and a way of making a mark on the world. Likewise, many young filmmakers have found the lure of the streets irresistible when it came time to make their mark on the film world. No less than “our greatest director” Mr. Martin Scorsese represents this model to a tee. While his monumental “Taxi Driver” is a classic, it is his earlier film “Mean Streets” that probably kicked the “young guys on the street” genre into high gear and has inspired countless young directors to make countless versions of the same film. Conveniently, the lure of the streets applies to many film lovers as well. People just can’t seem to get enough of these films despite the rather predictable pattern most of the plots tend to follow.
It seems pretty likely that some of these influenced factored into the production of write/director/actor Justin Morales’ debut feature “Forever”, a gritty, authentic and raw account of lives on the street. Joey (Patrick Egan) is the conscience of a motley crew of NYC would-be thugs that doesn’t even know it has a conscience. Intelligent, sensitive and moral while also being street smart and fiercely loyal to the good of his crew, Joey is particularly devoted to his impulsive, hot-headed cousin Alamo (played by Morales) an aspiring gangster who just does not know when to stop and stay in his place. When Alamo goes too far once again, the local crime lord demands that he move to Rhode Island and work for the crew there or face dire consequences in the city. Flash forward to a few years later when Joey gets a knock on the door and meets Forever (Dylan Hundley from “Metropolitan” and “The Last Days Of Disco”), a mysterious woman who might or might not be able to reveal Alamo’s fate to Joey.
Intense, realistic and, generally well put together, “Forever” has most of the ingredients for a successful film in this genre. Unfortunately, it falls into the trap that many films fall into, having ideas grander than its execution. The problem here is the screenplay which meanders and flies off on meaningless tangents, seemingly endless rants about subjects that do not really impact the plot and, ultimately, have the effect of becoming cinematic dead-ends. This is a classic case of the filmmaker coming up with maybe 60 minutes worth of story and spreading it out over nearly 120 minutes of movie. “Forever” has enough cinematic style and energy to go on forever, or at least into a couple of other films, it just doesn’t have the narrative substance to sustain itself over the course of this one film.
Justin Morales
Studio/Production Company:
Cool Hand Pictures
Genre:
Crime
Length:
Feature
Website:
http://www.coolhandpictures.com
Score:
2/5
Ah, the lure of the streets is strong. Desperate, disillusioned and/or disadvantaged youth have often found that the tug of street life, crime and the trappings of both could be a way out and a way of making a mark on the world. Likewise, many young filmmakers have found the lure of the streets irresistible when it came time to make their mark on the film world. No less than “our greatest director” Mr. Martin Scorsese represents this model to a tee. While his monumental “Taxi Driver” is a classic, it is his earlier film “Mean Streets” that probably kicked the “young guys on the street” genre into high gear and has inspired countless young directors to make countless versions of the same film. Conveniently, the lure of the streets applies to many film lovers as well. People just can’t seem to get enough of these films despite the rather predictable pattern most of the plots tend to follow.
It seems pretty likely that some of these influenced factored into the production of write/director/actor Justin Morales’ debut feature “Forever”, a gritty, authentic and raw account of lives on the street. Joey (Patrick Egan) is the conscience of a motley crew of NYC would-be thugs that doesn’t even know it has a conscience. Intelligent, sensitive and moral while also being street smart and fiercely loyal to the good of his crew, Joey is particularly devoted to his impulsive, hot-headed cousin Alamo (played by Morales) an aspiring gangster who just does not know when to stop and stay in his place. When Alamo goes too far once again, the local crime lord demands that he move to Rhode Island and work for the crew there or face dire consequences in the city. Flash forward to a few years later when Joey gets a knock on the door and meets Forever (Dylan Hundley from “Metropolitan” and “The Last Days Of Disco”), a mysterious woman who might or might not be able to reveal Alamo’s fate to Joey.
Intense, realistic and, generally well put together, “Forever” has most of the ingredients for a successful film in this genre. Unfortunately, it falls into the trap that many films fall into, having ideas grander than its execution. The problem here is the screenplay which meanders and flies off on meaningless tangents, seemingly endless rants about subjects that do not really impact the plot and, ultimately, have the effect of becoming cinematic dead-ends. This is a classic case of the filmmaker coming up with maybe 60 minutes worth of story and spreading it out over nearly 120 minutes of movie. “Forever” has enough cinematic style and energy to go on forever, or at least into a couple of other films, it just doesn’t have the narrative substance to sustain itself over the course of this one film.