Independent Film Reviews

Spoiler Alert

Posted on 23. Apr, 2010 by Sy in Independent Films

It’s not often I get to watch a movie that feels like it has been written, produced and directed deliberately for me, a wannabe independent film critic.  Spoiler Alert is a real gem with an incredible script and very solid acting from start to finish.

The movie is centered around a passionate film geek “Brad Zhul” played by Daniel Bartkewicz and his movie review website that has so much authority that it can influence Hollywood, think power to the little people. The portrayal of the webmaster come film critic is spot on and resonates with everyone here at independent film reviews, though sometimes a little over the top.

“Spoiler Alert is a black comic/revenge tale from first-time feature filmmaker David Rakowiecki (pronounced Ra-cow-ski). Itʼs about Brad, the operator of a movie scoop website and Harrison, a down on his luck film director who has squandered his artistic abilities in pursuit of easy paydays. One night Harrison shows up on Bradʼs doorstep looking to exact revenge upon him because he feels Brad and his website have ruined his career. Chinese food, movie geek talk and murder ensue.”

The scene is set, and stays that way throughout, inside a small basement cave – a movie making tactic that hasn’t worked in a very long time, or at least as long as I can remember. The director uses hand held camera work and scene cutaways which help with the flow and overall feel of this film which everyone here at IFR thoroughly enjoyed.

Spoiler Alert deals with something we discuss here on a regular basis, how do you deal with a bad film when you have so much influence at your disposal and you know your review can help make or break that movies chance of success? I’m just thankful right now I actually loved this film and could write an honest review without a knock on the door from the disgruntled director!

For a basically “one scene movie” with virtually no score, Rakowiecki keeps things moving along with some unexpected plot twists and turns that managed to keep us all entertained, when the pace began to slow, another twist comes along at almost exactly the right time, great directing overall and kudos to the camera operators for some stellar hand held work.

Well – no bad reviews over here, or spoilers for that matter. We all thought Spoiler Alert was one of the most well polished, best acted and well written indie flicks we’ve received in a long time. Unfortunately we get a lot of junk sent our way and unlike Brad, we try and stray away from negative reviews, you just never know who will be knocking on your door!

Get your hands on a copy and see for yourself. 7/10

Tags: featured