Directed by: Usher Morgan, Katie Vincent Written by: Katie Vincent Genre: Drama |
Windblown
Once in a while a micro budget indie film comes along that really impresses me. Windblown from Usher Morgan and Katie Vincent is one such title. Spectacular by micro standards and impressive even against a decently budgeted studio cousin. A 4 star review for a micro indie from me is near unheard of. But in this case it is not only deserved, it's earned.
After the loss of her brother, Beth (Katie Vincent) retreats to Windblown. A family retreat by the looks of things. It's a beautiful place situated right at the water. The perfect spot to heal. Grief is hard, especially when it's immediate family. Some people sink deeper into the remaining family and friends, and some do the opposite. All in the hopes, even if only subconsciously, to grieve and move on with their lives. For some it's hard or even impossible. Windblown, and Beth's story is one such case. I won't go into details on how Beth deals with her loss. If she comes out the other side whole again or is she simply falls into the pits of depression, but will say that the presentation of this title is excellent. Both from a script to screen perspective, and the perilous aspects of production and post production. Windblown looks great, even better than some of those studio cousins I mentioned above. The talent that put this story in front of my eyes is second only to the acting from the cast. Again, excellent. Obviously we expect the leading lady to be fantastic, but Beth's brother Billy (Jacob A. Ware) is definitely no slouch. The parts are played so excellently that not for one second, will you think these 2 are not kin. And the mother? Played by Susan Gallagher just screamed for more screen time. When she was on-screen though, she owned it. Playing second fiddle to nobody. Windblown deals with grief and the coping mechanisms of the mind. Just how much does it take to break a person mentally? Windblown attempts to give us that answer. I believe grief is different for everybody but know for sure, that Morgan and Vincent know how to tell a story and make it their own. I only wish it were longer. Something that again, I don't write much when it comes to micro movies. For a title under 20 minutes to be this dramatic, using a story we've all heard or lived before? It's an accomplishment worthy of the term indie film. Well done and thank you for reading. |
