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 Shadows off the beaten pathIndies, foreign, docs and shorts...
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THE DEGENERATE: THE LIFE AND FILMS OF ANDY MILLIGAN |
SANE INSIDE SANITY |
2000 METERS TO ANDRIIVKA
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| See also: SHADOWS FILM FESTIVAL | Last update 25.Aug.25 | |||||||||||||
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The Degenerate: The Life and Films of Andy Milligan Review by Rich Cline | 
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 dir Josh Johnson, Grayson Tyler Johnson scr-prd Josh Johnson with Gerald Jacuzzo, Jimmy McDonough, Hope Stansbury, John Borske, Bob Liikala, Samuel M Sherman, Robert Berlin, Stephen Thrower, Alex DiSanto, Ozzie Rodriguez release US Jun.25 tff, UK Aug.25 frf 25/US 1h41  Now streaming...
|  Tracing the career of a notorious filmmaker who mixed experimental sensibilities with excessive schlock, this documentary tells the story of Andy Milligan, whose ethos was to just get out there and make a movie. As a scrappy artist, his work was inventive and influential, with distinctive themes and camera tricks, yet modern audiences have seen very little of it. So it's time for cinema scholars to rediscover him. Scarred by abusive parents, Milligan left home as quickly as possible, joining the US Navy and being quickly discharged, most likely for being gay. In 1950s New York, he worked as an actor in theatre and live television, then wrote and directed plays in a free-thinking collective that birthed Off-Off Broadway. In 1965, he made his first film, then started making movies for Times Square sexploitation cinemas. He discovered that the sicker his screenplays were, the more universal the films became. Soon shifting from sex to horror, he carried on working right through the 1980s. Friends and colleagues speak to-camera about how Milligan was driven by his complicated homosexuality, anger toward his mother, love of violence and a determination to break stereotypes. Witty anecdotes accompany a terrific collection of clips from his work. And an audio interview allows Milligan to speak as well. The doc highlights his trial-and-error style of filmmaking, which led to a brisk sequence of movies that were far more original than anyone expected, even if they were shot and performed by amateurs. But many of these films have been lost over time. And he couldn't understand why, when his movies made money, no one took him seriously as a filmmaker, even when he moved to Hollywood. Milligan's repeating theme was the impact a parent has on a child,. This can be seen throughout his work, usually with the presence of a villainous mother. And noble idiots are often the heroes. The interviewees on-screen here are honest and revelatory, exploring his manic, hotheaded way of working. Even as he continually fell out with people who wanted to use him, his free spirit made him loveable. His impassioned way of working, doing all the jobs himself on a shoestring budget, took a serious toll on him, and he died with Aids in 1991 at age 62. This film makes a powerful argument that he and his work should be remembered.
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Sane Inside Sanity Review by Rich Cline |
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 dir-scr-prd Andreas Zerr with Jim Sharman, Richard Hartley, Barry Bostwick, Lou Adler, Michael White, Alan Ladd Jr, Nell Campbell, Patricia Quinn, Reg Livermore, Rayner Bourton, Paddy O'Hagan, Christopher Biggins release UK Aug.25 frf 25/Germany 1h40 Is it streaming? |
 Celebrating 50 years of a camp classic, this documentary explores "the phenomenon of Rocky Horror", the offbeat play-turned-movie musical that went viral long before that was a thing. German filmmaker Andreas Zerr carefully traces the development of the show and film, then dives deeply into the fan experience that has evolved exponentially over the decades. It's a brisk, knowing trip into a quirky corner of film history. Designed as a rock-n-roll horror stage musical, Richard O'Brien's The Rocky Horror Show opened in 1973 London and became a must-see hit. The biggest stars flocked to its Los Angeles staging, but it bombed on Broadway, and the 1975 film adaptation also flopped. But the movie came back to life at midnight screenings a year later, with audiences interacting in ways that were never intended, and it returned to cinemas across the country. A global audience emerged after it was featured in the 1980 movie Fame, turning it into the biggest cult movie in history. Cast and crew members share terrific anecdotes that are accompanied by colourful stills, audio recordings, archival interviews and lots of clips. Much of the original stage team returned for the film, plus then-unknown American actors Barry Bostwick and Susan Sarandon. Ironically, the studio had no faith in the movie and spent virtually nothing on advertising, simply because they didn't understand it, but it has become one of Fox's most profitable films ever. Very few people share the proceeds. Stage and film director Sharman and musician Hartley have always known that the movie is a mess, but letting the audience take over has more than made up for that. Intriguingly, this doc ignores O'Brien's 1981 sequel Shock Treatment, but it does touch on the remakes. And there's further irony in how the new stage production has grown bigger and cleaner, losing the original show's earthy edge. But of course true fans always go back to the original. They speak about how they identified with characters who refuse to follow the usual rules of binary society. So screenings have become major parties that celebrate freedom of expression by singing, dancing, embracing sexuality and just being weirdos together. Members of "shadow casts" at screenings are now stars on their own. An extensive range of fan-performance clips are wonderfully full-on. It's clear that none of this is a joke: this movie means a lot to fans. And it reminds us: "Don't dream it, be it."
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2000 Meters to Andriivka Review by Rich Cline | 
MUST  SEE
SUNDANCE FILM FEST CANNES FILM FEST Now streaming...
|  Embedding cameras with troops on the frontline, filmmaker Mstyslav Chernov takes the audience right into the hotspot, allowing us to feel the earth rattling as the young men come under fire. Chernov's intensely personal voiceover, plus aerial footage and news reports, recounts the story of troops advancing through the ancient forest near the village of Andriivka. This is a new kind of battlefield film: immersive, timely and essential. In desolated wasteland that was once beautiful Ukrainian countryside, a group of young men face a relentless assault from Russian missiles and drones. Andriivka is a small but strategic location for protecting this region, and commanders on the eastern front are determined to liberate it and raise Ukraine's flag there. They also know it will take three months to work their way through these 2,000 hellish metres. Progress is slow but steady as a small group of Ukrainian soldiers tenaciously presses the Russians, pushing them back until they finally retake what's left of the village. Sudden explosions hit terrifyingly close-by, injuring the men on-screen, including those with cameras on their helmets. Heart-stopping incidents include an escape tank getting stuck in the mud, leaving the men to make a run for it under heavy fire. Helmet-cam footage is harrowing to watch, especially as it looks eerily like something from a first-person shooter videogame. And a cut to mothers weeping over their fallen sons is wrenching, even overwhelming. Most of these soldiers volunteered to fight, and Chernov's narration notes their fate in battles yet to come, offering chilling future context to these immediate moments. If the Russians knew journalists were travelling with Ukrainian forces, they'd be a primary target. Retaking these villages is a mixed triumph: it raises morale throughout the country, even if little but rubble remains. Indeed, there is nothing left of Andriivka when they finally get there. "However you spin it, this is our land," one soldier says. Another observes, arriving in the battlefield is like landing on a planet where everything is trying to kill you. But they are right in the middle of Europe. This is filmmaking at its most urgent, bravely shot and skilfully edited to document what is really happening. And Chernov knows that the longer Russia keeps destroying his country, the less the world will care about it.
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See also: SHADOWS FILM FESTIVAL © 2025 by Rich Cline, Shadows
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