Film Review - Callback: The Unmaking of “Bloodstain”
Thursday, October 16th, 2008The random, interwoven sequence of events that leads up to the casting of a schizophrenic, a classically trained actor, and a pathetic “thug”, all in one film, create a dangerous group of misfits that will kill the chance of the film’s completion.
Callback, the “unmaking of ‘Bloodstain’”, shows the ridiculous way a film unravels throughout production.The honest, self-consciously self-deprecating depiction of struggling artists in Los Angeles, turns a story that we’ve seen a million times, into a unique, comedic catastrophe. Told in juxtaposed “mockumentary” and straightforward narrative, the majority of the film leads up to the tragically comedic unfolding of the “unmaking” of the film within the film, entitled “Bloodstain”. Directed, and co-written by Eric M. Wolfson, he explains that he and his writing partner, Michael DeGood, “found the idea of giving people a glimpse of what most working, or more often not working actors, in Los Angeles face on a day to day basis, very appealing”. Struggling to land a pizza delivery commercial, and starring in a play “Hamlet My Homie” humorously captures the less-glamorous Hollywood dream.
The diverse cast of specific, individual characters carries the film. It’s no wonder that Jeff Parise has won multiple best actor awards for the role of Tony (including best actor at Indiefest 2006, Breckenridge 2007, and Lakedance 2007). I caught myself laughing out loud at Parise’s beautifully awkward portrayal of Tony, a schizophrenic with a refrigerator full of milk and a confusingly sweet girlfriend Jill (Jennifer Hall). Taking on the challenge not only to play a schizophrenic, but to pull if of so smoothly and with impeccable technique, Parise embodies two entirely different roles people: the shy, awkward Tony who loyally takes his pills, and the rambunctious, Spanish-speaking rebel that lands the role in “Bloodstain”. We cannot help but sympathize with Peter, played by Johnny Moreno, an actor who arrives two hours early to each audition in order to “warm up”. Struggling to pay his rent, he cannot even land a job as a waiter and he sees no other option but to take a job as a phone sex operator. His straight, serious character embodies the spirit of what Wolfson hopes his audience to gain from the film: “having a deeper appreciation of the lengths to which people will go to make their dreams come true”.
But it is not only the actors with whom we sympathize. I could not help but indulge in the painful sequence of callback nightmares that up-and-coming director Marci (Kat Orsini) and Andrew (Brian Michael) face as they confront the politics of production. Orsini plays Marci, a first time director, with a delicate balance of bitchy-ness and annoyance at her eccentric cast. Although she has few likeable qualities, we can’t help sharing her angst against the corrupt producer who threatens her job in order to cast his talentless nephew, Carl Simple (co-writer DeGood). Carl has no redeeming characteristics at all, from his terrible acting skills and “impressions” to his unfortunate “day job”: mugging people for money (while he waits for his Uncle to hand him a part). The only character we might dislike more, is Carl’s beautiful but borderline insane girlfriend, who refuses to get a job and forces Carl to carry a gun; her malice acts as a driving force for disaster.
My only notable complaint is that it takes a little too long to get to the disaster that we know is impending from the moment the film begins. While it provides an in-depth explanation for the series of events to unfold, I found myself impatiently awaiting the climax. However, the seemingly drawn-out set up building to the actual “event” that the film promises, does deliver the action and drama that it guarantees. Although Callback might not be a groundbreaking masterpiece, its comedic moments of desperation are worth savoring.
Callback: The Unmaking of Bloodstain (96 min) begins its one-week run at the Landmark Theaters in San Francisco, on Friday, October 17.
For tickets: https://tickets.landmarktheatres.com/Landmark.aspx?TheatreID=225
Lily Saltzberg, FilmClick Staff
