King of Herrings

King of Herrings is a wonderful film. It speaks to a way of life in New Orleans, to anyone who has lived with the same group of people for many years only to find you don't like them all, to anyone who has hoped for rescue only to find that they must rescue themselves.

When you look into the world of King of Herrings, you see characters that have fallen into painful rhythms, hurtful, manipulative relationships, and petty oneupmanship. And yet some of these beautifully rendered characters still strive to reach beyond the limits of their day to day existence and make good on their dreams.

The characters are each brought to life in performances that are visceral and truthful. Some content with their way of life an others hoping for a change that will make their life somehow better. The story follows the characters as they go about their lives over several days, and through events and interactions that will impact their lives going forward.

The actors have been friends for more that twenty years, and their on-screen chemistry comes from a genuine friendship and rapport. This charm is evident from the first frame and through to the end.

It is the winner of the Audience Favorite Narrative Film at the New Orleans Film Festival, and I was fortunate to have seen it there. I have to recommend this film to anyone who loves film.

I was lucky enough to see the screening of this film, and it was quite powerful. The script, the actors and their performances, the photography, and the locations were perfect. "King of Herrings" is quite simple, yet incredibly powerful and thought provoking, bringing you intimately into their world and lives for a few days. Shooting it in black and white was brilliant, keeping you involved in the characters, and the locations, without any distractions. I think everyone involved in creating "King of Herrings", are long time friends, and the relationships between the actors are very honest and real, making it feel like you are hanging out with a group of friends.. even saying "no, don't do that".. forgetting you are watching a film. It is very well written, making you laugh, think, and almost cry. That makes it a "10" for me!

Had the great opportunity to see a free viewing of this film at BRCC today after our closing ceremony for Art fest. We were also fortunate to meet the actors and production (skeleton) crew. I refer to skeleton because the crew conceited of 2 people. It was great to meet and ask a few question. They were very approachable and were happy to let us pick their brains about the film and what it took to produce. I found that the film gave a sense of familiarity; a feeling that one could connect with the characters and the dynamics of each of their relationships. By featuring the film in black and white I believe it brought another level of depth not only to the story line but also the backdrop.

King of Herrings reminds me of the excitement I felt when I first saw Jim Jarmusch's 'Down By Law.' The writing is fresh and fits the setting. The characters live in a parallel universe that draws the viewer in and enlists you to care about their decisions. No car crashes or bank heists. Just human conflict - petty and personal - and believable resolves. Very glad I discovered this film and this unique collection of actors. Eddie Jemison has written himself a memorable character cut from that Joe Pesci cloth of spontaneous and utterly unpredictable screen wise guys. King of Herrings is a pure old school indie, the kind of film that makes you wish you were still hammering out your screenplay on a typewriter rather than a MacBook.

The makers of this film suffered from many misunderstandings. To identify a few for them, filming in black and white doesn't make you an auteur (and it makes a plot mystifying when one character is referred to, for over an hour, simply as "the redhead"); casting character actors as leads doesn't always make them good enough to carry the larger role; long pauses in conversations do not make that conversation meaningful; and working without a script does not inspire brilliance. OK, I'm guessing on that last point, but it sure seems like no one knew their lines. Oh, and lens flare isn't an especially good look in black and white.

In sum, a pretentious, vapid, poorly constructed story.