3 reviews
Michael no longer wants to partake in the paranormal business he and partner Josh started together. But Josh convinces him to take on one last case, far more troubling than anything they have ever worked on before and possibly the one that changes Michael's life forever.
The film hooked me in with the very first line: a priest saying he gets more people to attend church with a sermon about Satan than one about Jesus. While that introduction really has little bearing on the rest of the film, it caught my imagination and had me wondering. Surely, it sounds true enough. And it makes for quite an interesting experiment – are people merely fascinated by the idea of evil, or are they driven more by fear of hell than hope for heaven?
The filming took place (at least partially) way down in Kokomo, Indiana, so we know the title is legit. We also know this is Indiana because of the traffic lights. Having been around the country, and living in the Midwest, this reviewer can confirm that Indiana has a look all its own. With the exception of Bloomington (a prosperous college town) and New Albany (a Louisville suburb), the state has the appearance of being constantly under construction, with road repair never ending.
As another reviewer summed up the film, this is a paranormal story on a shoestring budget. That really is the beginning and the end of the deal. There are no great scares, there is no attempt to convince the audience the paranormal is real (or fake). The majority of the film revolves around two friends in a vehicle, or briefly on a radio program, who have the same passion but tend to disagree. The only really paranormal aspects are not until much later – there was nothing that could not have been made by anyone with a camera and an adequate amount of talent.
This is not meant to be disparaging to the director by any means. There is nothing wrong with being a low budget film. What matters is what you do with that budget and the talent you amass. "Indiana" is skillfully shot, professionally acted, and is as big as a film as it needs to be. To expect anything over the top (ala "Paranormal Activity") would be the mistake of the viewer, not of the filmmakers.
"Indiana" screened July 30, 2017 at the Fantasia International Film Festival. How many Midwesterners are in Montreal is not known, but the ones who are will recognize a piece of home. What a joy that everyone else will get to experience it, too, and not the same old Hollywood backlot.
The film hooked me in with the very first line: a priest saying he gets more people to attend church with a sermon about Satan than one about Jesus. While that introduction really has little bearing on the rest of the film, it caught my imagination and had me wondering. Surely, it sounds true enough. And it makes for quite an interesting experiment – are people merely fascinated by the idea of evil, or are they driven more by fear of hell than hope for heaven?
The filming took place (at least partially) way down in Kokomo, Indiana, so we know the title is legit. We also know this is Indiana because of the traffic lights. Having been around the country, and living in the Midwest, this reviewer can confirm that Indiana has a look all its own. With the exception of Bloomington (a prosperous college town) and New Albany (a Louisville suburb), the state has the appearance of being constantly under construction, with road repair never ending.
As another reviewer summed up the film, this is a paranormal story on a shoestring budget. That really is the beginning and the end of the deal. There are no great scares, there is no attempt to convince the audience the paranormal is real (or fake). The majority of the film revolves around two friends in a vehicle, or briefly on a radio program, who have the same passion but tend to disagree. The only really paranormal aspects are not until much later – there was nothing that could not have been made by anyone with a camera and an adequate amount of talent.
This is not meant to be disparaging to the director by any means. There is nothing wrong with being a low budget film. What matters is what you do with that budget and the talent you amass. "Indiana" is skillfully shot, professionally acted, and is as big as a film as it needs to be. To expect anything over the top (ala "Paranormal Activity") would be the mistake of the viewer, not of the filmmakers.
"Indiana" screened July 30, 2017 at the Fantasia International Film Festival. How many Midwesterners are in Montreal is not known, but the ones who are will recognize a piece of home. What a joy that everyone else will get to experience it, too, and not the same old Hollywood backlot.
The attached storyline makes it sound soul-shattering but the limited budget makes this end up more like a PARANORMAL Day-In-The-Life portrayal/Character Study of our protagonist. Interesting Characters but nothing else compelling. We follow said characters on a case & then they go home...
Production Values are good, Acting is decent
Production Values are good, Acting is decent
- wamwatcher
- May 15, 2017
- Permalink
It's a crime that as the 2000's creep forward, the best and most original films languish without coverage or distribution. INDIANA has the investigative supernatural vibe of the best X-Files episodes, and the tinge of humor from the best Jody Hill / Danny McBride collaborations, but really this is a movie that walks its own walk. It doesn't shy away from being funny, yet it will cut you to the bone when it wants to be chilling and wrench your heart when you least expect it. Perhaps most importantly, INDIANA dares to do what films have forgotten how to do in 2018: it asks questions. BIG questions ... and not because the filmmakers have some convenient answer they want you to agree with. But because agreeing on the questions with each other is our only hope for any kind of inner peace in a world gone mad.
- weirdfantasyband-61977
- Jan 7, 2019
- Permalink