Growing up I was always a huge fan of short stories. I was a voracious reader and they helped make me feel like I was getting more bang for my buck (or my parent’s buck as it were) when I read compilations. But even besides the fact that I could read more stories, and thus go on more adventures, I loved how they provided small snap shots into the character’s lives. They allowed me more freedom to come up with a continuation on the narrative, allowing me to fill in the gaps and construct worlds that only I would experience.

But while short stories have allowed authors to flourish, short films seem to be a slightly different animal. Too often festivals focus only on the ultra short films that have to rely on ironic or O’Henry style endings to drive the film, resulting in an all to often seemingly manufactured and formulaic genre.

Thankfully, the Flyway Film Festival cares not about running times, preferring instead unique tales and wondrous characters regardless of if the film is three or thirty minutes. Because of this, it is the audiences who benefit if they decide to attend this festival.

(more…)

Growing up in the Midwest I never had much exposure to Chinese food, authentic or otherwise. Their may have been a Chinese restaurant in Cedar Rapids but I don’t remember us ever going. In contrast I do remember at least a half dozens different trips to Godfather’s Pizza which involved me gagging on cheese. While my mother would attempt the occasional Chinese dish, she simply didn’t have access to very many quality ingredients, making those meals some of my least anticipated so even once we moved to Wisconsin I rarely, if ever, attempted to seek out any Asian cousine. But once I headed up to the University of Minnesota my world would drastically change.

Take Out is a surprisingly simple film, yet powerfully compelling. It opens with two thugs barging into an overcrowded apartment, searching for Ming Ding (Charles Jang), an illegal immigrant who borrowed money from a loan shark to finance his journey to the United States. But Ming has fallen behind on his payments and the loan shark has sent a very clear message, “I need $800 tonight or your debt doubles!” And just in case that isn’t clear enough the thugs leave a calling card courtesy of a hammer to his back.

Ming quickly sets out to call in the few financial favors he has, and even after that he is still $200 short, with only a single days works as a delivery boy for a local Chinese restaurant as his only chance at scratching out enough in tips. Luckily for Ming it has started to rain, leaving him with a few extra delivery chances while his colleague has promised to bow out for the day, giving Ming a legitimate chance to break even, provided that he works his ass off.

(more…)

I did not have cable when I was growing up, a pop cultural slight that I have now come to believe should be labeled a crime against humanity, so I had to find other ways to watch Transformers, GI Joe and anything else that might be showing only on the USA Cartoon Express. Thus, I had many an over night at my various friend’s houses where I would watch Nick at Night, Alfred Hitchcock Presents and Godzilla marathons until the sun would rise.

Now I never really understood Godzilla films at the time, all I knew was that they had giant monsters, giant robots and it also was a pretty cool Saturday morning cartoon which starred an even gianter monster who was at the beck and call of American scientists. They also also blew up stuff in the movies, which is always pretty cool.

I like to think Godzilla, and those nights spent watching him destroy, and defend, Tokyo, were some of the first planted seeds that would eventually blossom into my love of film. As such I’ve always had a bit of a nostalgic kick for men dressed in monster suits stomping on model cities. It is just good clean family fun. Until Mighty Morphin Power Rangers went and crapped all over it.

(more…)

The young people of today may not realize just how scary the word Satanist used to be here in the United States. You see, being a Puritanical society most people had a fear of God. But if there was one thing that could scare them even more then God it was Satan. And thanks to Hollywood hits like The Exorcist and Rosemary’s Baby those fears were suddenly rationalized in celluloid.

Yes those kindly old neighbors are trying to stealthily allow Satan to rape you in your sleep. And yes, the reason your daughter has started cursing and crab walking everywhere is because she is possessed by a demon. And yes, that scary blind man constantly sitting in that chair in the attic is guarding the gateway to Hell.
(more…)