I recently had the opportunity to see a film called D(e)ad written by Izzy Roland of Dropout TV fame and directed by Claudia Lonow who just happens to be Izzy’s mom. This film was crowdfunded and got a limited release and I just happened to catch it when it came to the New Parkway Theater in Oakland, CA.
For this film, Izzy and Claudia employed family and friends including Izzy’s Stepfather (or Mother’s partner I’m not sure which) Jonathan Schmock, her husband and Dimension 20 host/game master Brennan Lee Mulligan, friends and Dropout costars Vic Michaelis and Zac Oyama, her grandparents (I think) JoAnne Astrow and Mark Lonow. This also costars Craig Bierko who co-starred in the criminally underrated Gina Davis and Samuel L Jackson film The Long Kiss Goodnight.
This movie is about a young woman named Tillie who has a bad relationship with her father, but then her father passes away while she is sitting outside the hospital room. Then the family finds themselves haunted by the estranged father but Tillie is the only one who can’t see him. Now they must find out why is he haunting them and why can’t Tillie see him.
I only knew about this film because I follow Izzy, Brennan, Vic, and Zac on various social media sites and I was lucky enough to catch a showing. Here’s my review.
I’m very happy to report that even if I wasn’t already a fan of Izzy through Dropout, I would have loved this film. This raised about 259k on Kickstarter and the quality of the film blew me away. I’ve seen far worse quality movies with budgets in the millions so this rag-tag group of creators made a professional film with a shoestring budget. This isn’t terribly surprising as most of them grew up in the industry but when you have movies with huge budgets fall flatter than Shaq things the Earth is, this indie film is quite impressive.
The acting was also exceptional and the standout to me was Izzy’s stepfather played by Jonathan Schmock who looks like a cross between Bradley Whitford and Sean Harris. One scene in particular had me laughing so hard I got light headed. The first time Harris (Schmock) sees the ghost is a perfect example of great comedic timing and how to not oversell a bit.
Izzy Roland was born for the role of Tillie. And I mean that both literally and figuratively. This is a semi-autobiographical movie so yes, she was literally born to play the role. But here’s the thing. This isn’t like Eminem in 8 Mile or like anyone in This is the End. Izzy does play a character and does it well even if she drew a lot from her real life. She plays a complex character who exemplifies the Kylo Ren quote “I know what I must do but I don’t know if I have the strength to do it.”
The other standout to me was Vic Michaelis who was always on point. Every line of dialogue they were given was expertly delivered and I know, deep down, that they were snubbed for an Emmy nomination for their show Very Important People.
I do want to point out that everyone was good. The three I mentioned just stood out and I wanted to mention them specifically. Because come on, I’ll watch anything Brennan Lee Mulligan is in.
This movie was a joy to watch and was as heartfelt as it was funny. It had me laughing though most of it and fighting back tears now and again. And I want to stress the fact that even if I had no knowledge of any of these people, I would still have found this to be one of the best movies of the year. The ending was predictable but then again it was the only way this story could have gone unless it went off the narrative rails at the end.
If you have a chance to see this movie, do so. If you live near an independent theater, ask them to request this film by going to the website deadthefilm.com. If even one person reads this review and decides to see the film than I’ll be happy. As of writing this blog I have seen 82 new release films this year and D(e)ad sits at number 5. Not bad for a crowdfunded film by a bunch of comedy nerds.
D(e)ad gets an 11 out fo 11
