If you read the review of Kickassia that I posted back in April, you'll know that I'm a fan of TGWTG.com, a website dedicated almost exclusively to geeks giving their own sarcastic takes on pop culture. The site features dozens of contributors, some whose work is more prevalent than others. Of them all, one of my absolute favorites is Brad Jones. He produces a number of shows for TGWTG.com and his own website, but his biggest claim to fame is his "Cinema Snob" character. The Snob's comically snooty opinions on cheesy exploitation movies and skin flicks have earned both the character and Jones himself their own followings.
But beyond his short videos, Jones also likes to try his hand at making feature films with ultra-low budgets. Most of them can be seen for free on Jones's website, but his latest one — a psychological thriller titled Paranoia — was made available on DVD two weeks ago. And I figured, what the heck, I might as well buy a copy. And you know what? It's pretty damn good.
Mark Bishop (Jones) is a struggling writer who's having a bad night. He thinks his wife leaving him is the worst of the problems he'll face this evening, but he's dead wrong. Not long after his wife walks out the door, someone breaks into Mark's house and attacks him. Mark is left with no recourse but to shoot and kill the intruder (Brian Irving) in self defense. While it's possible that this person was the serial killer that's been terrorizing his neighborhood, Mark doesn't want the attention that something like this would garner. He dumps the body off a bridge and begins roaming the city, trying to avoid the cops and clear his head. But as he finds himself in a series of increasingly disturbing situations over the course of the night, his sanity starts crumbling away as he wonders if the killer is after him.
You can tell just by watching the trailer that Paranoia had a very modest production. Shot and performed by a group of friends with a top-of-the-line HD camcorder on a budget of 20,000 bucks, the movie is about as independent as you can get. But despite its low budget and lack of studio involvement or big-name talent, Paranoia is still a great movie. It isn't without its flaws, but I'm actually impressed by how good the movie is.
Paranoia was directed by Ryan Mitchelle, this being his only directorial credit on IMDB. I'm not sure if he's directed anything else, considering that IMDB can be grossly inaccurate at times, but his work on Paranoia shows a lot of talent. It really shows how one can take perceived weaknesses, in this case a limited budget and lack of Hollywood-quality equipment, and turn them into strengths. But while one could view Paranoia's behind-the-scenes aspect as having certain limitations, Mitchelle makes the most of it and it works. The movie is very intimately made, with moody cinematography that helps to build the atmosphere and ratchet up tension and suspense. It's gripping filmmaking, and I'm looking forward to seeing more from Mitchelle in the future.
The aforementioned Brad Jones handles the writing duties for the movie, and his script is quite good. There are a few moments where the dialogue seems a little stilted, but outside of that, the script makes a very effective thriller. And while I guessed the basic gist of the movie's twist about 45 minutes in, Jones still manages to pack the movie with enough twists and turns to keep it unpredictable. It's one of those movies that when you watch it a second time, you start noticing things (that may or may not actually be there) that seem to set up the ending. It's these little clues that not only make Paranoia worth watching more than once, but shows that Jones really has a handle on what he wants to do and how he wants to do it.
This brings us to the acting. The majority of the cast are okay but nothing to write home about, since it's obvious that acting isn't their day jobs. Nobody is particularly bad, but I didn't think there were any real standouts either. But it's not even really that big a deal, since Jones is so good that he carries the entire movie. He plays the role incredibly well, making the character both likable and sympathetic. We want to follow the character and grow concerned with what he's going through because of how awesome Jones is. It's a fantastic performance that definitely makes the movie worth watching.
Paranoia does have its flaws, yes, but it doesn't let them bog it down. It overcomes those flaws and is a much better movie for it. I honestly can't convey how impressed I am by the efforts of its creators. The movie more than likely will not appeal to everyone, perhaps due to the subject matter, one's own opinions of Jones's online performances, or its modest production, but that doesn't stop Paranoia from being a great flick. After seeing this, I'm definitely looking forward to what the makers of Paranoia come up with next.
Final Rating: ***½
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