DJG / Sorry, Haters

Sorry, Haters * * * * 1/2
Directed by: Jeff Stanzler / 2005

Most movies fused with current events and topical commentary on race, class, society, politics, terrorism, etc. usually don't stick to the roof of my eye-lids very long or hardly at all. Not only have these areas been over-probed and over-bloated in the past seven years, but they tend to come pre-packaged, poorly-handled machines to manipulate as opposed to really move and react people in effective measures. Some have merely become seasonal Oscar bait and reasons to push personal agendas, acting skills and pay rolls. Case in point, does Oliver Stone really need to release a film this fall about George W. Bush before he is even officially out of the Oval Office? I'm not opposed to discussion or commentary at the movies (Well, please save it for the end credits!) nor am I opposed to the use of film as a timeline and historical document and I'm not one to brush real life under the rug. Some films of topical nature just do nothing for me and come way too soon to wear that they are almost like reality television or eye candy. Why not use the millions and millions of movie making dollars to put into the problems, instead of just raising glossy awareness in the dark for ten minutes before audiences go back to their private corners of the world? How many times have you been truly challenged by a movie in a two hour span and then left without a doggy bag of thoughts and discussion? It happens a lot, I think (Well, unless you live inside of CTJ’s and DJG’s little red wagons, as we tend to vomit excitement for most anything!). To top it off on the personal level, I sometimes just want to either see these topics and others explored through more creative film lenses...and with hearts that continue to beat. Oh, and sometimes I just want a retreat from the outside world with laughter and creativity! I also feel as a media-driven, voyeuristic society we like to be hammered with way too much reality that we've become almost de-sensitized to some degree as we keep behind our white picket fences with the KEEP IN signs firmly fastened. We love to know what's going on, but we don't want anyone getting to our personal property, mentally and physically (Well, unless we write a blog about it while in our underwear!). Despite my little gripes, there are a few extremely well-crafted, well-told rocket-in-the-topical-crib films that slip under the radar and truly explode and explore. Add "Sorry, Haters" to the top of this list. This film is not for everyone and may even frighten and disturb most. It might even cause some to wish to ban and blacklist. However, I think that everyone needs to see little-known flashing light films like this as opposed to the ones that tend to get the sirens, but typically fall short and have expiration dates by the end credits. I'm not about to give anything away with "Sorry, Haters". Let’s just say that it could bring slight comparisons to Martin Scorsese’s brilliant “Taxi Driver”, but reversed, and uh, not really?! It has many surprises, transformations and surfacing results, not to mention an ending that had me jumping off the couch higher than some of the best horror-suspense films. I knew nothing going into this mini-masterpiece and I want others to have the same empty file drawer to fill up and spill out after a near-perfect one hour and twenty three minutes of film immediacy. This is a gutsy and important movie that will challenge, intrigue, absorb, confuse and cause much unrest and enlightenment in the viewer. It somehow conveys across rocky terrain without cliché, the need for much shock value or manipulation and it’s well-crafted and played. This is the best post 9-11 film yet to be made and is sure to keep sparking a long fuse to come.

-djg