COOP COOPER is an independently syndicated film critic with a split personality. His “Southern Side” prints mainstream reviews that appear in various print publications across the mid-south. His “Dark Side” from Los Angeles befouls the site with reviews of horror and grindhouse flicks. Welcome to the site where COOP’s two halves (and his contributors) review and debate the latest film/DVD releases…

Why should you check out the 2nd Annual Clarksdale Film Festival? I can think of a few reasons…

1. Memphis wrestling idols “Superstar” Bill Dundee and Buddy Wayne will be on hand Thursday night for a Q&A following the documentary “Memphis Heat: The True Story of Memphis Wrasslin’.” Anyone who grew up in the area remembers seeing these guys performing on live TV or at the Clarksdale Civic Auditorium. If you missed this event by the time you read this article, pay close attention. There is much more to look forward to the rest of the weekend…

by Coop Cooper

While watching “Gypsy Heart” one might wonder where the story is going, until the payoff when they realize the story is oddly familiar to those who appreciate a good legend. A good samaritan (Glenn Payne) picks up an alluring hitchhiker (Courtney Cheek) on a rural Mississippi road. The more questions the guy asks, the more uncomfortable the girl becomes. Soon it becomes apparent that the girl is hiding something. As they approach their destination, both parties soon discover the reason for their chance meeting…

Michael Williams is a reliable fixture at film festivals in Mississippi and the neighboring states. He’s also very talented, so when he asked me to take a look at his new short film “Illumination,” I jumped at the chance.

His story, clearly influenced by early Spielberg, easily reminds one of “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” (1977) but with some similarities to Alex Proyas’ “Knowing” (2009). A cheating archeologist (Glenn Payne) discovers what is truly important in his life after his wife (Juliet Reeves) and son (Grayson Easterling) vanish under unusual circumstances. Saying anymore than that would be telling, but Williams manages to draw out some effective suspense through technical expertise and the performances of the actors…

Coop here. I released the trailer for THE BEST DAY on Facebook this past weekend and have gotten a very positive response so far.  Now that I’m back from teaching my screenwriting workshop at the Crossroads Film Festival (thanks to all of you who attended), I finally have the opportunity to release the trailer by way of a blog post where it will reach many more viewers…

A few details about this sci-fi/horror short:  It was filmed in four days in December 2010 entirely in Clarksdale, Mississippi by myself and a crew of locals.  It stars Anna Carson Tyner as Jenny, Amye Gousset as Mommy, David Dallas as Daddy and Lois Erwin as Miss Vargas.  The film is currently in the final stages of post production.

Logline:  Little Jenny wishes nothing more than to reunite with her “sick” mommy and daddy, but poor Jenny will live to regret this wish…  again, and again, and again.

CLICK “Read More” below to watch the trailer…

No nonsense this year. I have not the taste nor the stomach for it. I just hope that James Franco understands the folly of hosting during his own nomination. The acid may dissolve him permanently due to overexposure and he shows no signs of relenting. Don’t push our buttons too hard, Frank…

Besides that, Hi …

Once again the fine staff of the Oxford Film Fest have topped themselves to produce the biggest turnout yet. My congratulations to all involved and I already can’t wait to see what is on the menu for 2012.

Films I saw (in no particular order):

My new short film is taking shape! The editing process is in full effect and everything is going smoothly. Stay tuned for updates and here are a few great pictures taken by Katie Crouch during the production…

The film is written, produced and directed by Coop Cooper (The Small Town Critic) with a production crew that consists entirely of Clarksdale, Mississippi residents.

“The Best Day” is a 15-minute science fiction short about an innocent child in a dire situation. Jenny arrives home from school, excited that newly “resurrected” Mommy has returned, only to find that something is very wrong with her. When Mommy’s memories fully return, so do the tragedies of the past. They were once human, now part of a cruel experiment that repeats over and over… and it is all Daddy’s fault.

THE CAST…

I’ve been pretty busy lately, neglecting the site a bit, and the press release below explains why. If you live within driving distance of Clarksdale or Oxford Mississippi and you have an interest in acting, you might wanna read this…

SHORT FILM PRODUCTION IN CLARKSDALE, MS – A short film will be shot in Clarksdale this December. The film is written, produced and directed by Coop Cooper. Lois McMurchy has been cast as the villain and two non-speaking roles will be played by crew members. The crew consists entirely of Clarksdale area residents.

“The Best Day” is a 15-minute science fiction short about an innocent child in a dire situation. The child arrives home from school, excited that newly “resurrected” Mommy has returned, only to find that something is very wrong with her. When Mommy’s memories fully return, so do the tragedies of the past. They were once human, now part of a cruel experiment that repeats over and over… and it is all Daddy’s fault.

The film’s rating falls into the PG to PG-13 range due to intense situations. The shooting dates will be two weekends, December 4th – 5th and 11th – 12th. CLICK BELOW TO LEARN MORE…

Coop’s most recent MICRO REVIEWS (via Twitter):

I got to conduct some great Q & A’s for some terrific films at the FEEL GOOD FILM FESTIVAL this past weekend. I met some truly gifted filmmakers and inspirational people.

I’d like to thank these special guests for affecting me the most: Cheryl Hines for her big intro, Shirley Jones for classing up the joint with her presence, Marty Ingles for reminding us what this festival is really about, Leeza Gibbons for singling me out with a nice compliment, writer/director Lexi Alexander for the lively discussion, producer/actor Googy Gress for his sincere enthusiasm, the League of S.T.E.A.M. for entertaining us all weekend and motivational speaker/actor Nick Vujicic for the sheer inspiration he gave to us all with his fantastic short film The Butterfly Circus (watch here!).

I’d also like to give big high-fives to all of the coordinators and volunteers for making the festival such a fun and engaging experience. I had a great time bonding with you all.

Finally a big congratulations to producer/actor Joe Russell and writer/actress Casey Strand from the short film “Strawberries” whose engagement I helped orchestrate during one of the more memorable Q & A’s.

I wish I had seen them all but of the ones I did see, here are the films that I felt were the best (in no particular order)…

Coop’s most recent MICRO REVIEWS (via Twitter):

Nothing brand new here, but I just can’t get the energy up to go see WANTED II… I mean, SALT…

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO: Quirky autistic hacker chick fights crime and has a lot of sex in Sweden. High brow yet boring. 2 out of 5

PECKER: Photog’s quick fame ruins lives of loved ones. Semi-autobio of John Waters. Clever allegory for artistic expression. 3&1/2 out of 5

WATCHING THE DETECTIVES: A girl (Lucy Liu) uses wild pranks to woo a nerdy boy (Cillian Murphy). Well-written indie rom-com. 3&1/2 out of 5

SALVAGE (2006): Girl relives her death at the hands of a serial killer over and over. Above par indie horror with a great twist. 3 out of 5

SALVAGE (2009): Mother searches for daughter during invasion by soldiers hunting a murderous mutant. Good tension, lame BBC plot. 2 out of 5

2012: John Cusack tries to save family from the apocalypse. Worst disaster movie ever. Roland Emmerich should take up bowling. 1 out of 5

APACHES: Sinister 1977 British public service film about irresponsible brats dying in farming accidents. Brutal and brilliant. 4 out of 5

Thy Twitter has spoken.

The 7^th year of the annual Oxford Film Festival in Oxford, Mississippi kicked off the night of Thursday the 4^th by taking over half of the Malco Oxford Studio Cinema and roping an area off for the media, filmmakers and other assorted guests. While I had attended screenings at large festivals during my tenure in Los Angeles, I was only moderately enthused about covering a local one. I figured I’d see a few underwhelming indie flicks and slink on back home to Clarksdale for some light writing and shut-eye. Boy was I ever wrong.

One very welcome side effect to blues music tourism in Clarksdale, Mississippi is that it attracts filmmakers to the area. Locals may have noticed an increasing amount of camera jockeys and boom mics wandering around downtown and the nearby tourist attractions. Get used to it, because if Tuesday night’s filming of “The Mud Dog Blues” feature promo trailer at Ground Zero Blues Club is any indication, Clarksdale may become one of the most filmed cities in the state.

I dig viral marketing for its innovation and the way it can emmerse you further into a fictional experience. While it reaches only the most tech-savvy of fans, a good campaign can cause an overnight sensation and facilitate unprecedented levels of interest in a film that might have been ignored back in the days before the internet.
Studios have embraced the practice as well. They now dump a portion of their budget into creating viral marketing for their new releases. This works best for the genre flicks that have either a mythology or a mystery to work with. Let’s look at a few of the best and most successful viral campaigns out there and through the process, try to determine which strategies studios and film pioneers will use next…

Ever since I saw the first trailer for MYSTERY TEAM, it’s been high on my must-see list. The idea of three Scooby-Doo, Hardy Boys wannabes still acting like their 10 while in high-school is funny enough, but throw them in to real-world crime and adult situations and you have a recipe for genius. For Comic-Con the “Derrick Comedy” group put together a short film titled “The Case of the Haunted Hotel” and it’s got some perfectly hilarious moments where innocence meets extremely uncomfortable situations…

Ever finish a movie thinking “What the hell was that?” only to have it slowly eat at you the rest of the day? What if after an entire weekend, you couldn’t shake that feeling. That’s only happened to me twice this year. The first happened after watching the outstanding French horror film Martyrs. The second after watching the short film Heart of Karl…

Got the heads up on this one from the fellas over at C.H.U.D.

This is nuttier than a fruitcake or a burlap sack full of squirrels.

Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong have entertained us with their pot-fueled antics since 1978’s “Up in Smoke.” It’s hard to believe the two have kept their schtick (and their liver/brains) alive since then. Now they’ve done something I’m not sure what to make of…

The project: ONEDREAMRUSH. The idea: To have a director create a stream of conciousness, dream-like, 42 second movie. The Purpose: To sell vodka. This reminds me of those mostly cool, but sometimes hit-or-miss BMW films featuring Clive Owen as “The Driver.” Each was by a different famous director and the sole purpose was to sell more Beemers. It was an ambitious marketing move that (I hope) paid off for the company. Now 42Below Vodka has hired the likes of Asia Argento, Abel Ferrera, David Lynch,…