Theory of Revenge (2003) Reviews

• Pretty cool...

  thatguy1082003-11-29

  ***POSSIBLE SPOILERS***** Saw this a couple of days ago. A friend of mine passed it along to me and it was a third generation copy so it was hard to tell the intended quality. I will say this though, it's a pretty cool amateur flick. I've seen a lot of garbage on the indie circuit and this had some potential. The acting and the editing was pretty good. I liked the guys that played the father and son. Jeff Hoferer and Mack Herbert. I know there not big names but they did a good job. I thought the 2 lead females were sufficent too. Julie Arebalo and Emily Ko. Only prob I had with them was they look so much alike in type, it was hard to tell them apart. And the dude that was in the B & W flashbacks did a really good too. Bryan Massey... he did really well dealing with a lot of tragedy. I felt sorry for that charactor. All in all I dug it. I had a few probs with the dads motivation. First he wants his son dead, then he doesn't, than he does. Make up your friggin' mind altready. And I wasn't sure about why the dad hired some killer guy to kill his son and then he changes his mind at the last minute. Maybe it was Father's Day. But like I said, I really like this movie. Very dark, but if that's your thing, then you'll dig this movie.

• Cool, violent indie flick...only wish they better production value.

  rdpr192003-07-11

  I saw this movie about a month ago at the Magnolia Theater in Dallas, Texas and was quite impressed. Obviously shot with no money on digital video and an amatuer cast, it is effective none the less. The plot was a little merky at first. Something about a drug addicted son ripping his criminal father off, then his father putting a hit on the son. While it reminded me of At Close Range with Christopher Walken, it's the storytelling and some pretty good acting that makes it stand out. The movie becomes stronger and stronger as it goes on from one violent scene to the next. The son gets his girlfriend pregnant, pulls a nasty drug house robbery, escapes his father's attempted hit, and finally gets his "revenge". Sounds like a bit much, but it's pulled off with a good amount of flare and entertainment that it makes it one of the best no budget indies I've seen. It's got the cojones in the drama and action that most small productions shy away from. All it needs is a little better production value, a little sharper story line & script, and bingo...these guys are there. I recommend this just for the introduction of the potential talent involved.