Last week I received an odd and unexpected email with the following subject: “REDLANDS a dark indie film by John Brian King” (sic). It was signed by the completely unknown to me Eva Richter. Upon opening the message I found the press book and a code to watch an American independent film just out of the oven. It is called “Redlands” and Eva Richter is a co-producer.

In addition to the technical and artistic notes and some suggestive photos of a scantily clad redhead (actually…without clothing), what most grabbed my attention was the inclusion of the reasons for which various (unnamed) festivals had rejected the film. Said arguments included, “Overall, this film feels humorless, cynical, and ugly”; “It feels particularly voyeuristic and sadistic”; “Needless to say, this made me want to avoid Redlands, CA at all costs, and made me proud to be from Ohio, a state that the main character derides.” Obviously, I had to see it.

I was anticipating a weird movie but what I found exceeded my expectations. It is filmed in lengthy, completely static sequences (except for the last scene, depressingly depressing, in which the camera turns on itself as though it were a nightmare chasing its own tail) in which characters enter and exit, set in the California city of 65,000 after which the film is named.

In this city three characters mix it up: Vienna, an extremely attractive twenty-year-old who works as a receptionist in an office and unleashes her artistic aspirations as a nude model; Zack, her boyfriend, an aspiring rock star who acts as her “protector” and takes advantage of her, in all senses of the word; and Allan, a middle-aged guy without a job or anything particularly useful, disowned by his ex-wife and daughter, who one lucky day decided that photography was his passion and hired Vienna as his model.

Not once while watching was I able to decide whether I was watching a work of genius or mockery. But, while I mulled between these two options, I was completely unable to avert my eyes from the screen…much less press pause.

Everything the festivals had said—except the gentleman from Ohio, over whom we’ll place a veil: stupid localisms aren’t just a Spanish thing—was absolutely correct: it is a movie without a sense of humor, it is cynical, unpleasant, voyeuristic, and sadistic, without a doubt. However, with its rhythmic, almost maddening pace, its unhealthy and sickly atmosphere, its extremely morbid handling of almost explicit sex and latent violence, and its apparently inconsequential dialogue that provides remarkable depth, it is also a movie that is hypnotic, unsettling, disturbing, obsessive, and extremely fascinating.

All of the actors are total unknowns, but the female protagonist has a curious history. She is Nicole Fox, a beautiful and sculptural Californian redhead born 23 years ago who jumped to fame by winning the thirteenth edition of the reality show “America’s Next Top Model,” which was specifically intended for models under 5′ 7″ (her exact height). Fox is a diamond in the rough: the camera loves her and surrenders to her unconditionally; she knows how to communicate her emotions through her eyes, she has a suggestive voice, an impressive physique, she isn’t afraid of taking risks, and her inhibitions (as is made clear in the film) are not to be found. It will be surprising if she doesn’t turn into a glittering movie star in the future, which will lead to “Redlands,” in addition to its oddities, becoming a part of history for being the first in which she appeared as a main character…and probably the riskiest of her career.

Originally at: http://redlandsthemovie.com/Film-Reviews