Filmmaker Eamon O’Rourke taps into a different female empowerment angle for her directorial debut in Asking for It from Saban films. In this edgy thriller, Vanessa Hudgens, Kiersey Clemons, and Alexandra Shipp lead a no-mercy all-femme gang. After a small-town waitress (Clemons) is sexually assaulted on a date, she meets Regina (Shipp) and Beatrice (Hudgens) and is recruited into their vigilante group of badass women.
Together they strive to take down a society overpowered by corrupt men and seek the ultimate revenge while getting their version of justice.
The group leader is Sal, and their primary foe is Mark Vanderhill (Ezra Miller), the founder of the “Men First Movement.” The movement is about to hold a major rally in a town protected by corrupt Sheriff Morrill (David Patrick Kelly), inspiring the commune in a war against a powerful enemy.
Asking for It is a different kind of film because it’s not sure how to struggle with the narrative. I enjoyed the acting in the movie, notably Ezra Miller, who makes a wonderful bad guy. The ladies in the film have strong chemistry that is worthy of mention. At its core, Asking for It is an allegory on feminism, which, in that regard, the film succeeds.
Final Grade: C
After an eight-year hiatus, cult director Eli Craig returns to the horror-comedy genre with his latest film, “Clown in a Cornfield,” from RLJE Films.
First-time director Felipe Vargas explores the consequences of forgetting one’s roots in the chilling horror film “Rosario,” produced by Highland Film Group and Muchio Mass Media. Alan Trezza wrote the screenplay, which begins with our titular character, a Mexican immigrant, receiving her first communion. After a spooky incident involving her eerie grandmother, it becomes evident that Rosario is destined to move on when she grows older.
Director Duncan Skiles taps into the buddy pic genre for his feature debut in “Neighborhood Watch” from RJLE Films. Simon (Jack Quaid) is a young man grappling with mental illness who becomes convinced that he has witnessed an abduction. When he reports it to the police, and they refuse to believe him, he reluctantly seeks the help of his neighbor Ed (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), a jaded, retired security guard with a troubled past. As the unlikely duo delves deeper into the mystery, their pursuit of the truth forces them to confront the disappearance’s dark secrets and the unspoken wounds that haunt them.