Everybody Want Some!!

Written and directed by Richard Linklater, Everybody Want Some!! is the story of a young baseball pitcher who goes to a college in Texas as he deals with the world of debauchery as well as trying to make it in the college leagues as it is told in the span of a weekend before the first day of college. The film is considered a spiritual sequel to 1993’s Dazed and Confused as it’s set in 1980 where a young man deals with being in college as well as looking at what is ahead for his life. Starring Blake Jenner, Zoey Deutch, Will Brittain, Ryan Guzman, Tyler Hoechlin, Glen Powell, and Wyatt Russell. Everybody Want Some!! is a wild yet sensational film from Richard Linklater.

Set in the span of an entire weekend before the first day of college, a young baseball pitcher arrives at his new home where he deals with his new surroundings as well as his teammates that include three other freshmen and two new transfers as they party and do all sorts of crazy shit. It is a film with a simple story as this freshman pitcher not only adjusts to his new surroundings but also realize what he has to do to survive and live up to the expectations of being part of the team. Richard Linklater’s screenplay doesn’t carry much of a plot but it does have characters that are all very interesting in their own unique way. Sure, they drink beer and smoke some weed while going to clubs and meet women yet they’re not the typical jocks. They really care about playing baseball and do good while being aware that not everyone will go to the majors. At the same time, they’re just trying to have fun and live the moment though not everything is great as there’s a few that would try to ruin things.

Linklater’s direction is quite simple in terms of the compositions he creates while re-creating a period in time that feels new but also bear elements of the previous decade. Shot largely in various locations in Texas including Austin and Weimar, the film does have a feel that plays into the many different world that the state offers where the guys would go to a disco one day and then a country bar the next day. There’s also an encounter with the punk subculture as well as the world of the theater kids. Linklater’s usage of the wide and medium shots doesn’t just play into this diverse environment but also in the way they deal with baseball practice and training. Linklater also maintains an intimacy as it relates to the guys just hanging out and playing games where the usage of close-ups and medium shots show something that is just extraordinary in how ordinary things can be. Even as it maintains something lively in the parties and in the game while taking the first steps into the world that is college. Overall, Linklater creates a sensational yet fun film about a freshman and his first weekend of college life.

Cinematographer Shane F. Kelly does excellent work with the film‘s cinematography from the usage of lights and moods for much of the film‘s interiors and some of the nighttime scenes as well as the naturalistic look for the scenes set in the day. Editor Sandra Adair does amazing work with the editing with its usage of jump-cuts and other rhythmic cuts as well as an inspired usage of the split-screen format. Production designer Bruce Curtis, with set decorator Gabriella Villarreal and art director Rodney Becker, does fantastic work with the look of the homes the team lives in as well as the clubs they go to all over Texas to play into the diverse world of the state. Costume designer Kari Perkins does nice work with the costumes as it plays into that transition from 70s to 80s in terms of style as well the different kind of looks and clothes the characters would wear for the different subcultures they would encounter.

Visual effects artist Chas Naylor does terrific work with some of the minimal visual effects as it‘s mainly bits of set-dressing as well as key moment in how a baseball is split in two by an axe. Sound editor Tom Hammond does superb work with the sound as it captures the raucous nature of the parties as well as some of the quieter moments to play into some of the natural sounds. Music supervisors Meghan Currier and Randall Poster create a phenomenal soundtrack that plays into the world of 70s/early 80s music from acts like Blondie, the Cars, the Knack, Gary Numan, Kool and the Gang, Van Halen, Joe Walsh, ZZ Top, Brian Eno, Pink Floyd, the Sugarhill Gang, John Stewart with Stevie Nicks, Parliament, Peaches & Herb, Frank Zappa, Donna Summer, Queen, Hot Chocolate, Stiff Little Fingers, Patti Smith, Pat Benatar, Devo, Eddie Money, M, and Foreigner.

The casting by Justine Arteta, Vicky Boone, and Kim Davis-Wagner is great as it features some notable small roles from Jonathan Breck as the baseball coach, Michael Monsour as a former teammate of Jake in Justin who has become a punk, Forrest Vickery as a big teammate in Coma, Austin Amelio as a risk-taking teammate in Nesbit, Tanner Kalina as a freshman player who tries to find his footing in Alex Brumley, Temple Baker as another freshman in Tyrone Plummer who befriends Jake, J. Quinton Johnson as the African-American player Dale Douglas who helps the new guys what to do, and Juston Street as a new transfer from Detroit named Jay Niles who has a lot of attitude and is very selfish. Will Brittain is superb as a freshman pitcher in Billy “Beuter” Autrey who gets a nickname because of his accent as he would also look like a cowboy.

Ryan Guzman is terrific as the ladies man Kenny who does whatever he can to look good and be with the chicks as well as be a very loyal player. Tyler Hoechlin is excellent as the team leader Glen McReynolds as a veteran player who doesn’t like the freshmen as a way for them to gain his respect yet is someone that is willing to help them in their importance of teamwork. Wyatt Russell is fantastic as the stoner player Charlie Willoughby as this eccentric guy that everyone likes as well as be a guy who has a great obsession with The Twilight Zone. Zoey Deutch is amazing as Beverly as a performance arts student who befriends Jake as she is wary of what he is but realizes that he is just a nice guy. Blake Jenner is brilliant as Jake as the freshman pitcher who arrives at the school as he tries to find his footing while embracing some of the things that had to be done as it’s just a laid-back performance. Finally, there’s Glen Powell in an incredible performance as Finnegan as this veteran player who is the coolest and funniest motherfucker of the team while trying to help the new guys in how to flirt with chicks as he’s just a guy that is cool as well as be open to anything that he encounters.

Everybody Wants Some!! is a remarkable film from Richard Linklater. Featuring a great cast, a compelling premise, and an awesome soundtrack as it’s a film about guys having a good time while living in the moment before they become adults. Even as it doesn’t take itself seriously while daring to ask some questions about life and the world of baseball. In the end, Everybody Wants Some!! is a phenomenal film from Richard Linklater.

Richard Linklater Films: It's Impossible to Learn to Plow by Reading Books - Slacker - Dazed and Confused - Before Sunrise - subUrbia - The Newton Boys - Waking Life - Tape - School of Rock - Before Sunset - Bad News Bears (2005 film - A Scanner Darkly - Fast Food Nation - Me and Orson Welles - Bernie - Before Midnight - Boyhood - The Auteurs #57: Richard Linklater Pt. 1 - Pt. 2

© thevoid99 2016

Cold in July

Based on the novel by Joe R. Lansdale, Cold in July is the story of a man who finds himself in trouble after killing a low-life criminal as that man’s father arrives for revenge. Directed by Jim Mickle and screenplay by Mickle and Nick Damici, the film is an exploration into the world of violence as a man who was trying to protect his family is forced to deal with his own actions as he is targeted for doing the right thing. Starring Michael C. Hall, Don Johnson, Vinessa Shaw, Wyatt Russell, Nick Damici, and Sam Shepard. Cold in July is an eerie yet mesmerizing film from Jim Mickle.

Set in 1989 East Texas, the film revolves a man who killed a burglar in his house only to realize that the man’s father has arrived into town seeking vengeance. Yet, it’s a film that plays into a man who was just trying to protect his family where he finds himself discovering some dark secrets as well as the identity of who he killed as it becomes clear that he and this man who has been going after him are part of something far more troubling. Especially as it concerns the world of a local mafia and other things prompting these two men to seek the help of a private investigator. It’s a film that does have elements of film noir but it is more about a simple family man who is just trying to protect his family while helping another man find out about the son he never knew.

The film’s screenplay is set into a world where morals are falling by the wayside into something that is filled with corruption and power. Even as Richard Dane (Michael C. Hall) wonders if the man he killed is really named Freddy Russell as the sense of intrigue would emerge as he would also turn to Russell’s father Ben (Sam Shepard) to see if Richard really did kill Freddy or was it some other man. The mystery would prompt Ben to call in his old friend Jim Bob Luke (Don Johnson) who is a private investigator that has been trying to track down Freddy for Ben. It leads into some serious questions about what to do as well as a simple family man trying to bring his own sense of justice when he realizes that the people he’s supposed to trust to protect his own family have their own agendas.

Jim Mickle’s direction is truly gripping in terms of not just the way he creates an air of suspense but also in how he maintains a very dark and seedy mood into a world that looks simple but full of corruption and intrigue. Especially as Mickle maintains something that feels like a film that is shot in a small town in Texas though the film was actually shot in places in the state of New York. Still, Mickle does make the settings look and feel like it’s shot in East Texas in the late 1980s while creating some dazzling compositions to play into Richard’s sense of fear and paranoia where he would be in the background while the clock on his nightstand is in the foreground. The usage of medium and wide shots are also evident as it plays into the growing discord that is emerging in Richard’s family life as they have no idea how to cope with what happened to them early in the film as Mickle maintains some dramatic tension between Richard and his wife Ann (Vinessa Shaw).

The direction also has Mickle setting some moods for the film’s second half that includes Jim Bob’s introduction which is off the wall as he is this offbeat P.I. that seems to enjoy dressing up like a cowboy. Jim Bob is a man that seems to come from a world where things were simple and were doing what is right is important. Especially as Mickle makes the compositions more dream-like and more unsettling as the film progresses into its third act where it involves all sorts of seedy ventures that plays into a world that is terrifying. Its climax isn’t just bloody and violent but also has this sense of setting the world back into place. Overall, Mickle creates a very chilling yet enthralling film about a family man trying to gain some peace following a dark and violent encounter with a burglar.

Cinematographer Ryan Samul does brilliant work with the film‘s cinematography as it is infused with style for many of the scenes at night with its approach to colored filters as well as textures for its approach to lighting for the scenes at night. Editors Jim Mickle and John Paul Horstmann do fantastic work with the editing with its approach to slow-motion cuts and other rhythmic cuts to play into its suspense. Production designer Russell Barnes, with set decorator Daniel R. Kersting and art director Annie Simeone, does excellent work with the look of Richard‘s home as well as his father‘s cabin as well as the home of Jim Bob.

Costume designer Elisabeth Vastola does nice work with the costumes as it plays into the look of the late 80s from the clothes that Ann wears to the wild clothes of Jim Bob. Sound editor Lewis Goldstein does amazing work with the sound from some of the smaller moments that play into the suspense to the more chaotic moments of violence including a chilling sequence on a rainy night. The film’s music by Jeff Grace is incredible for its very intoxicating score that is largely electronic with its brooding synthesizer-based music with elements of piano pieces to play into the drama and suspense while the music soundtrack by music supervisor Joe Rudge consists of largely country music of the past and the rock music of the 1980s including the band White Lion.

The casting by Sig De Miguel and Stephen Vincent is superb as it features some notable small performances from Larry Flaherty as a mailman Richard knows, Brogan Hall as Richard and Ann’s son Jordan, Rachel Zeiger-Haag as a co-worker of Richard, and Wyatt Russell as a mysterious criminal that is linked to these dark crimes that Jim Bob has been looking for. Nick Damici is terrific as the detective Ray Price who would help Richard early on to go after Ben only to hide things that would make Richard question things. Vinessa Shaw is superb as Richard’s wife Ann as a woman who is also scared over what is happening as she is also confused by Richard’s strange behavior as she is concerned with protecting her own son.

Don Johnson is brilliant as Jim Bob Luke as a private investigator who arrives for the film’s second half to uncover this mysterious world of crime in Texas as it relates to a local mafia while dealing with a world that is becoming more complicated. Sam Shepard is fantastic as Ben Russell as a man who initially goes after Richard for killing his son until he gets himself into trouble of his own as he wonders what is going on as he aids Richard into uncovering the truth about what his son might be involved in. Finally, there’s Michael C. Hall in an excellent performance as Richard Dane as a simple family man whose life unravels following a burglary in his home as he copes with fear as well as the darker aspects of those who are supposed to help him as Hall brings a restraint and an everyman quality that makes his performance so engaging to watch.

Cold in July is a phenomenal film from Jim Mickle that features tremendous performances from Michael C. Hall, Sam Shepard, and Don Johnson. The film isn’t just this dark and hypnotic noir-based film but also a film where a man whose simple act to protect his family has him coping with a world that is far more treacherous and unforgiving. In the end, Cold in July is a sensational film from Jim Mickle.

© thevoid99 2015