One of the glories of aspiring filmmakers is that if they can just get some good equipment, a solid script, first-class actors, and use their creativity plus what they’ve learned studying other films, they can make an independent film providing they can can raise the money and are willing to stick with the project. In the end is there a payoff? Many often point to the Blair Witch Project which was produced on a shoestring and grossed millions. Yet another payoff is if the independent film catches the eye of someone who’ll want to invest in the future or hire the independent filmmaker.
Today there is a little gem of an independent film on the market — not yet widely circulated, not on Amazon, being sent to film festivals and you can buy it online. But it was not hurriedly done: actor-director-writer Frankie Mosca poured some 9 years of his life into this labor of love. And it shows. Parts of This Wretched Life will haunt you and stay with you: its themes about the monsters within us that we can try to beat back or allow to devour us and the need to move on geographically and psychologically — and the strength that takes. Several key specific scenes will rerun over and over in your head long after you finished this movie shot around New Haven, Connecticut.
The plot centers around Chris, played by the exceptionally good Daniel Ball, who awakes from an almost fatal drug overdose. He must enroll in a 12-step program, which he grabs as a lifeline — which it is. In his mandatory meetings with a state psychiatrist, he relives what led him to where he is now: the monsters within (drugs, anger, sex), the relationships he cherished and how they ended, and in particular his friend Ande and her autistic brother Frankie. (Mosca, who has been on TV on some shows such as Law and Order, plays Frankie, one of the movie’s more challenging roles.)
Three scenes were particularly haunting: a scene where a guy virtually invites being arrested by a local policeman, a heart-breaking suicide, and the ending where Chris must choose to give in to his monsters or battle them and/or leave them. Can addiction, the impact of betrayal, and mental disorder be negated by hope? Casting is first rate. Camera work and scripting are topnotch. Some language is indeed adult (a la Quentin Tarantino) and there are a few adult-oriented scenes. Since shoot began on This Wretched Life 9 years ago, it is shot on videotape but the often excellent camerawork is cinematic NOT soap opera-ish.
I met Mosca in Connecticut where he works tirelessly at his day job, hoping to get more people to view his decades long project via the Internet and film festivals and dreams of getting funding for another movie. If he gets funding, a new movie could be done with the new film technology. Lots of newspapers stories (GO HERE) have been written about his steely — and admirable — determination to complete this project which took a lot of money, love, sweat and commitment.
On the movie’s website, Ball says this:
“It has been a long and difficult journey making this film. It has had new writers & scripts, new characters & actors, new DP’s & editors, and we used every bar in all of New Haven for our locations. But one constant was our director Frankie. The vision started with him, and after nearly a decade of sacrifice, disappointment and pain, he has brought his vision full circle. He never lost the dedication or passion necessary to breathe life into his script and get the damn thing shot. So thanks for letting me come along on this journey Frankie. Thanks for believing in me and believing in the story you built. With everything you have learned from this experience, I know you will come back with a whole new insight for shooting your next feature.”
This Wretched Life is a little gem of an independent movie just waiting to be discovered. It’s required viewing if you like independent films, are an independent or aspiring independent filmmaker, if you enjoy watching solid film technique and enjoy seeing a cast of young highly talented actors waiting to break out and be “discovered” by a Hollywood that can sorely use their fresh talents. And it’s required viewing if you ever wondered: just how did I get to THIS point — and how can I move on?
But here’s another reason to watch This Wretch Life. When you get it and watch it you’re supporting the work of a independent filmmaker who made this project the focus of his life for nearly 10 years. Part of his dream came true: he released it. When it’s viewed another part of his dream will come true. And I am convinced one day another part of his dream will come true: he’ll be working on another project.
You can buy the DVD on his website (I bought two copies, one gifted to my brother)
Frankie Mosca’s website Planet Mosca
You can view the trailer (adult language in places) HERE.
And you can view the promo reel (again this link contains adult language and situations) HERE.
OF RELATED INTEREST: As noted above, this DVD is must viewing by those interested in independent filmmakers, independent filmmakers themselves, or for those interested in the opportunities and obstacles facing independent filmmakers. Here are some addition links:
Facebook: TORONTO INDEPENDENT FILMMAKERS
Is Google TV What Independent Filmmakers Have Been Waiting For?
Writing For Independent Film
Show Me the Money
37 Ways Independent Film Is Succeeding Today
An interview with filmmaker Toddy Burton reveals the inner-workings of film funding in Texas.
Film Journal: Philosophies for Financing Your Film
Five Secrets to Getting Distribution for an Indie Film
Being an Independent Filmmaker is like Opening a Restaurant
Independent Filmmaking Tips: How To Write A Feature Length Screenplay
Funding a Film with Credit Cards
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.