Saturday, November 10, 2018

Film Review: Paranoid (Independent) by James K. Blaylock

Paranoid (2000)
Directed by Jay Holben
With Tonya Ivey, Mark Reynolds, Patrick Gealogo, Tamara Balyan and Jeff Gabe
Based on a poem by Stephen King
Paranoid is a very well-made short film. Based on a poem by the master of horror Stephen King, Paranoid: A Chant, who could ask for more. The story unfolds in those wee dark hours at a roadside motel. We discover a woman in the darkness of her room. She’s in a sheer state of paranoia when we first meet. It’s a little more than interesting to hear her rambling and rant. I found myself wanting more, much more. Which simply means I would gratefully invest more time into a full length feature, but this offering was well worth the price of admission in its own right. I can’t help but wonder does Stephen King ever bother himself by watching short adaptations of his work. I seem to recall a lot of distain coming from him in the 80s and 90s over such things. So much so that he even picked up a camera and made the bittersweet Maximum Overdrive himself. Although, I’m sure there are always exceptions over the hollows of time, and in my humble opinion this is one of those. Of course none of it would’ve even been made possible without such a talented actress to carry the whole thing. Tremendous work all around. As a poet I can definitely appreciate this whole effort. It’s quiet spellbinding. There you have it: the Good, the Bad and the Ugly. -James K. Blaylock

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