Woodshop | |
---|---|
Directed by | Pete Coggan |
Written by | Pete Coggan |
Produced by | Pete Coggan |
Starring | Jesse Ventura Scott Cooper Ryan Jonathan Davis Olivia Hendrick Ross Marquand Keegan Ridgley Don S. Davis Mitch Pileggi |
Edited by | Pete Coggan Paul Lee |
Production company | |
Distributed by | Gravitas Ventures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 90 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Woodshop is an independent American film written and directed by Peter Coggan that was released on DVD on September 7, 2010. Produced by Colorado-based 42 Productions, the film originally premiered at the University of Colorado ATLAS Institute in Boulder, Colorado on February 15, 2009. [1]
While in pre-production of a project known as Coda, Pete Coggan came across technological and budgetary issues. Coggan wanted to originally film with a 35mm camera, but was advised to buy the then upcoming Red One camera. Calculating the risk in waiting for its release and experimenting with this new camera for his ambitious science fiction project, Coggan decided to temporarily shelve Coda and make use of the pre-production crew, actors and new technology he had set for it. Over the period of one of weekend, Coggan developed a script from ideas he wrote in high school woodshop class. This became Woodshop, 42 Productions' first self-produced feature film and one of the first to be shot in ultra-high definition with the Red One camera technology. [2]
Class valedictorian Chris Johnson is a high school senior who is only interested in one thing: maintaining his 4.0 GPA and moving on to an Ivy League school. But when he blows up a classroom in a chemistry class mishap, he receives a devastating "F" that threatens his ambitions. Chris strikes a deal with the school's principal and agrees to spend one Saturday of detention in the woodshop in exchange for wiping the grade from his record. What Chris didn't count on was having to survive the ex-Army Ranger who runs the woodshop, the eccentric students in class and one kid's plan to blow them all up.
Woodshop is the first film in which Ventura has acted in ten years, and first since he served as governor of Minnesota. The character of Frank Madson was created with Ventura specifically in mind. Originally, Madson was going to be played by Coggan himself, until Ventura agreed to star in the role, after the writer/director wrote a letter stating that he could not possibly see anyone else in the role of the ex-Army ranger. On his experience working with Coggan and his company, Ventura stated: "I've worked for some of the largest film companies in Hollywood, but I can tell you that working with Pete was one of the most fun and professional experiences that I've ever had." [1]
Formerly a musician, Coggan along with his friend Sam McGuire wrote the score for the film, which features songs by 3OH!3 and Big Head Todd and the Monsters. [1]
In a negative review, CHUD.com's Ryan Mason wrote, "This movie doesn't look great. The lighting is student-film quality and it shows on screen — the whole thing is dingy to the point of almost feeling damp, if that’s even possible. Sadly, that’s not the worst of the presentation. I haven’t heard audio this bad in a movie in a long time. Unable to hear entire conversations, it’s clear that the mix is completely off — sounds of footsteps drown out dialogue, levels drop and rise during the same conversation, even with the volume turned way up the dialogue still sounded muffled." [3]
In a mixed review, Home Media Magazine 's John Matchem said, "While billed as a comedy, the film's uneasy tone never quite gives its audience a comfort zone for a hearty laugh" but praised the acting, writing, "On the plus side, Ventura exudes a commanding presence in his limited role." [4] Bill Ward of the Star Tribune gave the film a positive review, calling it "a raunchier update of The Breakfast Club , with less of that 1985 hit's wit and pacing, but some poignant moments". He said that "like Ventura's character, it has a sweet core beneath the coarseness". [5]
Crossfire is a 1947 American film noir drama film starring Robert Young, Robert Mitchum and Robert Ryan which deals with the theme of anti-Semitism, as did that year's Academy Award for Best Picture winner, Gentleman's Agreement. The film was directed by Edward Dmytryk and the screenplay was written by John Paxton, based on the 1945 novel The Brick Foxhole by screenwriter and director Richard Brooks. The film's supporting cast features Gloria Grahame and Sam Levene. The picture received five Oscar nominations, including Ryan for Best Supporting Actor and Gloria Grahame for Best Supporting Actress. It was the first B movie to receive a Best Picture nomination.
Ace Ventura: Pet Detective is a 1994 American comedy film starring Jim Carrey as Ace Ventura, an animal detective who is tasked with finding the abducted dolphin mascot of the Miami Dolphins football team. The film was directed by Tom Shadyac, who wrote the screenplay with Jack Bernstein and Jim Carrey. The film co-stars Courteney Cox, Tone Loc, Sean Young, and then-Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino and features a cameo appearance from death metal band Cannibal Corpse.
City Slickers is a 1991 American comedy Western film directed by Ron Underwood and starring Billy Crystal, Daniel Stern, Bruno Kirby and Jack Palance, with supporting roles by Patricia Wettig, Helen Slater and Noble Willingham with Jake Gyllenhaal in his debut.
Real Genius is a 1985 American science fiction comedy film directed by Martha Coolidge and written by Neal Israel, Pat Proft, and PJ Torokvei. Starring Val Kilmer and Gabriel Jarret. The film, set on the campus of Pacific Tech, a science and engineering university similar to Caltech, follows Chris Knight (Kilmer), a genius in his senior year, who is paired with a new student on campus, Mitch Taylor (Jarret), to work on a chemical laser.
Dead Again is a 1991 neo-noir romantic thriller film directed by Kenneth Branagh and written by Scott Frank. It stars Branagh and Emma Thompson, with Andy García, Derek Jacobi, Hanna Schygulla, Wayne Knight, and Robin Williams appearing in supporting roles.
Todd Solondz is an American filmmaker and playwright known for his style of dark, socially conscious satire. Solondz's work has received critical acclaim for its commentary on the "dark underbelly of middle class American suburbia," a reflection of his own background in New Jersey. His work includes Welcome to the Dollhouse (1995), Happiness (1998), Storytelling (2001), Palindromes (2004), Life During Wartime (2009), Dark Horse (2011), and Wiener-Dog (2016).
The first season of the science fiction television series The X-Files commenced airing on the Fox network in the United States on September 10, 1993, and concluded on the same channel on May 13, 1994, after airing all 24 episodes.
Supercar is a British children's science fiction television series produced by Gerry Anderson and Arthur Provis' AP Films (APF) for Associated Television and ITC Entertainment. Two series totalling 39 episodes were filmed between September 1960 and January 1962. Budgeted at £2,000 per episode, it was Anderson's first half-hour series as well as his first science fiction production.
The X-Files is a 1998 American science fiction thriller film based on Chris Carter's television series of the same name, which revolves around fictional unsolved cases called the X-Files and the characters solving them. It was directed by Rob Bowman, written by Carter and Frank Spotnitz and featured five main characters from the television series: David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, Mitch Pileggi, John Neville, and William B. Davis reprise their respective roles as FBI agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully, FBI Assistant Director Walter Skinner, Well-Manicured Man, and the Cigarette-Smoking Man. The film was promoted with the tagline Fight the Future.
C.H.U.D. is a 1984 American science fiction horror film directed by Douglas Cheek, produced by Andrew Bonime, and starring John Heard, Daniel Stern, and Christopher Curry in his film debut. The plot concerns a New York City police officer and a homeless shelter manager who team up to investigate a series of disappearances, and discover that the missing people have been killed by humanoid monsters that live in the sewers.
Dracula 3000 is a 2004 made-for-television science fiction horror film directed by Darrell Roodt. An international co-production of the United States and South Africa, the film's plot follows the vampire Count Dracula, in the futuristic setting of outer space in the 30th century. Despite its title, the film is not a sequel to Dracula 2000.
Waiting... is a 2005 American independent black comedy film written and directed by Rob McKittrick and starring Ryan Reynolds, Anna Faris, and Justin Long. McKittrick wrote the screenplay while working as a waiter.
Ryan Michael Madson is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phillies, Kansas City Royals, Oakland Athletics, Washington Nationals, and Los Angeles Dodgers. Madson won World Series championships with the Phillies in 2008 and the Royals in 2015. He is second all-time in postseason pitching appearances; only Mariano Rivera has pitched in more postseason games.
Roy Frumkes is an American independent filmmaker. Frumkes directed the 1985 documentary Document of the Dead, a film detailing the production of Dawn of the Dead.
Charles de Lauzirika is an American DVD and Blu-ray producer and filmmaker.
ParaNorman is a 2012 American stop-motion animated comedy horror film directed by Sam Fell and Chris Butler, and written by Butler. Produced by Laika, the film stars the voices of Kodi Smit-McPhee, Jodelle Ferland, Bernard Hill, Tucker Albrizzi, Anna Kendrick, Casey Affleck, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Leslie Mann, Jeff Garlin, Elaine Stritch, Tempestt Bledsoe, Alex Borstein, and John Goodman. It is the first stop-motion film to use a 3-D color printer to create character faces, and only the second to be shot in 3-D. In the film, Norman Babcock, a young boy who can communicate with ghosts, is given the task of ending a 300-year-old witch's curse on his Massachusetts town.
Nightlight is a 2015 American found footage supernatural thriller film written and directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods. The film stars Shelby Young, Chloe Bridges, Mitch Hewer, Taylor Murphy, and Carter Jenkins. It received generally negative reviews from critics.
Hal Havins is an American actor known for his roles in horror films such as Night of the Demons and Sorority Babes in the Slimeball Bowl-O-Rama.
The tenth season of the American horror anthology television series American Horror Story, subtitled Double Feature, is composed of two stories, each taking up half the season. The first story, Red Tide, focuses on a family in Provincetown, Massachusetts, who meet the town's mysterious true inhabitants. The second story, Death Valley, follows a group of camping students who find themselves in the midst of a conspiracy involving extraterrestrials. The ensemble cast includes veterans Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Lily Rabe, Finn Wittrock, Frances Conroy, Billie Lourd, Leslie Grossman, Adina Porter,Angelica Ross and Macaulay Culkin, as well as newcomers Ryan Kiera Armstrong, Neal McDonough, Kaia Gerber, Nico Greetham, Isaac Powell, Rachel Hilson, and Rebecca Dayan.
Bloody Christmas is a 2012 American slasher film directed by Michael Shershenovich, starring Steve Montague, Robert Youngren and Geretta Geretta.