Wristcutters: A Love Story is a film about exactly what it says it is about - love found among people who have committed suicide as they take a road trip through purgatory. Writer/director Goran Dukic's dark comedy-romance has received a ton of acclaim since its 2006 Sundance Film Festival debut. The film stars the wonderful Patrick Fugit (of Almost Famous fame) and Shannyn Sossamon (an actress who is always threatening to break out but never quite does) and won best feature honors at the Gen Art Film Festival, earned a nomination for Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You at the 2006 IFP Gotham Awards and noms for best first feature and best first screenplay at the Independent Spirit Awards in February. So this film, though up until now has not had a huge amount of buzz, is being distributed this July by After Dark Releasing - a non exclusive distribution partner of Lionsgate - has been around the block or two among audiences and the response overall has been largely positive.
After Dark Releasing, you might remember is the distributor of Captivity a film starring Elisha Cuthbert whose ad campaign had to be pulled because of the intense protest billboards depicting Elisha being tortured and killed. It has been a long while since the indies have provoked the ire of "the establishment" in the way that these two campaigns have. The last one I recall was for Vincent Gallo's Brown Bunny which depicted Chloe Sevigny giving Old Vince a blowjob. In any case, what is more than interesting about the brouhaha about Wristcutters: A Love Story is that the ad campaign is that the public or anyone of the protesting groups have yet to see it. It is a "proposed" campaign that MAY feature - "images of people jumping off a bridge, electrocuting and hanging themselves, they would be displayed as traffic-style stop or yield signs with a barring-style circle and line over the illustrations, along with hearts to reference the film's romantic story line." Proposed!
Besides the obvious increased buzz on this film that this protest is creating - controversy may turn away some audiences but more often than not. it increases them - the company releasing the film has a chance to engage those people who may have been on the fence. The whole thing is a genius marketing ploy. I wish I had thought of it.
From one perspective it is reminiscent of the pressure that the studios get from groups when films are deemed to "sexual" usually. Interestingly, there is rarely protest about a film being too violent. Indies have been courting very good favor with audiences and with "the establishment" because of films like Little Miss Sunshine and Crash. In my opinion, not a good thing as indies are around to provoke and challenge the status quo not be part of it. Maybe with the controversy surrounding the ad campaign for Wristcutters: A Love Story, indies may be back in business.
Keeping it indie,
Julie
After Dark Releasing, you might remember is the distributor of Captivity a film starring Elisha Cuthbert whose ad campaign had to be pulled because of the intense protest billboards depicting Elisha being tortured and killed. It has been a long while since the indies have provoked the ire of "the establishment" in the way that these two campaigns have. The last one I recall was for Vincent Gallo's Brown Bunny which depicted Chloe Sevigny giving Old Vince a blowjob. In any case, what is more than interesting about the brouhaha about Wristcutters: A Love Story is that the ad campaign is that the public or anyone of the protesting groups have yet to see it. It is a "proposed" campaign that MAY feature - "images of people jumping off a bridge, electrocuting and hanging themselves, they would be displayed as traffic-style stop or yield signs with a barring-style circle and line over the illustrations, along with hearts to reference the film's romantic story line." Proposed!
Besides the obvious increased buzz on this film that this protest is creating - controversy may turn away some audiences but more often than not. it increases them - the company releasing the film has a chance to engage those people who may have been on the fence. The whole thing is a genius marketing ploy. I wish I had thought of it.
From one perspective it is reminiscent of the pressure that the studios get from groups when films are deemed to "sexual" usually. Interestingly, there is rarely protest about a film being too violent. Indies have been courting very good favor with audiences and with "the establishment" because of films like Little Miss Sunshine and Crash. In my opinion, not a good thing as indies are around to provoke and challenge the status quo not be part of it. Maybe with the controversy surrounding the ad campaign for Wristcutters: A Love Story, indies may be back in business.
Keeping it indie,
Julie
posted by indieIN | 1:02 PM
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