Pickings (film)

Pickings is a 2018 independent neo-noir crime film written, produced, and directed by Usher Morgan. The film stars Elyse Price, Joel Bernard, Katie Vincent, Joe Trombino, Emil Ferzola, Yaron Urbas and Taso Mikroulis. Price plays Jo Lee-Haywood, a mysterious bar owner defending her family and business from the wrath of a short-tempered mobster and his protection racket. The film was released to theaters in the United States on March 2, 2018.

Pickings
Poster
Directed byUsher Morgan
Produced byUsher Morgan
Starring
  • Elyse Price
  • Katie Vincent
  • Joel Bernard
  • Joe Trombino
  • Emil Ferzola
  • Yaron Urbas
CinematographyLouis Obioha
Production
company
  • Digital Magic Entertainment
  • Dark Passage Films
Release date
  • March 2, 2018 (2018-03-02)
Running time
102 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$350,000

Cast
  • Elyse Price as Jo Lee-Haywood
  • Katie Vincent as Scarlet Lee-Haywood
  • Joel Bernard as Boone Pickens
  • Samantha Zaino as Emma Lee-Haywood
  • Joe Trombino as Jimmy Marcone
  • Michael Gentile as Momo
  • Michael Tyler as Tommy
  • Emil Ferzola as Leo DeVitto
  • Taso Mikroulis as Marvin Lee-Haywood
  • Yaron Urbas as Sam "Hollywood" Barone

Production

Pickings is Usher Morgan's first feature film. Morgan wrote the script and served as the film's director, producer and chief editor. The film was shot for a total of 35 days over the course of a year.[1] The production of the film was announced during a press event at the 2015 Manhattan Film Festival and a pitch trailer was subsequently released on August 7, 2015, in a press release by Digital Magic Entertainment.[2][3]

Morgan partnered with his Prego cinematographer Louis Obioha, and re-hired Katie Vincent to play the role of Scarlet. As production evolved, Vincent's role in the film became more substantial and she joined the project as a producer. Vincent also wrote and performed many of the film's original songs and served as the film's music supervisor. Morgan also hired Prego actor Taso Mikroulis to play the role of Marvin. The film was fully financed by Morgan, after an Indiegogo campaign failed to reach its desired goal. [4] "I used my own money to fund this film. Took loans, sold assets and maxed out credit cards," Morgan said in an interview with the Huffington Post in 2018. [5] [6]

Principal photography was held in the New York City area under a $350,000 budget; the film was shot in Yonkers, Staten Island, Southampton and New York City for a total of 35 days over the course of a year. Digital Magic Entertainment released the film's Red Band teaser on December 20, 2016,[7] and the Green Band teaser on March 5, 2017. Both trailers are accompanied by an original musical track recorded by Katie Vincent. The film's official trailer was released on December 18, 2017.

Pickings premiered at the AMC Loews in New York City's Lincoln Square on February 22, 2018 and was subsequently released to theaters on March 2, 2018.[8] The distribution was handled by Dark Passage Films and AMC Independent.

Critical response

"Pickings" received generally positive reviews.

Gary Goldstein with the Los Angeles Times gave the film a very positive review, writing "The visually arresting, wickedly entertaining crime drama "Pickings" marks an impressive narrative feature directing debut by Usher Morgan, who also wrote, edited and produced. He's a talent to watch." [9]

Maitland McDonagh with the Film Journal praised Morgan's directorial style but was critical of the film's handling of its original characters, writing "What writer-director-producer-cinematographer Usher Morgan's Pickings has by the boatload is visual pizzazz of the Sin City variety—from the neon-drenched shadows to live-action images that morph into graphic-novel-style panels and back again, it's dazzling and all the more impressive because it was executed on an incredibly low budget. What it isn't especially strong on is original characterization. Price's Jo is impressively tough and convincingly wounded, but she's a still a variation on Kill Bill's lethal bride (and by extension, her inspiration, the titular lady of Toshiya Fujita's 1973 Lady Snowblood, a woman who's been hurt one time too many and is not taking any more, ever, from anyone…especially not when her children are involved." [10]

Wesley Lara with Hidden Remote Magazina gave the film a favorable review, but criticized some of the characters in the film as "off-the walls crazy" and "a little cheesy". She wrote: "Pickings will definitely not be a film for everyone. This film is incredibly unapologetic in its presentation and homage to previous westerns and noir films and that may turn some people off. It’s not an insult, it’s just a fact of life. However, the sheer creativity and passion behind this project is undeniable, from its gorgeous cinematography and lighting to its energetic acting (along with an accolade-worthy performance from Elyse Price) to its character driven story. Usher Morgan wanted to create a film that was equals parts completely badass and substance with a fun and emotional oddball of a western/noir hybrid." [11] [12]

gollark: Add more *s.
gollark: ↓ a gamechanging book which really helps with learning Rust
gollark: Go `PRAGMA page_count` yourself.
gollark: That is a very cursed program.
gollark: oh no

References
  1. "(re)Search my Trash". www.searchmytrash.com. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  2. Usher Morgan (December 18, 2017). "Pickings - Official Trailer (2018) - Neo-Noir Independent Crime Film (Usher Morgan)". Retrieved March 7, 2019 – via YouTube.
  3. "Pickings - Neo-Noir Crime Film, Now Playing". Pickings - Neo-Noir Crime Film, Now Playing. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  4. "An Action-Packed Revenge Thriller Launching Indiegogo Campaign With New Trailer". Free Press Release. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  5. Dan, Mike (January 3, 2018). "From The Set of "Pickings" - My Interview With Filmmaker Usher Morgan". huffingtonpost.com. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  6. "Pickings - Interview with filmmaker Usher Morgan". thecrazymind.com. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  7. Usher Morgan (December 20, 2016). "Pickings Red Band Trailer #1 (2017) - Elyse Price, Joel Bernard, Katie Vincent". Retrieved March 7, 2019 – via YouTube.
  8. Pandolfi, Naomi (February 26, 2018). "Usher Morgan's 'Pickings' Hits Theaters March 2". The Knockturnal. Retrieved May 14, 2018.
  9. Goldstein, Gary. "Filmmaker Usher Morgan skillfully packs a lot into neo-noir 'Pickings'". latimes.com. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  10. "Film Review: Pickings - Film Journal International". www.filmjournal.com. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  11. "Pickings film review: A slick, neo-noir Western drama". hiddenremote.com. January 21, 2018. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  12. "Pickings (2018)". Retrieved March 7, 2019 – via www.rottentomatoes.com.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.