Back Against the Wall (2000)

Back Against the Wall (2000)
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Midwest experimental filmmaker James Fotopoulos employs his grim cinematic style for Back Against the Wall. Levey (Martin Shannon) lives in a harshly lit apartment decorated with mostly cardboard boxes. Waiting for his girlfriend June (Debbie Mulcahy) to return, he plays chess, reads books, and meets with his friend Ed (Ernie E. Frantz). When Levey is unresponsive to her underwear modeling show for him, she leaves him for Vince (Michael Wexler), which leads the film into a strange mix of pornography and violence. Following a sexually fueled costume party in a farmhouse, Vince is beaten up by thugs. The final segment focuses on Ed and June with a grotesque enigmatic ending. Shot in 16 mm black-and-white, Back Against the Wall premiered at the Anthology Film Archives in New York. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

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Director(s):
James Fotopoulos
Format(s):
DVD
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Synopsis of Back Against the Wall

Midwest experimental filmmaker James Fotopoulos employs his grim cinematic style for Back Against the Wall. Levey (Martin Shannon) lives in a harshly lit apartment decorated with mostly cardboard boxes. Waiting for his girlfriend June (Debbie Mulcahy) to return, he plays chess, reads books, and meets with his friend Ed (Ernie E. Frantz). When Levey is unresponsive to her underwear modeling show for him, she leaves him for Vince (Michael Wexler), which leads the film into a strange mix of pornography and violence. Following a sexually fueled costume party in a farmhouse, Vince is beaten up by thugs. The final segment focuses on Ed and June with a grotesque enigmatic ending. Shot in 16 mm black-and-white, Back Against the Wall premiered at the Anthology Film Archives in New York. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

Theatrical Feature Running Time:
94 mins

Complete Cast of Back Against the Wall


Director(s):
James Fotopoulos
Writer(s):
James Fotopoulos
Producer(s):
James Fotopoulos
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    Kevin H.

    I guess the term "experimental filmmaker" means someone who has no idea what they're doing filming non-actors without benefit of a script plot of any kind. That must be the definition because that's exactly what James Fotopoulos is.

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    William P.

    James Fotopoulos's films are unlike anything being made. Whether or not that's a good thing is debatable - this isn't the type of thing most people want when they rent a movie. His films have R. Kern production values, and strive for a level of Lynchian artistry. "Back Against the Wall" has some great moments, but overall is a bit flat. Fotopoulos starts it well and ends it with some inspired weirdness, but he gets bogged down in the middle section and the film becomes kind of tedious. I would recommend that people unfamiliar with Cinetopoulos start with "Migrating Forms."

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