Thanks for the memories!

I'll tell you why so serious

It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

Its one of those movies that is just a film to some, but a powerful social commentary for others. Mark Boschardt proves himself as a capable film maker, not the man so obviously mocked in American Movie (though when asked about his portrayal in American Movie, Mark Boschardt said "They were making their own movie, I'm not going to judge it so harshly").The story is simple; a drug addict/alcoholic writer almost dies from an overdose. Hoping to stay sober, he tries out a support group which doesn't quite work for him. So he tries to stay sober on his own. This, of course, becomes impossible as we see the true nature of the support group, which drives him to further drug use in the movie (they do not take kindly to his not returning). The motivations of the group are unknown throughout the movie, and are still unclear at the end.But the moral and message of the film are clear enough. Those who are in Alcoholics Anonymous will tell you to steer clear of this film, and to quote Boschardt once more "AA feels that if you don't get help from them, or God, then you haven't gotten help at all." This movie struck close to home with me, and I was really glad to be able to meet Mr. Boschardt himself. After all, it is quite obviously a very personal film for him. 4 stars.

Mark Borchardt is the wannabe director made hartless fun off in the documentary "American Movie". Coven is his supposedly worthless movie.I watched it a week ago and thought it wasn't that bad.But wait a minute. This last week I have watched "Paycheck" and "Kill Bill Volume 1". They were really crap. Compared to them "Coven" is a masterpiece.What Coven does not have is production value. The kind of dependable thing you find in your average TV-movie. What Coven does have is artistic vision. Borchard has a camera eye for sure. The story is different for sure, an existential and delirious take on drug addiction.

In a world of crap, this movie has a certain beauty that is undeniable. This movie is a nice piece in the Mark Borchardt jigsaw. It may be low budget but let me tell you something: every penny, every nickel of the budget was so wisely spent I feel like I could croak. Carry on Mark, carry on!

Spoilers herein.In true reflection, the same DVD hosts a film and a `making of' film, but the A and B sides are reversed - the attention is all on `American Movie,' a vile, non-cinematic exercise in slumming.Watch instead this little film. It is horrible. Forget about deficiencies in production values because they aren't so bad you can't ignore them. The problem with the film is that thanks to the documentary, we know that the filmmaker really is a dope - that there can be no shred of intelligence or insight here.But if we came upon it without the derogatory wrapping, we might be able to make something of it, along the lines of `Begotten' and `Carnival of Souls.'That's because the story is about a delusional man, and what we witness could be `real' or delusions or both, or perhaps they are same, or (since the making of films is the creation of worlds) reality is a delusion. Usually, the device is more overt than just booze - the best examples employ absinthe (Dracula, Moulin Rouge, From Hell). Usually, there is an attractor for the delusion, as in `Pi' as opposed to random drifting. Usually, there is some introduction to an external menace (`In the Woods'). Usually, sex plays a big role, as in `Blair Witch' of the same era.If you can, watch this with your imagination on and without seeing the documentary. At least it is honest.Ted's Evaluation -- 2 of 4: Has some interesting elements.