Chet Bond: License to Chill (2025) Dances With Films New York 2026

Chet Bond is James Bond son. Set up with a job y his dad, he is followed around by documentary crew. He doesn't know that the crew is actually minders who are supposed to keep an eye on him.

This is  an amusing mockumentary that manages to hit most of the right notes. Set up your typical mocumentary show it spins the spy genre on it's head.

While the film is playing as part of the Pilots section of Dances With Films New York, I don't know if this would last as series.  I don't know how long they could run with the conceit. That said I think they could probably run this to feature length. 

Definitely worth a look.

(And before you ask- this is not a sanctioned Bond product)

Seasoned (2025) Tribeca 2025

Mandy Patinkin and Kathryn Grody star as versions of themselves as a self absorbed New York couple who have a tough time navigating life without annoying everyone around them.

Normally I don't watch pilot episodes because it's tough to say where the series will go and if it wasn't for Patinkin I would have stepped away from this. I'm a fan of his so I was curious how this would play out. That rule of not watching just the pilot should have been adhered to since while this is amusing, I'm going to be hard pressed to know where this is going to go beyond this.

The problem with the series is that as funny as the pair is they really aren't likable. They are the sort of sweet but obnoxious New York City residents who think they  are the cat's pajamas, even though they aren't. They are the long time married cople sharing one brain. A little bit of time with them goes a long way. Where this will go is beyond me, though I'm curious enough to see that I would tune in when the show shows up. That is not to say the show is bad, only I don't know how long it can be sustained. (ADDENDUM: Only this one episode was filmed, though five more episodes have been written)

On the plus side Patinkin and Grody are great. They are the reason to see the show, but to be honest they will have to becareful since they are so good they may end up typecast.

A thought I can't shake about I NEED YOUR LOVE (2024) Tribeca 2024

While I told the PR people I am not reviewing I NEED YOUR LOVE, for reasons I explained to them, three weeks on I find that there is something about it I can't shake - namely that had Camille Trust played it straight or at a lower volume, as she does in several scenes (particularly the one where she tries to record the jingle), this would have been an amazing series. In those lower key scenes she showed how good she is and why she should be a star.

DOG SPELLED BACKWARDS (2024) Slamdance 2024

Normally I don't review series for festivals. I hate that we only get to see an episode, or maybe two, and then write a review as if it's on the whole series. Too often the first episode is misleading, for good or bad, and you come out of a festival screening feeling misled.  I say this because by all rights I should not be reviewing DOG SPELLED BACKWARDS since it is a series, but there was something about the write up that made me give it a go and I'm glad I did.

The series follows dog trainer Tim Almeida he talks about his life as an author a musician and how it all got detoured into his working with dogs. This wasn't the career path he chose but it ended up being the one that he ended up happiest about following. Along the way we watch as Tim trains various dogs and works to make even shelter animals suitable for adoption.

 

This was one of the few times a first episode made me wanted to keep going. I groaned when it ended. The reason for this is that Tim is one hell of a raconteur. Almost from the instant we see him we fall in like with him and will gladly listen to anything that he says.  I just wanted to sit and talk to him. Hell, one of his locations is out on the east end of Long Island and I was tempted to just ride out there just to see if I could meet him.

I suspect this series is going to connect with viewers and go somewhere because it's good time with good people and pets

Note while in Park City, Tim and the crew will be shooting new scenes at the Nuzzles & Co. Rescue Ranch before the festival as well as bringing puppies to the screenings for adoption

The pilot for the web series XANDER (2023) Dances with NYC 2023

After his only friend dies Luke is left a genie in a bottle. Luke doesn't realize there is a genie inside the jar sometime later. The genie is a nice guy who will grant him one wish- but if wishes the genie will leave and he will lose his only friend.

This is very good short. It's full of great characters and solid writing. It's one of the few recent non-genre short films I've seen recently that wasn't all blood and thunder on recent events or set in a restaurant or featuring a young couple. This was an effort to just tell the story of a young man with no friends and his genie.

And I hear you saying but this isn't a short film, it's the pilot for a web series and you would be absolutely right... to a point. The trouble is that as the film exists now it kind of ends with things kind of resolved and not leaving any real place to go next. I'm sure you could but it isn't like most first episodes which end with a sense that there is more of a story to tell. While I would love to be wrong I don't know where this would go.

Uncertainty of future episodes aside, what is here is choice and worth a look.

Remixed (2023) Dances With Films 2023

A pregnant woman with a shaky marriage finds a box left to her years earlier by her dead brother. In it is a bucket list scavenger hunt he wants her to complete. With two friends in tow she heads off to give it a try.

First episode of a series left me feeling uncertain about the future. Where is the series going to go after a certain number of episodes? I'm not certain. Frankly I'm of the opinion this probably would have been a feature film with a definite ending.

While not bad I'm not certain what I think. Honestly there is are a couple of reasons I don't normally do review series where I'm only given a single episode (The first episode is more often then not the rest of the series, and you can't see where it's going to be five or ten episodes down the road) and my mixed feelings for this single episode reflect that.

IF I’M ALIVE NEXT WEEK (2021) Tribeca 2021

 

An older woman has to deal with changes in her life as her boyfriend's son moves him out of her home so that they won’t have to split the inheritance with her and her kids end up moving back in.

Okay comedy kind of doesn’t really work  in the seven minute episode format. While the shortness allows a situation to pop up  it doesn’t really allow for the plots to really be explored. I saw three episodes and I was kind of underwhelmed for that reason. It also doesn’t help that the characters aren’t all that likeable.

This might work if its retooled, but right now it is one of the few misses at Tribeca

The Legend of Hei (2019) NYICFF 2021

THE LEGEND OF HEI  is a mix of realistic, Ghibli-esque and cartoony designs in a tale of a bunch of guardians fighting against an evil foe.  Hei a shape changing supernatural being. He hooks up with a band of other beings like himself, nominally to protect the forest from invasion by evil humans and other beings. Of course everything is not what it seems, as Hei finds out. It isn't long before this has moments where it seems like Studio Ghibli's characters have been dropped into a combat film.

As good as some of the designs and set pieces are, I'm mixed on THE LEGEND OF HEI over all. 

Based upon a hit TV series that has spawned spin offs in various other media, THE LEGEND OF HEI is an origin story of sorts for the series (although one thing I saw said this is a re-invention of sorts).  And that is one of problems with the film.  Despite the fact that we are carried along by the images and the motion, there was always a sense that seeing this as a stand alone we are missing something. It had a feeling that gnawed at me until I did some research and discovered the series.  Reading on it I found that it filled in details of characters I thought were missing. While we are fine not knowing the back stories, having them improves the film. We know who some of the characters who flit by are.  To that end a couple of posts on various sites pondered how this was going to play for people who don't know the series or can't get the references to the myths, legends and stories it is lifting from.

The other problem with the film is that even without coming from another source, the film doesn't so much reference other animated projects so much as steal from them. The Ghibli references are so blatant that the only way not to see them is to wipe your brain from ever having seen any Ghibli films. I kept waiting for a Totoro to pop into one of the battles. There are merciless lifts of other cartoon and animated characters as well. And while the battle sequences have Chinese references in them they are largely the sort of thing that fill many animated series from Japan. As good as much of this is on its own terms, the lifts get in the way since we try to come up with hat it is borrowing from.

Ultimately though the question is how is THE LEGEND OF HEI on its own terms? If you can get past the fact its a spin off and lifts things from other sources, how is it? Truthfully it isn't bad. It delights the eye, moves at a good clip and has several sequences that truly impress. If you like animation that moves and keeps you interested until the end this film is for you.  Its a good enough film that anyone looking for another bit of "anime" for fall for is going to be delighted.

ADDENDUM: As I was tweeting the link to this piece I realized tat in a way this is a kind of near great film that just missed because we never get a sense of who some of the characters are.  If we knew the characters, especially some of the fleeting ones this would have been better. I say this because there are are few times when its clear the filmmakers are only playing to fans of the show.

Slamdance Episodes- DEAD END, ANXIOUS TAXIDEMIST and BLACK KUNG FU CHICK

DEAD END
Where is the rest of this?

Wonderfully twisted tale of an Israeli bother and sister looking for their younger brother, missing after a nuclear holocaust. This is a delight an wrong and wickedly funny.

Recommended it will make you fear cows more.

ANXIOUS TAXIDERMIST- THE PILOT
Musical series about a woman who is happiest being a rogue taxidermist. 

I liked this and I'm curious how this would go beyond this one episode. I'm not sure how long it will go but I'm curious.

BLACK KUNG FU CHICK
Story of a young woman in high school trying to get into med school with the help of her martial arts master science teacher.

A good idea kind of gets lost in the quirks. The look of the film and the way things play out seem to be there more get noticed than to help the story. They area bit too noticeable for my tastes, but I like the characters enough to see how later episodes take things.

Blackwater (2020) Slamdance 2021

 

One of the best pilot episodes I’ve run across at any film festival needs to either go to series or become a feature. A great film about Native American Country Singer Birdie Blackwell who is forced by the court in to a wellness class, aka group therapy. Setting up characters and the jumping off point the episode ended and I screamed- “You Can’t end it there!?!”

Apparently they can.

I really hope this goes somewhere because I want to see where this goes- hopefully in bigger bites than 12 minutes.

A must see.

Now Is Not The Best Time: Half Court Slamdance 2021

 A young woman is trying to get good enough to shoot a basketball so she can possibly win money at a contest in a Knick game.

Funny short film/episode of a web series is good for a laugh. Sure the foul mouthed basketball is kind of pushing the the limits of what is funny (it's delivery is trying too hard rather than being funny), but it still works.

Actually the best thing I can say about the episode is it is good enough that it is actually a series I would want to watch, which is not something I would say about most series I see at festivals. 

HUSTLE (2020-) Slamdance 2021

Life of two friends in New York set up as if it's a video game. One is in TV the other in publishing.

Amusing web series gets better the more episodes you see. I think the reason it works better later on is some of the video game/Scott Pilgrim sort of take on things starts to fall away and the series begins to work based on the characters and situations and not the quirks. 

To be perfectly honest I would like to see the series reinvented as something straighter, with out the quirks, without the asides. The writing is good. The leads are likable. It doesn't need to be as silly as this is because the material is strong enough with out it.

Worth a look

The Little Broomstick Rider (2021) Slamdance 2021

 

The story of a magician in the renaissance is a twisted one of a kind confection  that is a must see. Told via cut out paper puppets, title cards and classical music this is just an absolute joy.

I started this series groaning. This was not something I was expecting. Worse it was not something that was looking like it was going to work. What's the deal with the cut outs?  And then I just went with it. I let the episodes play out and suddenly I clicked with it. I got this big goofy smile on my face.

To be certain the series pushes things as far as it could go, I can't imagine it going any longer or that the style would work on other stories, but here, in this one off tale it works perfectly.

Highly recommended.

Brief word on The Pack on Amazon

 

The series THE PACK which is now on Amazon Prime is best described as The Amazing Race but with pet owners and their dogs. Twelve pairs of owners and dogs are divided into two teams and then travel around the world to solve various puzzles.

How you react to the show is going to be based on how you like shows like The Amazing Race and how much you love dogs and their owners who gush over them. 

I'm keeping this piece short because I'm not a huge fan of similar shows and my patience for the owners wore thin very fast, which means this series was never intended for me. That said if the idea of a dogs and their owners traveling the world to do challenges sounds good to you then by all means watch this series because my curmudgeonly feelings aside it isn't a bad show

Age of the Living Dead (2018-) BITS 2020

 In the future the US is divided into two parts. The East Coast is controlled by vampire. The West Coast is controlled by regular humans who ready for war. Into the human area comes a young woman who may be the key to ending the vampires rule.

It's hard to tell how a series is based on a single episode (the series has 3 seasons and 18 episodes according to IMDB) especially a first one which is all set up. While there are some  narrative motion, much of the episode running at Blood in the Snow is concerned with setting the table.

To be honest I'm interested enough to try another episode or two on Amazon, which to be perfectly honest is just about the most honest thing I can say about the show.

If you want to try the series you can watch it tonight at Blood in The Snow's streaming festival where it is screening with several other web based series.

Venus Rises: The Web Series

Venus Rises is a three episode web series set after the fall of earth about a private on a refueling ship who gets involved in the war between the rich on Mars and the workers on Venus who are revolting toward their masters

Excellent low budget science fiction film is unfairly lost to the ages. I picked up a copy of the series several years ago at NY Comic Con but only recently got around to watching it. I am now kicking myself since the series in infinitely better than the vast majority of direct to video scifi films I have encountered
Well written and good looking the series goes from start to finish. I really want to see what happens next... which means I'm going to have to break down and gt the comic books since the story continues there.

Highly recommended the series can be had on DVD or flash drive and can be found here. (it runs n hour total)

Problem Pilots PRETTY PEOPLE and UNEMPLOYABLE TRIBECA 2020

Two films that are in the Pilot Season Block at Tribeca that pose problems one really good problems and one really bad ones.

Shelby Blake Bartelstein's PRETTY PEOPLE is a happy problem.

A beautifully made ten minute piece this is what a "proof of concept film should be. It should lay out what could come next and make you want to see more. This  is a beautifully acted piece that does just that.

The problem comes from my feeling that based on what is here this would be a better feature film than series. The connection between people and the way this goes cried out for long extended time with the characters and not just ten minute or however many minute bites.

Ultimately this is really good and I honestly have no idea where this would go next- I just want to see where that is.

UNEMPLOYABLE is a pilot about a lay about how refuses to do anything until he needs to get money for a tattoo.

This is just awful 

I really disliked it's main character to the point I turned it off least I wreck my computer in rage the first time through. This is 33 minutes of listening to a self centered and self serving moron prattle on.

Who would want to watch a series with this jerk? This isn't a Seinfeld charming monsters sort of thing but the sort of guy you want to take out and run over with your car, or a stolen steamroller.

Now if you wanted to cut the central character out and focus on the people around him you might have a show.

More Tribeca 2020 Short Films : PRELUDE, WHEN I WRITE IT, DYING BUSINESS and SHADOWS

PRELUDE
Alex has a distressing thought that he shares with Marion
Deeply philosophical and over done film about the meaning of life, love and how we are all the same and yet unique. Think of this as Terrance Malick lite with riffs into VOYAGE OF TIME or TREE OF LIFE territory.

WHEN I WRITE IT
two young artists in Oakland try to write about their lives and city.
Screaming for a feature film this is a killer portrait of two strong people making great art. This is full of great music and discussion... and could i have some more please.

DYING BUSINESS
An episode of a series on the business of death following a funeral director in Brooklyn,  a Cryonics's institute, a cemetery recovery consultant in Louisiana, and a grave digger in Haiti. This 14 minute episode is way too short for what it is. Full of great stories and great people everyone in this piece deserves a feature of their own. Highly recommended- but be warned it will leave you wanting more.

SHADOWS
Largely sweet film about a young woman going out on Homecoming night for the first time without family supervision. Its a lovely film about growing up and family, but I am not sure the ending wholly works. Not so much for what happens but more I'm not sure it was set up(to me it feel like it is there to be serious so the film has additional weight it doesn't need).

Stay At Home Festival Bonus Film: 5 Scary Videos & Mysteries That Will Send Shivers Down Your Spine...

As I've said in an earlier post while I love these sort of videos I tend not post them since the collections are more often are hit or miss... This one is all hits

Stay At Home Festival Bonus Film: WHAT IS "THIS ROOM DOES NOT EXIST"?

Another documentary on a web series about some people caught in the web of a virtual reality system.  As with the piece I posted a few days ago on LOCAL 58 is this is a attempt to untangle the time line of the series.

As this piece posts I haven't watched the whole series, largely because I haven't decided if I'm going to watch the series as pieces so I can get the clues in the descriptions or if I am going to watch the complete series which has been stitched together and put up. Therefore I present this purely as a pointer to something that looks intriguing and as something you may want to watch while in Covid quarantine.