I watched Clown at a screening at the Northwest Film Forum in Seattle. Being a fan of Robert Newman's work and also being a native of the area, I try to catch anything he's done, even though this is only his second feature. Clown can only be explained by watching it. It's nothing new, it's not perfect, and even their website says they don't use cheap scares to get a reaction, and they end up resorting to it. All in all I was very happy with the finished product. The cinematography was great, the script was pretty solid, and the overall funky, 70s vibe feel of the film made it even better. I won't lie, there is a few places of slip-shoddy editing, there is a scene with sunshine and the cutaway there is overcast. What I thoroughly enjoyed was that I didn't feel I was watching an indie flick where the Director is self-absorbed into making something different. It wasn't pretentious, it didn't try to go overboard with make-up effects. They used what they had in their budget to try and keep the realism intact. Gore hounds might shy away, but those who can follow a basic story and enjoy the great dialogue will enjoy this creepy little flick. I am waiting for the DVD release but as far as I know it's slated for October 2007.
