Great Indie Films to Check Out on VOD

There’s usually a time of year when not that many movies are coming out in theaters that excite me. I lied, this is all-year long. I’ve seen The Avengers (really good) and currently waiting for Pitch Perfect 2 to come out (the Bellas are back!)

Many people voice their concern about the unoriginality of Hollywood. Sequels, big budget action flicks, and dystopian young adult conquer a lot of the movies heavily promoted and released in theaters.

Enter video on demand (VOD). A bunch of great films get released on iTunes, Amazon, and other VOD platforms. Films released on DVD don’t make up all of the VOD market. Independent films have gotten a big boost thanks to VOD.

Below are some recently released films worth checking out (Kristen Wiig in a swan boat?! Terminator in a zombie film? Heck yeah!):

Maggie 

maggie film review

Abigail Breslin stars as the title character who is affected by a virus that makes her into a zombie. Arnold Schwarzenegger is her dad, and is searching for her. Several reviews have commented on the great cinematography and acting in the film and called it one of Schwarzenegger’s best roles. Read more of the review here.  and the trailer here.

Ride

Ride movie review

Road-trip, coming-of-age, searching for passion movie! I’m not sure how I feel about it…These types of movies have been done over and over. It has reached the top 20 on iTunes movie downloads. Helen Hunt wrote and directed this film. Brenton Thwaites (The Giver) plays her college-bound son who goes to New York University, realizes he doesn’t like it, and moves to LA to pursue his passion for surfing. Helen Hunt finds out about this and goes after him, finding love (oh boy), renewed sense of purpose, and reconnecting with her son. Good coming to terms film situated in the middle of the mind-numbing big budget Hollywood movie season. Watch the trailer here.

Welcome to Me

welcome to me movie review

 

Kristen Wiig. Enough said. Okay, I’ll say more. The film is a touching that explores a subject not covered often in film, not talked about much, and not understand all that well: mental health. Wiig’s character has borderline personality disorder and is obsessed with Oprah. One day she wins the $86 million dollar jackpot and uses part of it to pay for her own talk show at a TV network. She doesn’t talk about current events or interview guests on the two hour show, she just talks about herself and her experiences…for two hours.

Kristen Wiig has been knocking it out of the part in exploring new territory outside of Saturday Night Live. She’s been doing a lot of indie dramas like Hateship Loveship, The Skeleton Twins, and now this film. And she excels in all three. You the bomb Kristen Wiig!

Watch the trailer here.