Murder, Anyone?

Directed by James Cullen Bressack and written by his father Gordon, this is a story within a story, as the film depicts George (Maurice LaMarche, the voice of The Brain from Pinky and the Brain, a show that the elder Bressack wrote 16 episodes of) and Charlie (Charles M. Howell IV, Gordon Bressack's real-life writing partner), two writers working on a new story that could be a movie or a play, a piece of art or a movie that will play for genre audiences. George is at the typewriter, stealing ideas from greater works, while Charlie keeps telling him how he's guilty of creative theft, as the story they are telling appears and changes as the film about literal art theft - a Picasso - plays out even as one character, Richard (Tyler Christopher) is replaced by Cooper (Kristos Andrews) - as he invades the home of Bridgette (Galadriel Stineman). Then there's a man dressed as a chicken (Spencer Breslin), the ghost of Marilyn Monroe (Theresa Ireland), a medium (Carla Collins), the neighbors (Sally Kirkland and Michael Galio) and more all appear and dare continually remake and reshaped as their authors keep fighting as they write. By the end, as the director appears and explains how this movie is a tribute to his father and a remembrance of him. It's pretty striking and makes this movie mean so much more. In the latter years of Gordon's life, he spent much of his own time and money writing and putting on plays, with his son wondering why he didn't make them into movies that might make money. It's interesting that the son has now put his own money into the movie which was inspired by the talk he had with his dad. As someone who struggles to reach the legacy of his father, I really felt this and a rewatch will make so much of it even more poignant.

Directed by James Cullen Bressack and written by his father Gordon, this is a story within a story, as the film depicts George (Maurice LaMarche, the voice of The Brain from Pinky and the Brain, a show that the elder Bressack wrote 16 episodes of) and Charlie (Charles M. Howell IV, Gordon Bressack's real-life writing partner), two writers working on a new story that could be a movie or a play, a piece of art or a movie that will play for genre audiences. George is at the typewriter, stealing ideas from greater works, while Charlie keeps telling him how he's guilty of creative theft, as the story they are telling appears and changes as the film about literal art theft - a Picasso - plays out even as one character, Richard (Tyler Christopher) is replaced by Cooper (Kristos Andrews) - as he invades the home of Bridgette (Galadriel Stineman). Then there's a man dressed as a chicken (Spencer Breslin), the ghost of Marilyn Monroe (Theresa Ireland), a medium (Carla Collins), the neighbors (Sally Kirkland and Michael Galio) and more all appear and dare continually remake and reshaped as their authors keep fighting as they write. By the end, as the director appears and explains how this movie is a tribute to his father and a remembrance of him. It's pretty striking and makes this movie mean so much more. In the latter years of Gordon's life, he spent much of his own time and money writing and putting on plays, with his son wondering why he didn't make them into movies that might make money. It's interesting that the son has now put his own money into the movie which was inspired by the talk he had with his dad. As someone who struggles to reach the legacy of his father, I really felt this and a rewatch will make so much of it even more poignant.