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Message: <blockquote data-quote="The Grumpy Celt" data-source="post: 2493065" data-attributes="member: 1019">“Lightning Bug”I rented the movie “Lightning Bug” this weekend and I give it two thumbs up. The movie is about a teenager in rural Alabama who enjoys horror movies and wants to work in Hollywood as a special effects man. However, he is young, living in rural Alabama and dealing with an abusive home life – a number of significant obstacles. The story is also semi-autobiographical, based on the life of writer and director Robert Hall. The movie is an extremely well executed low budget film. It is a drama, but has horror elements. However, a kind of oppressive sadness pervades much of the movie more than an atmosphere of fear or terror. While I was lucky enough to never live though the kinds of situations depicted in the movie, they were also never far away – aspirations can rot as easily down here and fallen trees. Aside from a couple of wrinkles (the pillow and how the fate of an abusive man is triggered), the movie is true to life for the rural and poor South.Hall himself has been working in special effects for about 12 years now, including on the TV shows “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “Angel,” and the movie “Dead birds” (a good and straight-up horror movie). This is his directorial debut and it appears he has been paying attention to the work of others for the past decade or so.The cast of actors is also solid, including performances by Laura Prepon (of “That ‘70s Show”) as love interest Angevin Duvet, Kevin Gage (crazy hooker killer in “Heat”) as step-father Earl Knight and Ashley Laurence (of “Hellraiser”) as struggling mother Jenny Graves.It was filmed in and around Cullman, Alabama. I lived in this part of Alabama (before the movie was filmed), and instantly recognized many of the locations. For example, I drove past the Haunted House location many times on my way from where I then lived to Cullman. Further, I have actually purchased vegetables from a roadside stand run by little girls from the family that actually owns the place. Most of the locations in town were also recognizable. In his commentary, Hall talks about living in this part of Alabama and about working at chicken farms – there are a number very close to where I used to live and when the wind is right, you can smell the places.When you get a chance, rent it.</blockquote>

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