Search - Junction on DVD

Very decent independent film

Grisly Bear | California | 06/20/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Junction is a movie of two women, Michaela and Victoria, their strange mothers, and the even stranger men in their lives. I would give it an "R" rating, with TV codes A, V, L, S. Women may like this movie because of the strong female characters. Men may like the movie because of several sexual situations, though there is no actual nudity.

Michaela is a photographer who lives with her alcoholic and seriously ill mother. Victoria is a college student who lives with her mentally ill mother Beverly, who is terrified of Pilgrims. Michaela and Victoria share a connection that neither is aware of at the beginning of the movie. Their life paths will collide.

The movie starts poorly, in my opinion, with a weird sound-only start interrupted by flashes of video violence. This scene is a flash-forward to a climactic scene late in the movie. But the movie steadily gets better, even though the lives of the women at the beginning are extremely depressing.

Shane is a handsome young college student with a surprising background, a willing object of a seduction. Chris is a handsome cactus store owner who knows some secrets. `The Danimal' writes papers for women for sexual favors. Jeff is a critical mentor for Michaela. And James plays a short but very key role.

Michaela has good facial expressions and can look cute and has an inner glow. Victoria is a beautiful young women long curly hair. She shows a broad range of emotion, with subtle expression and vocal intonation. She's very sweet and innocent in one scene, and cruelly scheming in another. Has she inherited some of her mother's craziness?

The movie ends much better than it starts, and is entertaining throughout. Very good camera work and cinematography with beautiful Arizona desert scenes. The rare music is very well done and adds a lot to the emotion of the scenes. A very decent little film.
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