Purely Joyful Movie!

Better Late Then Never

n my opinion it was a great movie with some interesting elements, even though having some plot holes and the ending probably was just too messy and crammed together, but still fun to watch and not your casual movie that is similar to all other ones.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

"Before I Disappear" is a long version of movie "Curfew". It tells about a troubled-life uncle that has been helping his sister by watching her daughter in her apartment because his sister had some also trouble private matters. I myself really appreciate this movie because the one and only reason: The main story or the core idea that makes this movie goes around really touching and lead the plots dramatically. That idea is about family bound as a very tight and powerful bound to face hard life. On the movie we are told that the uncle had fought, taken drugs, did illegal jobs, surrounded by bad people, disappointing his girl, and other things that you could define "bad guy". He is also considered as a really bad guy by his sister. A really interesting plot in this movie is that finally his sister knows what the family bound means and starts to respect her bigger brother. There are many family values and morals that the audience could have by watching this movie, for example how to build a good relationship between uncle- niece, how to become a single mother, how to become a good daughter, and how to respect family member, even though he/she had trouble past. Not much this kind of drama on today's American slapsticks and drama comedy's era. Good job for the directors, casts, and all the crew!

Before I Disappear is very interesting. Having never heard of the short film it was based off of (titled, 'Curfew'), I stumbled upon it one day on Netflix, and watched the hour and a half it had to offer. For what it was, it was one of the most intriguing independent films I've seen in a long while. The film centers on Richie, who is supposed to take care of his sister's daughter, and, without saying much, the movie ends up delving into some pretty dark themes I never expected to be explored, but, were very well presented and executed. Alongside the themes, the story is also quite well presented and written. However, as sad as it is to say, there are some plot holes from here to there, which kind of drag down the movie if you actually think about them. Plot holes or not, one thing stood clear to me throughout the hour and a half 'Before I Disappear' had to offer: the characters were VERY, VERY well written, and mostly believable. Sure, some of them seem a bit rushed, and forgettable, but, I thoroughly enjoyed the characters, nevertheless. Also, Ron Perlman was AWESOME in his role, and, although I've never really seen the actor in any movies or TV shows AT ALL, his performance in this film has convinced me more than enough that he is fairly decent at what he does.Overall, I really enjoyed Before I Disappear, and despite some plot holes, this has to have been one of the best independent films I've seen in quite some time, that's not a comedy. 88/100

Shawn Christensen's Oscar Winning Curfew was a wonderful piece of filmmaking, and I was worried that the feature version "Before I Disappear" would be just more of the same. I was pleasantly surprised and this expanded version took wonderful to extraordinary.One of Shawn's many accomplishments in this film was his deft transition of the Sophia character from precocious little girl to self-realized adolescent, who has it together a hell of a lot more than her uncle.It took me a little time to warm up to Emmy Rossum's character -- as in how could she have a child that old -- but a few lines to clear that up -- and boom, all taken care of. Emmy's vulnerability and willingness to go to a very raw place near the end of the film was beautiful to watch. Shawn's expanding the characters I loved in the short and adding new characters, played by Paul Wesley and Ron Perlman was terrific. Who knew that Wesley could bring such depth to a character that could have come off as horribly one-note?The cinematography was brilliant. The choice of color was truly inspired.This is definitely a virtuoso piece of indie filmmaking, and deserving of every award it has picked up on the film festival circuit. My only regret is that this film should be opening in a hell of a lot more theaters this awards season. If you love indie filmmaking, you need to see this film as soon as possible,

I watched Before I Disappear when it screened at the Hollywood Film Festival this past weekend and also fell in love with the short film version, Curfew, when I saw it after it won the Oscar for best live action short film.The feature film is an outstanding debut for writer/director/star/producer, Shawn Christensen, the man with many hats. This independent film has such a beautiful balance of dark themes such as suicide, drug addiction, and depression but couples it with some very dry and dark humor, an incredibly emotional core, and a hopeful message of life and love. The strong character-driven story is very original and has such great characters to invest in, especially the core relationship between the main character, Richie, and her niece, Sophia, played by the extremely talented, Fatima Ptacek. Christensen's strong visual and storytelling style flows seamlessly throughout the movie, showing his brilliantly creative voice. For one, the visuals and the cinematography are absolutely stunning from each scene to the next, with vibrant colors, smooth camera composition and movement, and unique lighting choices all throughout the story. Also, there's quite a bit of surrealism in this feature, which might have took me back at first, but realized how creative and beautiful the storytelling techniques progressed the character's motivations through them. And finally, with Christensen's background as a musician, music plays a vital role in the film, weaving the drive of each character, as really great music drives the story just as powerfully as the visuals.I honestly loved this film and can't wait to watch it again, hopefully own it on DVD, too! Shawn Christensen definitely has become one of my favorite directors as well as one of the strongest voices as an up and coming artist in film, who already has got his hands on an Oscar as he shows off his incredibly well made first feature length film. Before I Disappear is a beautiful piece of filmmaking that grabs the audience on an emotional level, isn't afraid to be bold, and can really get you thinking and soon enough appreciate the great value of our very lives.