Trash Fire (2016)

As a child Owen (Adrian Grenier) survived a fire that killed his parents and disfigured his sister Pearl (AnnaLynne McCord). He was raised by a hateful maternal grandmother Violet (Fionnula Flanagan). He ran away as a child and hasn't been home since.Owen is in therapy and has an off and on serious girlfriend Isabel (Angela Trimbur). Owen is apathetic and volunteers too much information which is part of the fun. Isabel is pregnant and threatens to abort the baby unless Owen straightens up and meets her demands, one of which is to re-unite with his estranged family...the one that blames Owen for accidentally starting the fire and really doesn't want to see him either.This is a cult film. It contains dark quirky humor. It has very little "horror" in it. All the characters are flawed and enjoyable. Not for everyone.Guide: F-word. Bad sex. Nudity (Angela Trimbur).Winner of Audience Award Boston Underground Film Festival 2016

It's hard to rate and review this film. It wants to be a dark comedy, but then tries to be something much more serious and emotionally disturbing as it dives into horror, yet springs back again here and there... and even some of the horror elements are quite funny.I'd have to say this is much more of a dark comedy drama with a lot of tension and negativity. This is not a Romance/Comedy or even your typical Horror comedy. The comedy is much more situational and mostly stems from the interaction of emotionally disturbed people who loathe one another.That said, this wasn't a B-rate production. There are some very talented actors with very believable characters and some enjoyable moments with the dark humor. It's quite twisted, but well-made. So, I give it a 6 because it never bored me and though I cringed a lot, it was enjoyable enough to deserve a positive rating. However, I doubt it has much replay value.I wouldn't recommend this as a must-see to anyone, but if you love dark comedies and/or twisted horror and have some time to kill, I think this would entertain.

The only likable people in this movie were the wait staffs in the restaurants. The leading couple seem to be staying together because no one else will have either one of them. The grandmother is a delusional, murderer who wraps herself in the bible. The clergyman is a child molester. The long dead parents are torn to shreds in every flash back. Little sister is practically held captive by her grandmother. She is disfigured, gay and mentally ill. The cameo by Matthew Gray Gubler as an hypocritical religious zealot was a nice touch. As was the seizure during the sex scene.Wonderful performances all around. You can dislike / hate each character and feel sympathy for them at the same time. Except grandma--she sucked. There wasn't a web of lies, deceit and murder to be caught up in as you would be in a classic thriller. The long held, dark secrets are never revealed to the cast.The viewer sees all but, not the players. Two rounds from a twelve gauge and a wordless epilogue close the movie.

I saw not more than 21 movies at the last FANTASIA FEST yet, and nothing (in my opinion) can be compare to TRASH FIRE. I liked the dialogues and the way the characters shout them to each others. But above all that, it's a movie who talk about real peoples problems (like EXCISION and SUBURBAN Gothic), and as a OUTSIDER myself, i really like the place Richard Bates, jr, give them in his fantastics films. I really like HORRORS MOVIES, and you know as i do that HORROR is not in good shape right now. When you watch a horror-comedy with so many goods thing, i say THANKS YOU !! All the actors are amazing, and in my opinion both AnnaLynne McCord and Fionnola Flanagan should receive nominations for theirs unbelievable work as supporting Actress. I just wanna say that i'm anxious to buy the blu-ray, ans i'll be there for your next movie man !!