So, for a brief moment, my life seems to have calmed down, and I have been getting to check out some great LGBTQ+ media that’s been piling up on me. I started the week with Danny Will Die Alone and am ending it with Cutaways, the latest effort from director Mark Schwab. It just premiered on Amazon, and I was curious to check it out.
So what is Cutaways about? Well, it’s about adult film production, a dead body, and socks. That might give the wrong impression, let me try again. Cutaways is a dark comedy about Evan Quick (played wonderfully by Silas Kade), a once celebrated indie filmmaker who has been cancelled and is not making low rent porn in a dilapidated warehouse. As he struggles to get through a day of shooting, he is forced to confront shady producers, clashing ego’s and a up, and coming actor challenging him on every level.
The film is funny with a dark undertone, and while not all of the jokes hit for me, I was happy to go along for the ride. Mark Schwab throws in a lot of references to Queer Director Gregg Araki, both in style and as a possible lifeline for Evan. That made me do some research and add a bunch of films to my to-be-watched list. The cast, though small were all perfect for their rolls and the actor playing the producer made me scratch my head for the longest time until I realized he was James Duval from Independence Day and Gone in Sixty Seconds. I did not know he was still acting, but I’m glad he is because this shows he still has the chops.
If you’re looking for an entertaining dark comedy to rent this weekend, you could do far worse than check this one out. I give it two thumbs up.
Paper Phoenix ink 