ethan_murdoch

I really like older movies like 'You've Got Mail' and such, especially in that genre. They had a great balance of humor and romance. City of Second Chances reminded me of those old movies. The premise is very down to earth, about a guy who's a Uber driver type that can't seem to make ends meet. One night he meets a girl in a halloween costume who takes him on a cool adventure through the Vegas strip. I won't spoil what happens, but it builds nicely throughout the pace of the story.

It had me really laughing at times and connecting with both leads. The director seems also to have been making this a sort of love letter to Vegas as a city, and that was something I haven't seen in a while in indie film. It doesn't try to preach at you or send you a message, it's just classic entertainment, something I really enjoyed escaping to. My wife really enjoyed it as well, said the ending made her tear up, so I thought that was pretty special.

I enjoy indie films immensely, so watching this I didn't know what to expect. You really have to pay attention to every scene because it all adds up to something really unique at the end.

Very few films can pull off the single location concept, and this was definitely a good use of it. Monique did a fantastic job bringing Aamal to life and making us sympathize. You can tell she put a lot into the performance, and it shows.

I enjoyed the music and build up. The disjointed quality of it seemed out of place at first but again it all adds up to why, and I didn't see it coming. I read that they filmed in the high desert during hundred degree days, so good on them all for committing to this in full. Definitely worth your time, so check it out!

This movie is really good, to start. It centers around how siblings get along, which truly spoke to me. I felt like the writing and acting managed a sense of realism without hitting you over the head with each brother's message.

What's cool is that the characters themselves are flawed, no one is right and nobody is wrong, this is a trope you just don't see in movies anymore and it was refreshing.

The use of music really got to me as well. It seemed like for the first half hour or so there was none, giving a sense of isolation to how they are feeling, in a way. When the music does come in, it balances between a score of mood and classical for comedy value.

I'd recommend this movie to anyone who wants to laugh, feel something, and connect with a story.