From Wet Floor Productions in association with Twisted Illusion comes this Michael A. Hoffman film. Edited and Directed by: Michael A. Hoffman   Special Make Up By: Creative Workshop   Associate Producer: Tim Ritter   Music By: Orange Nightmare

"Scary Tales" was filmed on location in Tam-pah, Port St. Lucie, Fort Pierce, Stuart, Sewell's Point and Palm City, Florida. This enjoyable effort is an anthology similar to movies such as "Bride of the Devil", with four segments that center around what tragic fates will happen to tragic people, regardless of what course in life they choose.

"Terminally Unemployed"
In this case our hapless primary character is a perennially unemployed loser named Dennis Frye who is admirably portrayed by the film's co-producer Bill Cassinelli. Frye wanders through an empty office complex looking for Room B-29-30-2751 where an employment agency is located. Waiting for Mr. Frye is none other than veteran monster movie actor Joel D. Wynkoop playing the role of Mr. Longfellow, office manager and counselor of the employment agency.

"Hit and Run"
In the first full Segment, edited by Bill Casinelli and Michael A. Hoffman, Mr. Longfellow asks Frye if he has any aptitude in the culinary arts. Frye answers in the affirmative, and quicker than you can say "loser", Frye lands gainful employment working at "Your Way Catering". While driving his seemingly recent model blue Pontiac back home, on presumably his first day (how does a guy unemployed for over a year afford a car and house this nice? This is just like real life!) he accidentally kills a small young girl playing with her doll on the roadside. But that's not all! You'll have to watch the movie to see what happens next.

"I Ain't Got No Body"
Next we flash back to office B-29-30-2751 when Longfellow next asks Frye about his hobbies. Frye responds that he really likes to read books, so Longfellow recommends that he take up a sales clerk position at "Mae's Books". Always a loser, instead of working, Frye sees a "vision of beauty" walk through the bookstore door in the likes of Jamie, played by Lindsay Horgan, and spends the remainder of his clock time fantasizing about the two of them. Frye sets his cap on Jamie and schemes all day and night behind the counter and at home in his bed on how to win her. But how can he do it? The answer? Why through astral projection of course! Needless to say, the desired results using this technique will not be forthcoming for our hapless and hopeless hooligan. Michael A. Hoffman edited this Segment.

"The Death of Annabelle"
This fourth and final Segment, by Misters Cassinelli and Hoffman, is the movie's best. After a boring janitor's gig cleaning toilets, Frye gets recommended as a horror writer. He endures rejection after rejection, first by a British publisher played by Kevin Bangos. After a long day of rejection, Frye returns home to the "Budget Inn" where his significant other, Annabelle, capably played by Thurin Taylor Hannah, awaits and encourages him. He next visits two other publishers with his latest offering, "The Cannibal Carpenter". Needless to say, he is laughed out of their offices. He then visits publishers numbers four and five, where he brings his latest dribble, "Night of the Drinking Dead". The two publishers, comically played by Mark A. Nash and Gustavo Perez, verbally tear Frye and his work limb from limb. This tandem scene between Nash and Perez is masterfully done and absolutely hilarious (as is the previous scene where a nervous Frye hears in slow motion, with Orange Nightmare providing great background audio effects). After this latest and comedic rejection by Misters Nash and Perez, Frye, having spent eight months of his life on "Night of the Drinking Dead", starts to himself indulge, much to the chagrin of Annabelle, in a lot of drinking himself. The pay off? He drives Annabelle out of the efficiency and invokes the spirit of Edgar Allen Poe!

If you ever have an opportunity to rent this flick--do it!

Best Actor    
This is actually a tough one. It's a three-way tie between Joel D. Wynkoop, Bill Cassinelli and Thurin Taylor Hannah. Mark Nash and Gustavo Perez are stand outs in their limited but humorous roles.

Worst Actor    
Couldn't be found. Everyone seemed to give this flick his or her best shot.

Worst Portrayal:    
None that I can think of.

Most Memorable Deliveries:    
"Wooooohhh...this is COOL!" - Dennis Frye while astral projecting.
"Time is a bitch!" - Dennis Frye again astral projecting.

Favorite Scenes    
Dennis Frye's fantasy scenes with Jamie are most humorous.
The exchange between Mark Nash and Gus Perez when reviewing "Night of the Drinking Dead".
The shot of the flamingo whirligig in front of "Mae's Books".

Lector (2000)

Written and Directed By Greg Marcks   Produced By Shane Savanapridi    Associate Production and Editing: Randy Dennenburg   Original Score: Carlos Alvarez   Production Design: Connie DiCicco   Sound Director: Lee C. Payton   Director of Photography: Paul Marschall   CAST---- Cesar Hildago (El Lector): Randy Cohlmia Factory workers: Gus Perez, Aaron Land.

From the school of Motion Picture, Television and Recording Arts of Florida State University comes this triumphant heart touching work of art. This twenty-minute gem is a period piece about a "lector" who works at one of Ybor City's cigar factories (the Cordova Cigar factory in this instance) circa 1924. For those unfamiliar with Tam-pah's (nicknamed "Cigar City" for years) history, a lector was a person who would sit on an elevated lectern reading the daily newspaper or books to the factory workers in order to keep them informed, updated, and to break the monotony of their repetitive jobs. The lector was paid based solely on the good graces of the factory employees. Tampa actor and Florida Folk Hero, Gustavo Perez, portrays one of these workers. At the end of the workday, the lector (Randy Cohlmia, memorable in the role) would stand at the factory door with his hat in hands awaiting donations from the workers as the exited to go home.

One day the unthinkable happens. A new-fangled invention called the radio is brought in to the lector's factory. Suddenly the lector has a nameless, faceless, and soulless mechanical competitor. But this radio can do a multitude of things that the lector can't--among them it can broadcast live news and sporting events--it can also provide professionally-produced comedy and variety series. The actor portraying the lector gives a touching and poignant performance in this masterpiece. The production is truly top-notch as the film is often tinted in shades of monochromatic browns and yellows in order to simulate faded photographs from that era. The most colorful scenes tend to be when the lector is at his humble book-filled home alone with his hopes, fears and memories.

The true joy of this movie is that it is so genuine and pure. It is obvious that its producers have not been jaded by the bean counters, spin doctors, and marketing whores who reduce the majority of outstanding scripts into cine objects d'garbage.

A truly inspiration effort that is not to be missed.