Writerdirector matt sobel s quietly engaging debut is one of the great discoveries of the 2015 sundance film festival. Exactly the kind of false accusation witch hunt movie. A californian teenagers plan to come out at his nebraskan family reunion gets derailed when a bloodstain on his young cousins dress makes him the unwitting suspect of abuse. Firsttime filmmaker matt sobel delivers a mysterious, tense comingofage story with take me to the river, a selection of the next program in this years sundance film festival.
Matt sobel s debut take me to the river is one such find, a film with a passionate understatement that might have made it naturally stand out less than some of the higherprofile festival favorites but remains a personal highlight in my own festivalgoing experience, only growing in estimation more impressively the more i reflect on it. Dec 21, 2016 american independent filmmaker matt sobel who has made his featurefilm debut with take me to the river 2015 said in an interview that the story for his film came from a nightmare. He graduated from uclas department of art and currently lives in. Fact is this is a well made film that caused me more anxiety than any film i have seen in years. Mar 18, 2016 writerdirector matt sobels quietly engaging debut is one of the great discoveries of the 2015 sundance film festival. Sundance drama take me to the river acquired by film. Mar 31, 2016 in take me to the river, firsttime director and writer matt sobel shows great promise, even if his feature debut doesnt quite live up to the promise of its sinister premise in this. Its notable that a drive from milan to madrid is shorter by 500 miles. A californian teenagers plan to come out at his nebraskan family. A curious mystery shakes up a family reunion in take me to the river. A gay californian teenagers visit to nebraskan relatives turns more nightmarish than he anticipated, for reasons that he never could have imagined.
California teen ryder plans to come out to his extended family at their nebraska reunion, but. In its opening minutes, writerdirector matt sobel s debut feature looks to be a wellmade variation on a fairly common type of indie. Jul 08, 2015 new yorkbased indie distributor film movement has acquired all north american rights to sundance drama take me to the river. Matt sobel studio film movement purchase rights stream instantly details format prime video streaming online video devices. Thats 1,500 miles from the willow glen suburb he grew up in. As a native nebraskan, i can speak to the accuracy of the closed mindedness on display in matt sobels gayinthe. Apr 10, 2016 firsttime writerdirector matt sobel tells a story that is driven by suspicion, innuendo, sexual tension, and buried secrets. Take me to the river is a 2015 american drama film directed by matt sobel and starring logan miller, richard schiff, and robin weigert.
There are scenes in it that will stay in my mind for far longer than. Take me to the river focused on a single event and just didnt let go, everything else became irrelevant. Matt sobel s extraordinary debut feature boasts a powerful ensemble cast and finds the tension in what relatives dont talk about. Take me to the river is the feature film debut of writerdirector matt sobel. The film was disturbing, the acting was subpar, and a lot of what happened just didnt. Matt sobel s first feature film, take me to the river, was shot in summer 20 near rockville.
The film is very well made and acted with care and subtlety, and the narrative didnt go where i was expecting. When it debuted at the 2015 sundance film festival, matt sobel s debut feature take me to the river provoked what one writer described as a polarizing reaction among critics. Take me to the river immerses a teenager in scandal at a. A gay californian teenagers visit to nebraskan relatives turns more nightmarish than he anticipated. The farm in the film is my familys actual farm in nebraska, and i grew up going to that family reunion, although it was never quite that. The film, woven together by an omnipresent sense of dread, is the masterful debut from writerdirector matt sobel. Jul 08, 2015 film movement has acquired north american rights to take me to the river, the debut feature of matt sobel that premiered at this years sundance film festival. While extremely impressive in its mounting, the drama ventures into some tricky emotional territory that may induce queasiness in some viewers, or headscratching for others. Jan 23, 2015 matt sobels remarkably assured debut take to me to the river centers on ryder relative newcomer logan miller, a sensitive teenager from california who attends a family reunion in nebraska with his mother robin weigert and father richard schiff. A naive california teen plans to remain above the fray at his nebraskan family reunion, but a strange encounter places him at the center of a longburied family secret. For the most part, take me to the rivers lurch into melodrama marks a. It is quite the arresting debut from sobel, who graduated from ucla with a fine arts degree and instills every frame of the film with both a sense of.
This marks the third signing the agency made of filmmakers who made a splash at pa. But despite its sharp visuals and evocative sense of. Dark family secrets lurk in take me to the river with take me to the river, director matt sobel delivers not only an atypical take on the comingofage story, but one of the most original movies to have premiered at the 2015 sundance film festival. Take me to the river 2015 1h 24min drama 26 january 2015 usa storyline. Ronnie scheib of variety says this is writerdirector matt sobels, first full length film. Mar 07, 2016 matt sobels feature length film titled take me to the river. Take me to the river works best in scenes like the one where logan gets goaded by his uncle and aunt into singing the homoerotic song that he did for a school talent show back westwhile hes sitting in a midwestern breakfast nook and drinking generic storebrand cola out of a plastic tumbler.
His first feature take me to the river premiered at the sundance film festival in 2015. Firsttime writerdirector matt sobel s take me to the river unfolds in an atmosphere of mystery and dread that contrasts with its surroundings bucolic serenity. Nightmare about a family reunion inspires filmmakers. Sobel s assured directorial debut is the story of ryder, an artsy, confident california teen who is heading to nebraska for a family reunion. San jose native matt sobel used one of his as inspirational fuel for a movie. A gay teen, molestation, funny sunglasses this debut from matt sobel ticks. Sobels film skates past any persuasive sense of motivation. Sobel had considered several other locations other than nebraska, where the story is set, but it soon became clear to him that only her farm could capture the essence of what the story he. Matt sobel on harnessing the rising tide of take me to the river. Wme has signed matt sobel, writerdirectorproducer of take me to the river, which debuted at sundance. The film marks matt sobels directorial debut and centers on ryder. A gay teen named ryder logan miller, heads to a family reunion in nebraska with his worried. Firsttime feature writerdirector matt sobel set out to create a film that allowed its viewers to become active participants in the story process and hes succeeded.
His fishoutofwater observations have a personal edge the film is shot partly on his own extended familys nebraskan property but it soon builds to a place of nightmarish psychosexual revelations. Openings will be in late march to may 2016 and a continually updated list of locations, dates, as well as a synopsis and trailer can be found at film movement. After planning to come out to his conservative relatives, he holds off at his mothers request but nevertheless makes a showy entrance at the cookout with his short shorts and his eyecatching shades. That rings true when we immerse ourselves within the narratives setting. When it debuted at the 2015 sundance film festival, matt sobels debut feature take me to the river provoked what one writer described as. Currently in postproduction, matt sobel s impressive debut feature, take me to the river, is poised to make waves on the festival circuit and beyond in 2015, but its had a circuitous path to the screen. Take me to the river had its east coast premiere in competition at hiff 2015. New yorkbased indie distributor film movement has acquired all north american rights to sundance drama take me to the river.
The film marks matt sobel s directorial debut and centers on. Ronnie scheib of variety says this is writerdirector matt sobel s, first full length film. Matt sobels film take me to the river to open in theaters. In sobel s film, that kind of geographical distance informs the cultural differences between his hometown in california and the. Mar 17, 2016 making his debut featurelength effort with take me to the river, matt sobel borrows a page from the uncomfortable school of filmmaking, but colors it with his own peculiar, but distinct. There are a few moments of overt cultureclash in the movies second. Matt sobel on the delicate balance of take me to the river. With logan miller, robin weigert, josh hamilton, richard schiff. In one scene after another, he builds the tension, adds an extra level of complexity, and then leaves you adrift with unanswered questions. In matt sobels take me to the river, a gay california teenager. Nov 08, 2015 discussion with writerdirector matt sobel and moderator joe fab november 8, 2015 1. The film epitomizes the festivals mission of discovering new talent. Matt sobel, who helmed the sundance 2015 drama take me to the river, has been set by focus features to direct the scorpio races. Although he wanted to be a director since making short spielberginspired films as a kid growing up in san jose, california, sobel enrolled not in film but in the fine arts program at the.
We caught up with sobel at the london film festival to dig into the origins of his inverted coming of age. Making his debut featurelength effort with take me to the river, matt sobel borrows a page from the uncomfortable school of filmmaking, but colors it with his own peculiar, but distinct. But on the whole, this is an impressive feature debut. A strange incident takes place that involves ryder and his young niece, and ryder is put at. It will play at the ross media arts center in lincoln may 2026. Sundance pic take me to the river lands at film movement. A curious mystery shakes up a family reunion in take me to. A striking debut feature for sobel, take me to the river was a sundance film festival hit last year, earning him praise as one of todays best emerging indie filmmakers. Take me to the river is nothing if not ambiguous in a way that forces us to give meaning to unanswered questions and oddly truncated scenarios. It was developed at binger filmlab s writing and directing labs in 2012 and ifps narrative filmmaker lab in 2014.
In its opening minutes, writerdirector matt sobels debut feature looks to be a. Take me to the river, sobel s fulllength directorial debut, tells the story of a gay california teen logan. Logan miller plays ryder, a california teen who reluctantly tags along with his mother cindy robin weigert and father don richard schiff to a family reunion in nebraska. Matt sobels debut feature take me to the river 2015. Take me to the river by matt sobel logan miller, robin. She didnt live to see the film, but her spirit pervaded the shoot. Take me to the river by matt sobel official trailer drama hd. Take me to the river mary riepma ross media arts center.
San jose native matt sobel earns raves for take me to the. Follow the film on facebook matt sobel has been an active screenwriter and filmmaker for the past twelve years. About as far removed from an easy, passive watching experience as you can get, matt sobels debut feature take me to the river is an experience as compelling as it uncomfortable, which speaks to sobels ability to draw an audience in as cocreators of the events unfolding on screen. Writerdirector matt sobel s debut feature also stirs interest by taking some audacious risks in its depiction of precocious preteen sexuality. While take me to the river goes on a wildly different course than what happened to sobel in reality, based on a mortifying nightmare he had about being wrongly accused of a transgression in front of his entire family, those same short shorts can be seen in the film as well as the writerdirectors penchant for provocation. Matt sobel dedicated his feature film debut, take me to the river, to his grandmother. Matt sobel on the delicate balance of take me to the. Sobels frame resonate the visceral sensation of getting trapped inside a.
Matt sobels extraordinary debut feature boasts a powerful ensemble cast and finds the tension in what relatives dont talk about. Never sensationalist or melodramatic, take me to the river the title always gets me thinking about the singing from fish in that fever dream episode of the sopranos feels like a timebomb that doesnt explode but gradually seeps out. Apr 01, 2016 matt sobels gayinthemidlands drama is at turns riveting and deathly boring. Sobel s buttonpushing mindfuck about adolescent sexuality and family secrets is a tenacious and taut drama that veers between.
Matt sobel has been an active screenwriter and filmmaker for the past twelve years. Josh hamilton talks sundance gem take me to the river tribeca. Rural nebraska is the setting of matt sobel s semiautobiographical, mostly imagined feature film debut take me to the river. Yet another dysfunctional family drama indie film, writerdirector matt sobel s take me to the river has its flaws. Firsttime writerdirector matt sobels take me to the river unfolds in an atmosphere of mystery and dread that contrasts with its surroundings bucolic serenity. Currently in postproduction, matt sobels impressive debut feature, take me to the river, is poised to make waves on the festival circuit and beyond in 2015, but its had a circuitous path to the screen. About as far removed from an easy, passive watching experience as you can get, matt sobel s debut feature take me to the river is an experience as compelling as it uncomfortable, which speaks to sobel s ability to draw an audience in as cocreators of the events unfolding on screen. We caught up with sobel at the london film festival to dig.
Matt sobels assured directorial debut is the story of ryder, an artsy, confident california teen who is heading to nebraska for a family reunion. Matt sobel set to direct the scorpio races at focus features. Writerdirector matt sobel and actors logan miller and robin weigert talk about take me to the river. Mar 18, 2016 when it debuted at the 2015 sundance film festival, matt sobels debut feature take me to the river provoked what one writer described as a polarizing reaction among critics. Sobels buttonpushing mindfuck about adolescent sexuality and family secrets is a. Mar 30, 2016 rural nebraska is the setting of matt sobel s semiautobiographical, mostly imagined feature film debut take me to the river.
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