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A Masterpiece!

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

While ideas of God or fate may come up, I latch onto the film's address of the controls we necessarily allow to crop our lives. While we watch the character's emotional journeys, the audience's experience is purely intellectual, which is the main limitation of the film. The relationship element of the movie seems more a vehicle for the story than the center, so I'm glad they kept to their real purpose by not including mushy stuff that would have muddled everything. It's about freedom of the self not being fulfilled by others. One other criticism, personally, is that I find it moves rather slow and the scenes of literally fighting the frame seem a bit gimmicky.

An understated element of horror that is primarily in the more powerful realm of psychology rather than physical violence, combined with a thoughtful and clever story involving the paranormal.To me, this makes more prominent makers of horror-paranormal themed films like Stephen King look like rank amateurs.As others have commented, the director also did an awesome job of making a film on a shoestring that has a whole lot of the polish of a big budget blockbuster.

"The Frame" follows the characters of Alex and Sam. Alex is a man who works for the cartel and tries to escape his life of crime. Sam is an ambulance paramedic who is struggling with her past and is trying to live a normal, healthy life. Somehow these two characters lives collide in a complicated and fantasy like way that makes us the audience question what's real and what's fiction. "The Frame" is directed by Jamin Winans who also brought us the movie "Ink" (2009), which I have not seen. "The Frame" is one of the most original films I've seen along with many other films I've seen. The film starts as a crime drama but turns into a psychological thriller, which I really like. The leap from one genre to the next was handled so well by Winans, and it was a risk that was truly worth taking.The performances by David Carranza, and Tiffany Mualem (Alex and Sam) were good to say the least. The performances weren't groundbreaking or Oscar worthy, but they did project the story and made me very invested in the film and what was going to happen to these two characters. The plot of the film is complicated, I wouldn't say it's David Lynch complicated but I would say that your brain has to be turned on when watching the film. A couple of flaws I had with the film was some of the acting. At times I felt that the performances got overly cheesy or dramatic. And the other flaw I had with the film was that I felt it took itself a little too seriously. I do understand why it did but I just felt that the film could've been a little more loose and didn't have to make every scene so dramatic.**SPOILERS** **SPOILERS** **SPOILERS** **SPOILERS** **SPOILERS**If you're still reading this then you obviously saw the film. That's my last warning.Now I'm just going to put it out there right away, the character of Sam is imagining everything that has to do with the character of Alex. Alex is nothing but Sam's imagination. Sam is trying to escape her past and live in the present so she can move forward in the future. By doing this she sees her therapist. Her therapist tells her that she's been doing a good job at "distracting" herself and "watching the television". TV plays a big role in the film. Obviously Sam is going through a lot of stress in her life and is possibly psychologically ill, which causes her to see the television show "Thieves AND Saints" which stars Alex as himself. Like her therapist said before, Alex is a "distraction" for Sam, which is why she's the only person who can see this show. Alex is a reflection of Sam. When Alex first sees Sam on his television they both do the same movements and imitate one another. This happens with every time they see each other. To prove that Sam is imagining all of this, there's a scene in the film where she calls the writers of the television show "Thieves AND Saints". When she's forwarded to the writers all she hears is her voice over the phone saying exactly what she's saying. This proves that Alex's destiny and story is all because of Sam, and she can change it. When the two characters try to meet in person on the bridge they both sit at the exact same spot. While this is happening Sam's therapist just so happens to be there and sits next to her. And at the same time Alex's boss just so happens to be there and sits next to him. This is Sam imagining herself as Alex, and imagining that her therapist is Alex's boss. Whenever the two characters try to meet in public they can never find each other because one lives in the physical world while the other lives inside someone's head. The Mechanic very much resembles the character of the cowboy in "Mulholland Dr." (2001). The Mechanic resembles death or the devil. I'm not exactly sure what impact he had on the film but he added an extra layer of substance to this already complicated story.The end of the film is pretty much Sam getting over her psychosis. The last thirty minutes of the film is Sam imagining all these crazy things happening. I personally think she was just sitting on her couch the entire time while all these insane things started to unfold. Just to put it out there Sam did not get hit by the car and is not dead. At the end when Alex and Sam finally come in contact with one another it symbolizes Sam coming to terms with her past and able to face the future. Both Alex and Sam are facing their past and are having a difficult time facing the future. The character of Alex has his violin of when he was a child. The last time Alex remembers having the violin is when his parents were killed in front of him. The violin is a metaphor or a symbol for Alex's past which he has such a hard time coming to terms with. During the climax of the film when Alex plays the violin he is coming to terms with his past. This causes Sam to come to terms with her past as well because Alex and Sam are the same person it's just that Sam is in control of how she will face her past.This is simply my interpretation of the film so whatever I said may not mean jack to you. I do think "The Frame" is a film that should have more recognition. So go see it if you haven't already. Even though if you didn't watch the film and are still reading this then you just spoiled the movie for yourself.

A movie for lovers of the cinematographic art. Weird, yes, but with suspense and an ending which is neither surprising nor dull, just perfect. Not a movie for popcorn movie goers, but for those who can appreciate the art. Good script, excellent acting by David Carranza, perfect photography and the only reason I haven't given this movie a 10 is simply because it appeals only to an educated audience, willing to go through the intricacy of the script. It is not a mind-boggling and boring film like many art-films, so you are always sitting there,wondering what will happen next. There is action and surprise, so don't be afraid to watch it, you won't feel you lost your time watching it. Jamin Winans is a great talent who deserves much more attention by the industry and audience.