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SYNOPSIS: THE LAST RITES OF JOE MAY chronicles the last days in the life of Joe May (Dennis Farina), an aging, short money hustler who always believed that a glorious destiny awaited him around every corner. Now in his sixties, his health failing and resources dwindling, Joe is presented with one last shot at greatness.
FESTIVALS/PREMIERES: Produced in conjunction with Steppenwolf Films of Chicago, it premiered in competition at the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival and was the Opening Night Film for the 2011 Chicago International Film Festival. It won the Jury Award for Best Feature at the 2011 Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival.
In November of 2011, Tribeca Films released THE LAST RITES OF JOE MAY theatrically throughout North America, to critical acclaim.
Roger Ebert included THE LAST RITES OF JOE MAY among his “Best Films of 2011″.
“You meet guys like Joe May. They can get you a price on some merchandise that fell off the back of some truck. In the performance of his career, Dennis Farina depicts the type flawlessly in THE LAST RITES OF JOE MAY. He looks into the type and sees the man inside: proud, weary, fearful…” – CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, ROGER EBERT
“The truth is, Mr. Farina would be considered Oscar material if JOE MAY were a bigger film. As it is, he’ll have to settle for being great.” - WALL STREET JOURNAL, JOHN ANDERSON
“With a few vital strokes, a long, chilly walk and a tired trudge up some stairs, Mr. Farina and Mr. Maggio bring you close to a character whose vanity, evident in Joe’s flashy clothes and hard talk, and in the way he straightens up before he enters a room, has become his final defense against failure. He’s such a suggestive figure that you’re seduced even before the plot kicks in.” – NEW YORK TIMES, MANOHLA DARGIS
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SYNOPSIS: Virgil Bliss (Clint Jordan) has been on the run from the law for twenty years. His decision to return to the scene of his original crime and finally make amends is complicated by the sudden death of his girlfriend Amy (Faryl Amadeus), and the unexpected arrival of Amy's holy-roller sister who ensnares the well-meaning Virgil in a web of lies and deceit.
BLISS is the sequel to the 2001 Indie Spirit Award nominated feature VIRGIL BLISS and is the second installment of the Virgil Bliss Trilogy. It premiered to rave reviews at the 2024 Slamdance Film Festival.
“The big picture for Bliss is that it is crafted as a drama. However, it has the black blood of film noir running through its veins. This keeps things lively while we make our way to the emotional crescendos. The issues of hiding a corpse are dark enough, but the picture takes a surprisingly dark dive in the middle. Also included are the noir gold standard visuals, such as the Venetian blind shadows. I was also impressed by how seamlessly the noir thriller elements meld with the serious character drama. But that is the future for you. At this point noir is not just normal, it is everywhere. The opioid epidemic has ushered in a new era of noir, where thousands are turned into outlaw couples on the run. This feeling of floating desperation is shown perfectly through Jordan’s performance. He does a masterful job of hiding from his demons until they eat him raw, and he makes sure you feel every sore inch of it. Amadeus is a wonder in her dual role as the two sisters. She radiates respect for them when she is inside both, while a lesser actress would have ridiculed along the faults.“ (Film Threat)
Starring Clint Jordan, Faryl Amadeus, Juan Fernandez and David Yow.
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SYNOPSIS: Peter Grey (James Le Gros), an overly zealous television chef, kidnaps J.T. Franks (Joshua Leonard), an influential and notoriously snarky food blogger after a particularly nasty review deals the final blow to Grey’s already plummeting career.
Sequestered deep in the woods of the Hudson Valley, Grey keeps Franks chained up in a basement, presenting him with a series of deceptively simple food challenges - from preparing a perfect egg over easy, to grilling a steak precisely medium rare – punishing him sadistically for anything less than total perfection.
A tense thrill-ride served up with wicked wit and culinary flare, BITTER FEAST is an exploration of the creative impulse gone tragically and ferociously awry.
Starring James LeGros, Joshua Leonard, Larry Fessenden, Megan Hilty, Amy Seimetz, and Mario Batali.
FESTIVALS/PREMIERES: BITTER FEAST was an official selection at the 2010 Los Angeles and Chicago Film Festivals and was released theatrically and on VOD through MPI Media/Dark Sky Entertainment. It is currently available on Showtime.
In April 2022, BITTER FEAST screened at MoMA as part of OH THE HUMANITY, the Glass Eye Pix/Larry Fessenden restrospective.
“It’s the rare bit of horror that aspires to haute cuisine, and while BITTER FEAST is accented with the occasional arterial geyser and McNugget-sized chunk of human flesh, it’s really gore for the gourmet. First-rate performances by James Le Gros and Joshua Leonard, some novel tweaks to the standard revenge recipe and what may be cinema’s first torture-porn abuse of a blogger lend this Joe Maggio-helmed thriller enough humor to complement its bloodlust…” - VARIETY, JOHN ANDERSON
“Zesty fun for its actors, Feast is at once a sly parody of the celebrity-chef culture spawned by all the cable cooking shows and competitions, and a creepy little chamber-piece. Even Maggio’s point of view on blogging captures something unique: Leonard’s character likens himself to the former pro-wrestling superstar Iron Sheik, applying an unlikely but apt analogy to online provocation…” – VILLAGE VOICE
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SYNOPSIS: Ruby wakes up alone in a motel room on the edge of the North Dakota prairie. Her abusive boyfriend has ditched her, leaving behind a toothbrush, some racing leathers and a supermoto motorcycle. Fed up with heartbreak, cliches and the violence of men, Ruby sets out on a quest to become the hero of her own life.
Starring Jeannine Kaspar (PAPER COVER ROCK, 2008) and shot entirely with local cast and crew on the prairies of Eastern North Dakota, SUPERMOTO is a re-imagining of the myth of the American West, of the freedom that comes with youth, wide open spaces and fast machines.
FESTIVALS/PREMIERES: SUPERMOTO premiered at the Minneapolis + St. Paul International Film Festival in 2017.
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SYNOPSIS: Virgil Bliss (Clint Jordan) is a man obsessed with living a normal life. But as a recently paroled career thief with a hair-trigger temper and the social skills of a child, he faces distinct challenges. At a halfway house Virgil meets Manny Alvarez (Anthony Gonzalez), a fiery miscreant who takes the emotionally naive Virgil under his wing and initiates him in the ways of the world. Manny introduces Virgil to Ruby (Kirsten Russell), an opportunistic junkie with whom Virgil falls instantly in love. After his release from the halfway house, Virgil finds work as a janitor and moves in with Ruby. But their best efforts to live as a family come quckly undone with the arrival of the psychotic Manny.
FESTIVALS/PREMIERES: VIRGIL BLISS premiered at the 2001 Slamdance Film Festival. Festival selections include SXSW; Los Angeles Film Festival; Seattle International Film Festival; Karlovy Vary International Film Festival; Mannheim-Heidelberg Film Festival and the Mill Valley Film Festival.
It was released theatrically and on DVD by First Run Features, and on cable/streaming by Showtime and The Sundance Channel.
VIRGIL BLISS won the Jury Award for Best Feature at the 2001 Atlanta International Film Festival and was nominated for two 2002 Independent Spirit Awards – the John Cassavetes Award, and Best Debut Performance for Clint Jordan.
”Riveting. VIRGIL BLISS has as a gentle, unforced intimacy that raises the spectre of heroic nobility with subtlety and poignancy.” - THE NEW YORK TIMES
”Unknown actor Jordan is so good, that if there is any justice he won’t remain unknown for long.” - THE DAILY NEWS
”Sparkling like a diamond in the rough, VIRGIL BLISS is packed full of the the kind of low-life Skid Row characters normally found in the novels of Hubert Selby or Charles Bukowski. A mighty impressive debut.” - BBC/UK
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SYNOPSIS: In the wake of an unsuccessful suicide attempt, a deeply troubled mother loses custody of her beloved six year old daughter.
FESTIVALS/PREMIERES: PAPER COVERS ROCK premiered at the 2008 SXSW Film Festival where it was acquired by IFC Films for North American theatrical, home video and VOD.
It was awarded Jury Awards for Best Narrative, Best Cinematography and Best Actress at the 2008 Ashland Independent Film Festival, in addition to the Audience Award for Best Narrative.
“Depression in cinema is often an excuse for mawkishness or shrill overacting, but director Maggio uses it here quietly, delicately, and to debut his philosophy of “Incidental Film”: an anti-Dogme 95, where narrative truth is everything. This lends an uncomfortable realism, as the supposedly healed Sam unravels. As Sam, Jeannine Kaspar captures the fragility of the truly despairing, and her almost wordless performance makes every step of her self-destructive path plausible and heartrending without ever being overblown. If Maggio wanted to make a fearless and touching movie, he managed it.” - THE AUSTIN CHRONICLE
“The most quietly impressive performance I saw this year, and my favorite film at SXSW, was that of Jeannine Kaspar in PAPER COVERS ROCK. The film follows a young woman just released from a hospital after unsuccessfully attempting suicide, and her measured steps towards reclaiming her life, and her daughter. PAPER COVERS ROCK is given a humble but powerful realism by Kaspar, on which Maggio remains focused throughout the length of the film. There’s a straightforward honesty to Kaspar that’s most watchable; even her moments of frailty and confusion have a lucidity that’s magnetic. David Lowery at Spout has compared moments in her performance to that of Damien Lewis in Lodge Kerrigan’s Keane. PAPER COVERS ROCK is a well-written and confidently-directed film, one whose final moments are truly haunting, and which leave its lead performance all the more unforgettable.” - FILMMAKER MAGAZINE
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SYNOPSIS: A darkly humorous account of a New York couple's all-night odyssey of spiraling anxiety as they struggle to keep a grip on reality and their severely damaged relationship. The core of the drama is the imploding marriage of Rick (Clint Jordan) and Joyce (Kirsten Russell), following a disastrous party intended to reintroduce Rick to professional colleagues after a nervous breakdown. Rick hits the streets, bouncing from his girlfriend to his psychiatrist, to a stranger to whom he offers payment to end his own life, while Joyce also ventures out for her own adventures.
FESTIVALS/PREMIERES: MILK + HONEY (2003) premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2003 and went on to screen at Tribeca, Florida, Woodstock and Atlanta, where it won a Special Jury Prize for Best Screenplay.
The film was acquired by Wellspring Media in 2004 and premiered theatrically throughout North America in 2005.
Featuring an original score by Hal Hartley, with the music of Yo La Tengo and Fischerspooner.
”Shot through with moments of metaphysical clarity that evoke Kieszlowski’s BLUE, Joe Maggio’s MILK + HONEY confirms the arrival of a disciplined, new directorial voice.”
- SCREEN INTERNATIONAL
”The acting is so intriguing, the plot so unpredictable, and the imagery so vibrant, the whole thing is compelling from beginning to end.” - PREMIERE MAGAZINE
”Joe Maggio once again coaxes edgy performances from his ensemble cast… Dexterously scripted and darkly humorous, Maggio’s intricately interwoven tale has an eccentric affectation that recalls the films of Hal Hartley…” - VARIETY
Written and Directed by Joe Maggio. Released October 26th, 2010.
SYNOPSIS: A man reflects on his life and imminent death while perched on a ledge overlooking Manhattan. Through a series of surprising reveals, what begins as a touching soliloquy on human frailty devolves into a psychotic screed as our ledge-dweller’s misdeeds are slowly brought to light.
Starring Vincent D’Onofrio as The Man on the Ledge, with Larry Fessenden as Detective Bill Coley, the officer charged with talking him down. Featuring John Spredakos, Nick Damici and Greg Amici.
“Its setup-and-twist arrangement recalls the best of classic radio (excepting the modern, saltier language, of course). Mention must be made of the exceptional performances; the material is enlivened by the superb D’Onofrio (from FULL METAL JACKET, MEN IN BLACK et al.), whose stuttering, naturalistic voice acting is completely gripping. Even the greatest of the old-time shows suffer from what in 2010 feels like stagy and overly deliberate delivery by classically trained casts; here, D’Onofrio manages to make audio drama feel fresh again with every subtle inflection. He’s ably supported by Fessenden’s reappearance as part of the tale, reprising his BITTER FEAST role of private eye Bill Coley…” - FANGORIA
For more information, visit talesfrombeyondthepale.com
Written and directed by Joe Maggio. Performed live at Dixon Place (NYC) on October 2nd, 2012.
SYNOPSIS: Set in a nameless mountain village just sixteen years after the Black Death, RAM KING tells the story of Lassa, an inquisitive young goatherd, who is falsely accused of witchcraft by the son of an all-powerful village elder. For comfort and aid, Lassa looks to the Ram King, a mythical beast, half-man, half-ram with skin of blue flames…
RAM KING was the opening night play for season two of Tales From Beyond the Pale.
Featuring Vincent D’Onofrio, Larry Fessenden, Owen Campbell, Tobias Campbell, Joel Garland, Brenda Cooney and Bonnie Dennison.
For more information, visit talesfrombeyondthepale.com
Written and directed by Joe Maggio. Released August, 2017.
SYNOPSIS: Late at night, at an isolated, nearly abandoned office space, a forgotten and embittered auteur encounters the young filmmaker who has been cannibalizing his work. A game of cat and mouse ensues as mutual flattery gives way to resentment and revenge. A creepy meditation on the corrosive affects of obsessive fandom.
Featuring Vincent D’Onofrio and James LeGros
For more information, visit talesfrombeyondthepale.com
