VIP 2 Medienfonds (Germany): 3

The romantic comedy-drama film The Upside of Anger (2005), written and directed by Mike Binder, opens with Terry Wolfmeyer, her four daughters, and their friend Denny Davies attending a funeral. However, the story quickly flashes back to three years earlier when Terry’s heavily intoxicated confession to her daughters revealed that their father, Grey, had left the family for his secretary in Sweden. Terry turns to alcohol to deal with her anger and heartbreak, causing her daughters to resent her. She finds solace in her neighbor Denny, a retired baseball player and fellow heavy drinker who hosts a radio talk show. ...

The Jacket (2005), an American science-fiction psychological thriller film directed by John Maybury, begins with Jack Starks as an active soldier in the Gulf War. Through his voice-over, we learn that he was 27 when he died for the first time. While on duty, he is ambushed and shot in the head by a young boy. One year later, Jack is portrayed as a solitary figure, hitch-hiking along a snowy road. He comes across a broken-down pick up truck occupied by Jean Price, an intoxicated mother, and her daughter who appears to be around eight or ten years old. Despite Jean’s erratic behavior and vomiting episodes, the girl ...

The film Monster (2003), written and directed by Patty Jenkins in her debut as a feature director, follows the story of Aileen Wuornos, a street prostitute who moves from Michigan to Florida in 1989. On the brink of ending her own life, Aileen meets Selby Wall in a gay bar. Despite Aileen’s initial hostility and declaration that she is not gay, the two women strike up a conversation over beers. Selby quickly takes a liking to Aileen, admiring her protective nature. She invites Aileen to spend the night with her at the house where she is staying temporarily (having been kicked out by her parents after being accused ...