And now an Unloved I saw being made in real time as the decision was made not to release MJ Bassett’s “Red Sonja” except as a one-night Fathom Event, as if the producers decided after spending the money (hundreds of thousands? millions?) to get it made, to get their tax write off legitimized. A lot of people took this as a sign that the movie was not good enough for a wide release, and even more people didn’t seem to like its energy at all. I’m not a lot of people. I’m not more people. I’m the creator of The Unloved, and this filled my ’80s trash-collecting heart with joy, to say nothing of transcending its trappings. Yes, it is exactly the movie it appears to be on the poster; it is smarter and more openhearted than its cinematic inspirations, and it is a film of personal reflection and reinvention. It’s this director’s best work, for all it shows of the joy of becoming oneself. (Now available on VOD.)
