User Reviews

My brother and I just happened to catch Lonely Place at the Austin Film Festival, and I thought it was a well realized take on classic cinema of the past. I was looking for a different screening but happened upon Lonely Place during the opening credits. I thought the cast looked interesting, Tess Harper, Kurtwood Smith, and Thomas Arana, and the title sequence itself was exquisite. Having no knowledge of the picture, I just went along for the ride, and I was not disappointed.

Lonely Place plays out like some old 1940's potboiler, with a menacing farmhand worming his way between a husband and wife on an old dusty peach farm. By about halfway through the picture, I had figured out how it was going to end, only I was wrong, dead wrong.

This is the kind of movie they don't make any more, it's like an old film that was just dug up in some archive somewhere. My brother and I loved it.

I'm Tex Nickle and that's all I really have to say about Lonely Place.

I got the chance to see this film at a Film Noir festival held at the American Cinemateque in Hollywood, and I was very pleased.

This picture harkens back to a different era. One when suspense and drama were handled deftly by masters like Alfred Hitchcock.

A modern film set in the late 1940's, Tess Harper plays the farmer's wife caught in a rural dilemma. Her performance as the mouse caught in a box with two cats is amazing. (Where has she been lately?) Kurtwood Smith is the old tired farmer, and Tomas Arana is the mysterious stranger who just stopped by for a visit.

The tension here gets thick, and you don't know who to root for...until the end.

This film will probably go the festival route, so if you see it on your program, and you like well paced suspensfull noir's, give it a look and you won't be disappointed. (8/10)

MitchellMan

I saw this film on a DVD screener and I was quite impressed. Being a film noir buff, Mr. Ackerman did an outstanding job in capturing the flavor of the noir look and feel. Seeing Kurtwood Smith is always a pleasure to watch and Mr. Ackerman's team of actors and actresses I found, retained the feel of the people trapped in predictaments that they have advertidly or inadvertidly created for themselves. Examples would be "Detour," "Double Indemnity" and "Laura." The well-written dialouge makes "Lonely Place" feel like your stepping back into time and yet, it could be a situation that could be an event that takes place on the front page of tomorrow's morning newspaper. An outstanding job. I look forward to his future work.

As a woman who has worked on 3 short films and 2 feature endeavors, I can safely state that working for Kevin Ackerman has refreshed my memory as to why I ever wanted to make movies in the first place. Assisting him at various times during post production, in setting up his company, seeing how he struggled on a day-to-day basis, always trying to make this little half hour film better...I have never met someone as committed as he was and is.

The film, LONELY PLACE, exists as a polished first short, evocative of a time and place, faithful to the Film Noir genre Kevin so loves (and has studied extensively), purposefully un-flashy and somehow extremely mature. I watched the films Kevin told me were influences on LONELY PLACE while he finished it this last year -- The Postman Always Rings Twice, Repulsion, all the Hitchcocks etc. -- and I respect his choice to make a small film about three people inhabiting one space, a farmhouse, but with a larger thematic issue at stake: What is at the core of Marriage if, in fact, there isn't Love? And what would you do if, after giving 20 years to a man, living and working hard for him, you found out that he didn't love or even respect you? LONELY PLACE tackles the difficult premise, weaves a web, has fun with what one woman might do in a bygone era, given just such knowledge of her partner...not an easy thing to do in a half hour!

LONELY PLACE will, undoubtedly, play well in festivals and Kevin's career will fluorish in the aftermath. Of this much I am certain. I sign off for the last time, the night before my return home overseas, thankful for my time here in the United States working with such talented artists like kevin and all the rest. See LONELY PLACE!

I recently caught this at a festival of short films and it far and away stood out among all the other films that screened. Lonely Place has a superb visual look to it, is consistently involving in its storytelling, and features an excellent lead performance from Tess Harper. The film doesn't need any trickery or flash, instead relying on superb craftsmanship that is quite rare for this form. Writer/director Kevin Ackerman shows a command of the medium that is both assured and evocative, using silence, mood, and furtive looks to tell his engrossing tale of a woman done wrong. With nary a false note, Lonely Place sticks with you long after the film is over. See it if you can on the big screen.

This movie really took my by surprise. I attended a screening of shorts from the Los Angeles International Short Film Festival at my college, most of the films there were... big budget Jerry Bruckheimer bullshit that were from BMW films.com. I have to admit they were kinetic though, so with the adrenaline pumping, LONELY PLACE, was a little bit boring at first. I admired its beauty, but could not enjoy the pace after those goddam car chases. Finally I settled down and was absorbed by what I was watching.

The directing was very delicious, the set, the actors, they all made me feel like I was in the 1940's. The amazing thing this movie did is allow you to see each character's emotions, personalities, and backstories without any flashbacks or narration. Through the imagery and the simple words and gestures, the entire story was played out for you. The end is a HUGE payoff. You have no idea that it is going to happen. It was insanity.

Technically, the movie had good camera work but the lighting was a little bit so and so. But I can dismiss it thanks to Kevin, whom explained his movie to us in a Q & A after the screening. It took six years to make this movie, completely worth it. Man o man, I need to learn how to structure my thoughts.

Great movie. Watch it for the noir aspect, quirky actors, suspense, and the excellent ending. High five to Kevin Ackermann.

x Mike Ordoñez

There are so many things to admire about Kevin Ackerman's short feature Lonely Place that it's hard to know what to praise first. The meticulous beauty of its physical detail and visual realization are two obvious virtues. Indeed, as John Ottman's oceanic music swells beneath that rainfall of ripe peaches at the fade-in, one might describe Ackerman's filmic style as symphonically meticulous. The place is a farm north of Fresno, California, in 1949. Tess Harper is the mistress of the spread, an intense, frustrated housewife who attends to her duties with the unseeing steadiness of a sleepwalker. Kurtwood Smith is her cranky, neglectful husband -- a man who seems to have whittled his 'round-the-clock facial expression from the same wood he's used to make those tobacco pipes he's always either clenching in his teeth or emptying, with annoying precision, in spots his wife has just cleaned. Tomas Arana is the raggedy drifter who appears at this couple's peach tree like a Biblical figment. He seems more skeletal than flesh, and more silhouette than man. He oozes menace -- a quality that, to the wife's near-hysterical bewilderment, goes unnoticed by her husband as he hires this man to help with their peach harvest. What ensues is a demonic retelling of the Garden of Eden story, in which Eve finds herself alone with two serpents.

Because I count Kevin Ackerman as a close friend, I'm in a position to know the years of hard work he spent getting this film right -- and like many friends, I often worried that he was chasing a holy grail of perfection that would stay forever out of his reach. I needn't have worried. Whatever imperfections may be present in Lonely Place, excellence is achieved throughout -- even technical mastery, of a precocious kind. Ackerman's exquisite dissolves, which marry the roundness of peaches to that of full moons and the whorls of circular darkness which gape in the mouth of a man's pipe, are not simply there to show off his style, much as one might marvel -- they also underscore the interior transitions, the psychic puzzle-pieces gradually coming together in the mind of a woman being threatened by a violence that is welling as much from within herself as from the two wretched men in her life.

Lonely Place is a strikingly well-wrought first film, a feature in miniature. Ackerman succeeds precisely because he has been so steadfast in seeing its music, rhythms and visual bravura through to their optimal states of power, and narrative effect.

I attended the Los Angeles International Short Film Festival and viewed all the other films and Lonely Place really stood out with no fancy special effects that would steer you away from the deep expression of film making. Wonderful casting with credible, professional and recognizable actors. This film is truly a breath of fresh air with a down to earth location on a farm.

I enjoyed the retro scenes and authenticity of props. Cinematography is gorgeous. Suspenseful and entertaining. Kevin Ackerman did a superb job in capturing the feel and struggle of farm life. This is a film you don't want to miss! This will make you crave peaches. I look forward to Kevin Ackerman's next film.

Just caught this short through a friend who worked on the post. This is one of those rare student films that is both polished and assured. Dark, brooding and intelligent, I would imagine that this one will make the festival circuit sometime soon. Kudos to firsttime director Kevin Ackerman - I hope to see more from him soon.

Director Kevin Ackerman seems to be channeling David Lean as he directs this delicious, atmospheric "Alfred Hitchcock Presents"-style short. Gorgeous visuals, lush romantic music, great atmosphere and constantly building tension in this outstanding thriller that packs a real emotional punch. Kudos to the stellar cast: Kurtwood Smith, Tess Harper and Tomas Arana.

Great tech credits: beautiful cinematography, excellent editing and sound work. John Ottman's score is a must-listen. Kevin Ackerman has delivered a film that stands both as a clever homage to the classic film noir, and also stands out as an excellent short film.

Director Kevin Ackerman seems to be channeling David Lean as he directs this delicious, atmospheric "Alfred Hitchcock Presents"-style short. Gorgeous visuals, lush romantic music, great atmosphere and constantly building tension in this outstanding thriller that packs a real emotional punch. Kudos to the stellar cast: Kurtwood Smith, Tess Harper and Tomas Arana.

Great tech credits: beautiful cinematography, excellent editing and sound work. John Ottman's score is a must-listen. Kevin Ackerman has delivered a film that stands both as a clever homage to the classic film noir, and also stands out as an excellent short film.

Saw this at a Film Festival recently and I can't sing enough praises to Director Kevin Ackerman for his impeccable attention to detail in this beautiful homage to Classic Film Noir. I can't wait to see his future work, if Lonely Place was any indication of what is to come. The dialogue was crisp, and insightful...Ackerman seems to really understand the fears of women. The performance by Tess Harper was amazing, although all of the performances given seemed to be from a genuine understanding of the human condition and how that would manifest in their character. The cinematography is truly beautiful, it is easy to see why Steve Gainer won Best Cinematography at the Boston International Film Festival. If you haven't seen this and have the opportunity...do it. About forty minutes you will be glad that you spent. Rumor has it, his new work is a short film requiem for the jumpers of 9/11... I can't wait.

LONELY PLACE is one of those rare short films that feels more like a feature than a short film and it's clear that its director - Kevin Ackerman - is a filmmaker to watch. Watching this film actually reminded me of when I first saw PUBLIC ACCESS which was directed by the then unknown Bryan Singer. Both directors have an expert eye for detail and an obvious way with actors, bringing as they do wonderful performances from their casts. LONELY PLACE stars Oscar nominee Tess Harper in a beautiful performance as Stella. This is probably her best work since TENDER MERCIES and it's great to see her tackle this role. She's aided in this gem by Kurtwood Smith, a terrific character actor (CITIZEN RUTH) who's likely best known for the sitcom THAT 70s SHOW, fans of which will no doubt be shocked by his very un-Red-like performance here. Also in this is another good character actor Tomas Arana who I thought I'd never seen before but discovered he's been around for years and has been in everything from GLADIATOR to PEARL HARBOR.

In short, this 1949 set drama is about a peach farmer (Kurtwood Smith), his wife (Tess Harper) and the stranger (Tomas Arana) who comes into their lives. No this isn't THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE but rather something much more dramatic and heart-felt. There's not a single false note in this work. The acting is superb. It's three good actors sinking their collective teeth into good roles. The music by John Ottman (who also did the music for THE USUAL SUSPECTS) is dead on. The script and the direction are top-notch. Kevin Ackerman is a director on the rise and it will be interesting to see him tackle longer and bigger budget projects.

It's not always easy to see a short film in this day and age but LONELY PLACE is definitely one to watch for those who want to see a talented filmmaker in the making.

One of the hardest things to bring about in a film is tone, and here, director Ackerman has crafted a short with the feeling of a Flannery O'Connor short story, a rare achievement indeed. Produced with an uncanny attention to detail and directed with a strong sense of foreboding, "Lonely Place" features affecting performances by the three leads, the most surprising coming from Kurtwood Smith, who is at least currently known for lighter roles. A beautiful film to watch, the story incorporates a key prop in an unusual and original way that to me at least recalled Hitchcock. An all-around exceptional first film - check it out if you get a chance!