~Spoiler~Driftwood is Tim Sullivan's directorial follow-up to 2001 Maniacs; and the films couldn't be more different. Maniacs is a hoot of a horror film. Driftwood is a bit of a bore. It's not a terrible movie, it's just not exactly horror. The film takes place within the walls of Driftwood, a prison for troubled young men that masquerades as a reform school. The ghost of a dead "inmate" starts to visit David, the new arrival, and tries to get him to solve the mystery of his death. It favors drama a lot more than traditional scares. The ghost only pops up a few times to remind you what type of movie this is. If you took the ghost out, you might think you were watching an updated version of Sean Penn's Bad Boys. The "bad boys" of this film all do surprisingly well. The young actors were all cast well and the standout is the lead. He has that Gyllenhaal/Donnie Darko thing going on. Also of note, Diamond Dallas Page, while not the greatest actor, still has tremendous charisma as the "heel." He plays The Captain, the film's lead villain who runs Driftwood. I hope DDP continues to hone his craft as I'd like to see him in more things. All in all, Driftwood is a bit forgettable. On the other hand, it shows Tim Sullivan is trying to do different things within our genre.

I was really disappointed that I didn't like this movie that much.From everything I read about it and by the trailer I thought it would be way better.It's a shame the budget was so low because I think it is an important story to tell.I also thought it was a great idea using the supernatural element for this movie but like another person said,it came across too much like b-movie acting.The only actor's I enjoyed the most who had any depth and emotion were "Raviv Ullman" and "Connor Ross" who played David and Jonathan. The film just seemed really rushed and it seemed like a lot was missing.After watching a few of the deleted scenes and alternate ending I decided that they should have included a few of those scenes and gone with the alternate ending instead.I liked the 1st deleted scene called "driftwood infomercial" but especially liked the scene called "dark daddy" because it showed a darker side to the captain by explaining his relationship with his daughter instead of just portraying her as a stupid whore.The alternate ending was more realistic and satisfying instead of just abruptly ending the movie because it doesn't seem finished.I think it was important for the viewer to have some kind of idea of what will become of the boys when they leave after that hellish ordeal.There could have been at least one more scene with David and his brother since they were so close.At the end of the alternate ending where the boys discuss where they are gonna go,Noah asks David where he is gonna go and he replies "i'm gonna go home",but he should have said "i'm gonna hit the road" instead just like what he told his brother,and because he and his parents don't see eye to eye and they were the idiots who put him in that jail like attitude adjustment institution. Another important part of the story that was left out was a scene that showed the ghost of Jonathan finally being put to rest. I think this movie would have worked better if it had been all horror and suspense and no comedy.It just would have been more believable and more respectful to kids that are stuck in or have survived those demented places to show it as all horror.If there ever is a director's cut then please at least include the "dark daddy" scene.That scene also has a cool shot of the photo and ghostly image of Jonathan that seems to disturb the captain.And for Chrissake's include the alternate ending for closure!

Not having known Tim's work beforehand, I was stunningly impressed with "Driftwood". Since I like both "Beth" and "Shout It Out Loud", I'm really looking forward to checking out his other work. "Driftwood" resonated strongly with its message on peoples' reactions to "Columbine" --and it's a fantastic movie. I think that there really has not been a strong response from our communities on what the post-Columbine panic meant for people who were growing up without "mainstream" interests. I am greatly interested in other works by Tim Sullivan after watching this film.

Driftwood is probably the first indie horror movie for teens! The pacing of the film, coupled with the rock music found in each scene, will remind you of a theatrical release with a 12- to 18-year-old target market in mind. That would stick if there weren't a whole lot of cursing. Does that make it PG-13? When we discussed the film with director Tim Sullivan, he did drop the title The Outsiders from time to time, comparing his crew of boys to the now classic film cast. The comparison is definitely fair as the Driftwood crew deliver stellar performances that kept me in the moment by raising the level of reality every time they uttered a word. It's challenging enough to come up with a group of characters who are different enough to be individuals yet bond, however slightly, over a common situation. That is just step one. Next you have to cast people that can act for it to all be believable.Driftwood is one part Holes, one part Cool Hand Luke, with a little dash of Stir of Echoes thrown in. The characters are engaging enough to make the time fly by. Tim Sullivan presents a story of desperation wrapped around a study in fear, whether that fear is of a physically imposing authority figure or a supernatural being. The walls of Driftwood hold more than one dark secret, but revealing them could mean the death to all who know. A little knowledge can be a dangerous thing.Be sure to watch out for Driftwood when it comes to your town during its limited release and support well written, well executed independent movies! We need a lot more like them.