''Pickings'' is a 2018 independent dark comedy film written, produced, and directed by

Usher Morgan Usher Morgan (born May 23, 1985) is an Israeli screenwriter, film director, producer, author and entrepreneur based in New York City. He is best known as the writer, director, and producer of films such as ''Prego'' and '' Pickings''. Biography ...

. The film stars Elyse Price, Joel Bernard, Katie Vincent, Joe Trombino, Emil Ferzola, Yaron Urbas and Taso Mikroulis. Price plays Jo Lee-Haywood, a mysterious bar owner defending her family and business from the wrath of a short-tempered mobster and his protection racket. The film was released to theaters in the United States on March 2, 2018.

Cast

* Elyse Price as Jo Lee-Haywood *

Katie Vincent Katie Vincent (born March 12, 1996) is a Canadian sprint canoeist. She competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics, in Women's C-2 500 metres, winning a bronze medal. Career She participated at the 2017 Racice, 2018 ICF Canoe Sprint World Champio ...

as Scarlet Lee-Haywood * Joel Bernard as Boone Pickens * Samantha Zaino as Emma Lee-Haywood * Joe Trombino as Jimmy Marcone * Michael Gentile as Momo * Michael Tyler as Tommy * Emil Ferzola as Leo DeVitto * Taso Mikroulis as Marvin Lee-Haywood * Yaron Urbas as Sam "Hollywood" Barone

Production

''Pickings'' is Usher Morgan's first feature film. Morgan wrote the script and served as the film's director, producer and chief editor. The film was shot for a total of 35 days over the course of a year. The production of the film was announced during a press event at the 2015 Manhattan Film Festival and a

pitch trailer In the filmmaking industry, a pitch trailer, also known as a concept trailer or proof of concept trailer, is a movie trailer produced independently by the filmmaker for the sole purpose of illustrating the concept, style and theme of a feature film. ...

was subsequently released on August 7, 2015, in a press release by Digital Magic Entertainment. Morgan partnered with his

Prego Prego (Italian for "You're welcome!") is a trade mark brand name pasta sauce of Campbell Soup Company. It was introduced internationally in 1981. Varieties Prego offers many different varieties. The traditional pasta sauce is available in nine ...

cinematographer Louis Obioha, and re-hired Katie Vincent to play the role of Scarlet. As production evolved, Vincent's role in the film became more substantial and she joined the project as a producer. Vincent also wrote and performed many of the film's original songs and served as the film's music supervisor. Morgan also hired ''Prego'' actor Taso Mikroulis to play the role of Marvin. The film was fully financed by Morgan, after an Indiegogo campaign failed to reach its desired goal. "I used my own money to fund this film. Took loans, sold assets and maxed out credit cards," Morgan said in an interview with the

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in 2018.

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as actor ...

was held in the

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area under a $350,000 budget; the film was shot in Yonkers,

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull an ...

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and

for a total of 35 days over the course of a year. Digital Magic Entertainment released the film's Red Band teaser on December 20, 2016, and the Green Band teaser on March 5, 2017. Both trailers are accompanied by an original musical track recorded by Katie Vincent. The film's official trailer was released on December 18, 2017. Pickings premiered at the AMC Loews in New York City's Lincoln Square on February 22, 2018, and was subsequently released to theaters on March 2, 2018. The distribution was handled by Dark Passage Films and AMC Independent.

Critical response

"Pickings" received generally positive reviews and holds an 80% score on

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

Gary Goldstein with the

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gave the film a very positive review, writing "The visually arresting, wickedly entertaining crime drama "Pickings" marks an impressive narrative feature directing debut." Maitland McDonagh with the

Film Journal ''Film Journal International'' was a motion-picture industry trade magazine published by the American company Prometheus Global Media. It was a sister publication of ''Adweek'', ''Billboard'', ''The Hollywood Reporter'', and other periodicals. Hi ...

praised Morgan's directorial style but was critical of the film's handling of its original characters, writing "it's dazzling and all the more impressive because it was executed on an incredibly low budget. What it isn't especially strong on is original characterization. Price's Jo is impressively tough and convincingly wounded, but she's a still a variation on

Kill Bill ''Kill Bill: Volume 1'' is a 2003 American martial arts film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. It stars Uma Thurman as the Bride, who swears revenge on a team of assassins (Lucy Liu, Michael Madsen, Daryl Hannah, and Vivica A. Fox) an ...

's lethal bride." Wesley Lara with Hidden Remote Magazina gave the film a favorable review, but criticized some of the characters in the film as "off-the walls crazy" and "a little cheesy". She wrote: "Pickings will definitely not be a film for everyone. This film is incredibly unapologetic in its presentation and homage to previous westerns and noir films and that may turn some people off. It’s not an insult, it’s just a fact of life. However, the sheer creativity and passion behind this project is undeniable, from its gorgeous cinematography and lighting to its energetic acting (along with an accolade-worthy performance from Elyse Price) to its character driven story. Usher Morgan wanted to create a film that was equals parts completely badass and substance with a fun and emotional oddball of a western/noir hybrid."

References

External links

* * {{IMDb title, tt4789822, Pickings 2018 films American films about revenge American black comedy films American neo-noir films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films