Xavier Gens’ disturbing new vision is a visceral post-apocalyptic thriller that explores the darker side of human nature. The Divide isn’t just a thrilling survival film set against the back-drop of a nuclear holocaust; it’s a dark and disturbing look at humanity at its worst. Premiering at Austin’s SXSW film fest this week, I got a chance to check it out. Read on for my thoughts on the film.

This film begins, literally, with a bang. It starts the adrenaline pumping from the opening sequence and doesn’t let up until the ending credits role. It opens with an explosion, and through an apartment window we are treated to a view of mushroom clouds and a wall of fire. Everything spirals into chaos. Everyone in the urban apartment building is running down stairs, screaming, crying, and when another explosion demolishes the front of the building eight people make it down to the heavy basement door.

Mike Mill’s melancholy study on love and loss, Beginners, premiered (U.S.) at the SXSW Film Festival back in March. While there, Mills sat down with me to talk about his film, which stars Ewan McGregor and Christopher Plummer and comes out in theaters on June 3. McGregor plays Oliver, a man dealing with his father’s death and his difficulty finding a lasting relationship. Through a series of flashbacks, the audience follows Oliver through the last few months before his father’s death. Already dealing with his father’s illness, these months are made more tumultuous when his father (Plummer) comes out of the closet after 40 years of marriage.

Hesher screened at Austin’s SXSW film fest a few months ago and writer/director Spencer Susser took the time to sit down with me to discuss his film. We also spoke about his upcoming feature-length zombie apocalypse/romance film based on a short of his called I Love Sarah Jane. In Hesher, we follow an unstable drifter who violently inserts himself into a grieving boy’s life and home. Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Natalie Portman star in this indie drama heavy on character studies, light on plot.

Writer Kyle Killen’s new drama The Beaver premiered last month at the Austin film festival SXSW. Mel Gibson stars as a depressed family man who uses a beaver hand puppet to improve his life. Killen sat down with us and spoke about writing The Beaver, and how it‘s affected him.

Director Jodie Foster premiered her drama The Beaver last month at the Austin film festival SXSW. Mel Gibson stars as a depressed family man who uses a beaver hand puppet to improve his life. Though I thought the whole talking-hand-puppet shtick was silly and just too much for the under-developed emotional plot elements, Foster did a more than competent job directing and co-starring in the film. She took some time to sit down at a round table interview during the festival to discuss the film.

The Beaver premiered at Austin’s SXSW film fest last week, and co-star Anton Yelchin (Star Trek) took the time to sit down and discuss the film. The film stars Jodie Foster (who also directed) and Mel Gibson, and portrays the emotional journey of a family man who deals with his depression by using a beaver hand puppet. Gibson plays Walter Black, a psychologically challenged father and husband, and Yelchin plays his oldest son Porter. Porter is terrified of ending up like his father, and spends most of the movie trying to distance himself.

Austin saw plenty of movie action in March as the popular SXSW Film Festival descended on the “biggest little town” in Texas. For an intensely creative and exciting week industry types, cinephiles, eager attendees (and me) crowded the streets and multiple theatres throughout town to watch the best in indie film.

SXSW saw record numbers this year for its film festival (traditionally it was only a music festival), which reflects a growing interest in the film portion and thus even more elite film selections. The SXSW “powers that be” sifted through thousands of submissions to select the best out there in indie film, in categories that included narrative films, documentaries, shorts, horror/genre films, big-budget films, and international offerings.

Jason Eisener’s Hobo With a Shotgun is a fun, blood-spattered homage to vintage exploitation films. It screened at last week’s SXSW Film Festival, and Eisner took time to sit down with me to discuss his film, which will get a theatrical release this May.

Cold Sweat is a nonsensical horror film out of Argentina. With a plot so illogical it’s hard to describe, Cold Sweat (Sudor Frio) didn’t work on any level. Ok…there was one worthwhile head-exploding scene, but that’s it. Premiering at Austin’s SXSW film festival last week, Cold Sweat was less a horror film and more a vehicle for ultra close-ups of wet, half-naked female bodies.

The plot, from what I could decipher, centers around an ex-boyfriend looking for closure. He and his female friend are looking for his ex-girlfriend so he can talk things over with her, except she‘s kind of fallen off the face of the planet. He’s had a few emails from his ex, and he and his friend are using the IP address on the emails to track her down.

Takashi Miike’s samurai film 13 Assassins screened at Austin’s SXSW film festival last week, and featured some great swordplay. It was, however, somewhat dry and lackluster, and seemed to be missing director Miike’s signature dark vision and twisted violence.

The story is simple enough. There is the powerful, sadistic Lord Naritsugu who does whatever he wants (and mostly he wants to use innocent families as target practice). No one can touch him because he’s related to the Shogun. After the people begin to complain of his atrocities to the honorable samurai Shinzaemon, a plan is hatched to secretly assassinate him before he can assume even more power, and throw the country into war again.