JERSEY SHORE FILM FESTIVAL 2023 REVIEW! From Ethan Cyr, Dakota Holmes-Dodge, and Carlos Lavezzari comes a story of a band of unlikely heroes who want to make a difference. In their web series S.Q.U.A.D., the mysterious gelatinous humanoid known as Recluse (Ruby McColister) oversees what he calls the “river of bile” flowing through the city from the high rises above. The rich live in lavish safety high above the crime, with poverty existing well below them.
Recluse is the eyes and ears of the fledgling superhero team known as S.Q.U.A.D. On reconnaissance is Watcher (Carlos Lavezzari), who has the power of enhanced observation. While following a suspect, he is intercepted by The Marquee (Ethan Cyr), a hero with super strength. As The Marquee quickly takes down Watcher, the entire fiasco is captured on video for all to watch on social media. Meanwhile, back at S.Q.U.A.D. headquarters, Watcher is joined by fellow members Delta (Dakota Holmes Dodge) and Squire (Jeremiah Porter). Along with Recluse, the trio discuss the need to complete the team with a controversial element for success or, as Watcher phrases it, the White-Man Conversation.
“…The Marquee quickly takes down Watcher, the entire fiasco is captured on video…”
S.Q.U.A.D. is the pilot episode of what hopes to be an ongoing series. It does an excellent job introducing its heroes and establishing a world and narrative that goes deeper than usual stories of good versus evil. Here we meet the team, get a preview of their powers, and introduce their first glimpse of conflict going up against The Marquee.
The first thing that should attract you to this project is that it’s a low-budget indie series. Disney/Marvel and D.C. can’t seem to pull together an interesting or intriguing story with the hundreds of millions that it squanders on box office garbage. Cyr, Holmes-Dodge, and Lavezzari are lucky to have the hundreds, maybe thousands, to not only tell their story but pull off halfway decent CG effects to transform this into a true superhero story.
Rather than bore us to death with an infinite number of multi-verse stories, S.Q.U.A.D. deals with themes and issues of race, gender, and class. In these divisive and desperate times, the series asks whether a band of black men can become a force for good, knowing that the rest of society sees them as less than human.
S.Q.U.A.D. will premiere at the 2023 Jersey Shore Film Festival.