Film: The Color Wheel

The Color Wheel is a rare piece of cinema for two reasons: firstly it is shot entirely in black and white, and a grainy black and white at that; and secondly the movie focuses on the relationship between brother and sister, which is not something one sees much in contemporary cinema, not being as 'flogable' as romantic relationships. However, both these factors, together with a unique sense of humour and a formidable on-screen chemistry between the two main protagonists (who also co-wrote the screenplay), make the flick one of the most refreshing we've seen for a long time.

JR (Carlen Altman) has just broken up with her boyfriend, who also happened to be her professor. Not wanting to face going back to her former lover's home to pick up her belongings alone, she enlists the help of her brother Colin (Alex Ross Perry). She is an aspiring television presenter, (over) confident in her abilities and not ready to settle for less than she believes she deserves, while he is an uptight, complacent type with a girlfriend who doesn't seem to love him. The two of them bicker constantly, although you sense beneath the surface there is a mutual dependency upon one another.

Along the way on their short roadtrip are some hysterical exchanges and some cringe-worthy situations which are ingeniously dreamt up and masterfully executed. As the journey progresses, so does the siblings' relaitonship and they soon come to realise (probably after the audience does) that despite their differences, they couldn't possibly be without each other; after all, they have no one else.

Such is the accuracy of The Color Wheel in depicting brother-sister relations, that you'd be excused for thinking you were watching a reality show about an actual family. Because this is Altman and Perry's own project, they were perhaps the only two who could have possibly got to grips with the scenario to its fullest potential. We thoroughly hope they continue to write and perform as you sense that they could well be on the cusp of a new breed of cinema.