Violent old men

The Parting Shot

A film by Anirban Roy

Synopsis

Two old soldiers, confined in their twilight years to a bleak, low-rent Los Angeles nursing home, rage against their mortality the only way they know how – by making war. Against each other. In this defiantly unsentimental comedy noir, we see these two uncouth characters transforming their liability – their age – into a weapon. Unleashing a series of attacks and reprisals on each other, they make life hellish for everyone around them.

After a particularly violent incident, in which both men are injured, a pair of hapless cops are called in to sort out the situation. The police soon realize that they're in way over their heads, as they contend with the manipulative old warriors, the cynical nursing home staffers and the disgusted fellow residents. Faced with a no-win situation, the staffers and the cops connive to produce a trumped-up police report that should put a stop to the disruptive behavior for good.

But fate has other plans and neither of these bitter old soldiers is prepared to go gently into that good night – or anywhere else for that matter. It all culminates in a twist(ed) finale that leaves us with the supremely uplifting thought that nothing keeps you alive and alert like a murderous, decades-long grudge.

Director's Statement

I've always loved pranks and plots. I've been called uncouth and have been admonished for not acting my age. Well, here's a glass raised to those who believe deviousness has no boundaries or age limits, as long as the laugh is good.

What if we can tear through the veil of social nicety and see the world for what it is – weird, illogical and absurd? For me, comedy is often the shocking expression of that radical honesty. And people are never more honest than when they have nothing to lose. Like the two nasty, scheming, lying, mean-ass bastards at the heart of this movie. Enjoy!

Cast

LARRY HANKIN Aaron
WYCLIFFE YOUNG Cy
ALEXIA PEEBLES Rhonda Corvois
DESEAN KEVIN TERRY Luther Morris
CRITINA FRIAS Officer Carla Cortez
FERNANDO RIVERA Officer Enrique Guzman
CODY WOOD Young Cy
BEN C. ADAMS Young Aaron
REGGIE WATKINS Major Furlong
ADAM KERN Zach Tui

Crew

ANIRBAN ROY Director

Anirban Roy was born in India and moved to Los Angeles in 1993. After earning a Masters degree from the University of Southern California, Roy began his career as an editor for network and cable television shows. Since 2006, he has written and directed several award-winning films like Six Weeks, Pepino Mango Nance, Taking the Heat and Aashpordha (Audacity) – all of them about the lives of marginalized people.

All of Roy’s works have been televised in multiple countries, including the US. Additionally, Aashpordha (Audacity), a film set in Kolkata, India, was released theatrically across the country by Anurag Kashyap Films. The Parting Shot, starring Larry Hankin, is Roy’s latest film. It’s an absurdist comedy noir about two violent old men who have set out to destroy each other.
M. DAL WALTON III Producer

M. Dal Walton, III began his career in the entertainment industry on a bet with his sister. In 1996, he relocated to Atlanta, GA to work in the international production headquarters which produced the satellite feeds of the 1996 Summer Olympics for the entire world. When he returned to Los Angeles, be began working for a small up-start production company that, over the decade he worked there, produced such films as: 16 Blocks staring Bruce Willis for Director Richard Donner (Lethal Weapon); The Wicker Man starring Nicolas Cage for writer/director Neil LaBute; Righteous Kill starring Robert De Niro and Al Pacino; and Rambo directed by and starring Sylvester Stallone. Dal Walton now runs a consluting company, Invalesco Entertainment, which specializes in multi-platform, short form content.
SOMNATH SEN Producer

Somnath lives in Mumbai, where he is on the faculty at the renowned Whistling Woods Film School. A graduate of the USC Cinema School, he has directed several films, including the much-acclaimed feature Leela starring Dimple Kapadia and Vinod Khanna. He has also directed Gora, a hit episodic series based on a novel by the Nobel Prize winning author Rabindranath Tagore.
RUBEN O'MALLEY Director of Photography

Ruben O'Malley is a cinematographer who lives in the Bay Area and is known for work in commercials and documentaries. His recently completed film Tiny Giant tells the story of Jeff Steinberg, a severely disabled gospel performer singing for his supper in the sunset of his life. Ruben has shot for numerous PBS projects (Jerusalem, Center of the World, The Armenians, and others) and IFC’s highest rated projects (Indie Sex and Fabulous). His commercial work with director Sam Cadman has won numerous awards.

Ruben is proud to have been a part of several feature films that have played in theaters around the US and internationally. Among these, Harvest (dir. Marc Meyers), and Tomorrow Comes Today (dir. Ming Lang Chen) have gathered the most praise. But his work with Jeff Lipsky (Once More With Feeling, and Twelve Thirty) may be among the most daring ones.
VIVEK MADDALA Composer

Vivek Maddala has scored over 30 feature films. His recent work premiered at Cannes, Toronto and Sundance. He is a Sundance Institute Fellow for Film Composing.
ROBERT LITTLE Co-writer

Robert Little graduated from University of Southern California with a Masters degree in Film Production. His short film A Good Son has played in over two dozen film festivals worldwide and has won him several awards. He also co-wrote Aashpordha (Audacity) with director Anirban Roy, which has won several awards and played theatrically and in major international film festivals.