AMERICAN TRASH
(director/writer: Robert LaSardo; screenwriter: Adrian Milnes; cinematographers: Mike Le, Andrew Roberts, Reece Scarpignato; editors: Anthony Espina, Rafael Portillo; music: Anthony Espina; cast: Robert LaSardo (Milles Carpis), Lorelei Linklater (Melissa), Costas Mandylor (Det. Anderson), Tom Sizemore (Det. Kelly), Richard R. Rendon (Tai), Mark Thompson (Charles), Gigi Gustin (Mandy), Elissa Dowling (Linda), Sheila Ball (Abby), Sasha Kerbel (Susan), Lance Caver (Jared); Runtime: 119; MPAA Rating: NR; producers: Josh Webber, Rafael Portillo; Deep C Digital/Amazon; 2024)
“Sordid crime thriller.”
Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz
Robert LaSardo is a noted actor of villains (“The Mule” & “Arena Wars”) who makes his feature film debut as a director an auspicious one. He goes against type playing the good guy in this sordid crime thriller. LaSardo co-writes it with Adrian Milnes. He calls it a love letter to Los Angeles, the city he grew up in and still loves. The central story is about a former combat soldier who in civilian life has tragically lost the love of his life and is badly hurting.
Milles Carpis (Robert LaSardo) is a Desert Storm veteran, who returns home to LA with PTSD and works as a tattoo artist. In a drug-infested and environmental deteriorating Venice, California, he cleans up garbage in the woods and hooks up with the free-spirited environmentalist Melissa (Lorelei Linklater, her father is the great director Richard), and finds happiness with her. Through listening to her audio recordings, both admire the ecological philosophy of the infamous killer of the rich and famous Charles Manson (who in a cringe-worthy way relish his belief in saving the Earth–which is like praising Hitler for loving dogs and blindly ignoring his Nazi atrocities). Though there might be a point to praising the psychopath killer as an environmentalist, that point is never made clear to me.
When Melissa is raped and killed by two psychopaths, her body is found in a dumpster (which gives the title its double meaning for Trash).
The downtrodden Milles connects with a group of new age hippies, Melissa’s estranged sister Mandy (Gigi Gustin) and his fellow vet therapist, the mellow Tai (Richard R. Rendon), in an effort to catch the killer. He also turns for help to Detective Anderson (Costas Mandylor) of the LAPD.
There’s a noteworthy cameo from Tom Sizemore as the sympathetic Detective Kelly, who is memorable in his final screen role.
It’s an engrossing and gritty film touching on timely issues such as societal decay, mental health for vets, a country fighting continuous wars and personal loss. It’s well-acted by the ensemble cast, thought-provoking and intense. But it’s not an easy watch, and its outcome for healing might not please everyone.
REVIEWED ON 1/14/2025 GRADE: B+
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