Hero of the Underworld explained

Hero of the Underworld
Director:John David Vincent
Producer:Michelle Alexandria
Michael Boas
Bryce DiCristofalo
Bryan Glass
Tom Malloy
Greg Polisseni
Dean Matthew Ronalds
Thomas Sjölund
Jason Torres
John David Vincent
Christopher J. Wilmot
Starring:Catherine Mary Stewart
Quinton Aaron
Gabriel Jarret
Chris Ashworth
Nicole Arianna Fox
Krista Kalmus
Tom Malloy
Lisa Varga
Erik Aude
Paulo Benedeti
Mark Irvingsen
Dale Wade Davis
David Josh Lawrence
Cinematography:John David Vincent
Editing:Michael Boas
Frank Reynolds
Music:Phil De Chateauvieux
Distributor:Gravitas Ventures
Runtime:90 minutes
Country:United States
Language:English

Hero of the Underworld is a 2016 drama, inspired by writer/actor/producer Tom Malloy's time working in a New York City hotel. The story centers around hotel manager Dylan Berrick, his desire to help a young woman who is assaulted at the hotel, and his struggles with heroin addiction. Tom Malloy stars alongside Nicole Fox, Quinton Aaron, Chris Ashworth, Gabriel Jarret, and David Josh Lawrence, with appearance by Catherine Mary Stewart. The film was shot in Rochester, NY and directed by John David Vincent.

Plot

In the film, Dylan Berrick is the overnight manager of the Century Grand Hotel, a high class establishment. On the outside, Dylan seems to be a consummately professional hotel manager. But in reality, he is dealing with heroin addiction.

One night, a woman, Holly, is nearly beaten to death in the hotel by her boyfriend, and Dylan finds himself acting as Holly’s savior. This includes not only helping her physically, but also rescuing her from the drug underworld that he is too familiar with. This leads them both on a journey that will help save her as well as his own job, sanity and life.

Cast

Production

Filming of Hero of the Underworld took place in March and April, 2014, in Rochester, NY. Standing in for a New York City hotel was Rochester's Times Square Building. Because the location is a working office building, the production had to work nights, redressing the lobby each night and returning it to normal each morning.

While director John Vincent has experience working with film, in this case he shot in digital format using Black Magic cameras. In speaking about the choice of camera and the location, Vincent said, "We also shot in this amazing art deco building, and we really needed to capture the details of that location."[1]

Release

The film was screened at multiple film festivals, including Atlantic City Cinefest, where Tom Malloy won best actor and John Vincent won best director. The film also screened at Desert Rocks Film and Music Event and Chain NYC Film Festival (winner, best actor, Tom Malloy).

Following festivals, Hero of the Underworld was released by Gravitas Ventures in February, 2017, to streaming video and Blu-ray disc.

Notes and References

  1. News: Keeping a Film Look While Shooting in Low Light: Indie Drama "Hero of the Underworld" Shot with Blackmagic Cinema Camera . https://web.archive.org/web/20150908011630/http://www.digitalproducer.com/article/Keeping-a-Film-Look-While-Shooting-in-Low-Light-3959397 . dead . 2015-09-08 . Digital Producer Magazine . 2016-06-30.