The Canyons documents five twenty-something's quest for power, love, sex and success set in the year 2012 in Hollywood. The filmmakers partly financed the film themselves through Pope’s new company Sodium Fox in order to maintain complete creative control of the distinct source material. According to Schrader, “We all experienced the frustrations of financing and institutional censorship. But now, with advances in digital photography and distribution, we can tell a story in the manner we choose. Movies are changing and we’re changing with it.”
The Canyons tells the searing indictment of Hollywood culture and the year's most controversial film. Young trust-fund baby Christian (James Deen) is working on financing a horror film simply to keep his dad off his back. His girlfriend-turned-plaything Tara (Lindsay Lohan) is helping him with casting, and his producer, Gina, is trying to get her boyfriend Ryan the lead role. But unbeknownst to Christian and Gina, Ryan and Tara were once a couple, and as soon as the two meet again at an audition, their romance is rekindled. When Christian discovers that Tara has been having an affair, he begins to play a series of cruelly escalating mind games with both Ryan and Tara, leading to an act of violence from which there can be no redemption. Featuring fearless and unprecedented performances from its young cast, The Canyons is a thought-provoking examination of privilege run amok.
The Canyons will open in cinemas on August 13 from Crystalsky Multimedia. Check out the film’s trailer below.
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