Grip
The band Morphine blazed like a comet across the global music scene in the 1990s with its innovative “Low Rock” sound. Fronted by two-string bassist/vocalist/songwriter Mark Sandman, the trio rose from local Boston clubs to indie and major label record deals, international touring, and wide critical acclaim until their tragic and untimely demise in 1999. In “Morphine: Journey of Dreams,” the group’s surviving members and associates tell their story intercut with passages from saxophonist Dana Colley’s vivid tour journals. Rare live performances from throughout their career woven into the story display why their unique and mesmeric sound continues to resonate with music lovers today. This artfully- delivered documentary doesn’t just get behind but rather inside the music and the soul of the group to honor Morphine’s notable artistic achievements and the creative bond the musicians shared. (LVFF)
Director
With a folk singing Janis Joplin, the 13th Floor Elevators, peyote, LSD and the first psychedelic music venue in Texas, Austin was a fertile ground for the emerging counter culture of the 1960s. Seen as nonconformists, Beatnik inspired students were drawn together by folk, country and Blues music while dabbling with peyote and later exploring with LSD. Traditional values became challenged as they sought a lifestyle outside of the system. Civil Rights and the war in Vietnam were galvanizing factors in 1960s American society, but the advent of psychedelics made it electrified! This is how Austin became groovy.
Electrician
Gilbert Grape is a small-town young man with a lot of responsibility. Chief among his concerns are his mother, who is so overweight that she can't leave the house, and his mentally impaired younger brother, Arnie, who has a knack for finding trouble. Settled into a job at a grocery store and an ongoing affair with local woman Betty Carver, Gilbert finally has his life shaken up by the free-spirited Becky.
