Anyone remember the TIFF 2009 film, “Defendor“?
Directed by Peter Stebbings, it starred Woody Harrelson and Kat Dennings and looked and sounded like a lo-fi, and possibly lo-budget, make-shift super-hero film.
According to the TIFF site, “when night falls and danger emerges from the shadows of Hammer Town’s alleyways, Defendor is the only man who stands between us and the drug-ravaged streets. He is the last bastion of decency, the last honorable man: he is Defendor!” It seemed it was basically about a guy with mental problems (Harrelson), who thought he was some sort of super hero. IMDB called it a comedy that centers around, “an everyday guy who comes to believe he’s a superhero, his psychiatrist, and the teenager he befriends.” The picture also starred Sandra Oh and Elias Koteas.
But who defends “Defendor”? Unfortunately, for those who were anticipating the film — and there seemed to be heavy geek site interest at the time — it won’t be seeing much of a very major release Stateside. According to the official Facebook page for “Defendor,”the picture will be released on February 26 on one screen at the Landmark in Los Angeles. Darius Films, who are self-releasing the film in the U.S., confirmed to us these details are correct, but that the film will roll out after that L.A. date. How far and wide that roll out plan will actually be seems unknown right now. Update: Darius Films tells us, a roll out is planned, but to “which markets and how many will depend on the success of the LA opening.” It basically depends on the fans in L.A. If they can somehow make this the highest per screen average that weekend, that would probably be a start.
Two months later, Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions Group will release “Defendor” on DVD/Blu-ray on April 13. Here’s the trailer if you missed it last September.