I was recently invited to view the film by writer/director Alejandro Montoya Marín titled The Unexpecteds. It was not the title of the film that immediately caught my attention, but the name of the filmmaker. If you wonder why, it is because I was introduced to him by Austin’s well-known filmmaker, Robert Rodriguez, in 2018. Montoya Marín was hand selected by director Rodriguez to be a participant (among several) in his documentary series “Rebel Without a Crew.” The film Montoya Marín produced for the series, “Monday”, was screened at the 2018 SXSW Film Festival at the Violet Crown Cinema in Austin I attended. Directed and written by Alejandro Montoya Marin, The Unexpecteds is his third feature film.
Synopsis: The film tells the story of Gary and his friends, who have different personalities, but share a common goal: to invest in the digital currency of a famous Youtuber… who rips them off. After losing everything, including their families, they decide to join forces and do everything possible to get their money back.
Starring: Alejandro De Hoyos, Chelsea Rendon, Francisco Ramos, John Kaler Jason Konopisos-Alvarez
As one may figure out from the title, the people who have invested in digital currency are not going to take being ripped off as just a part of investment efforts. No dice – they may be a bit quirky with the varied personalities, but they are going to take matters into their own hands to secure that which has been taken from them. You may recognize a few of the faces in the mix of the disgruntled digital currency investors, but the crew of veteran and newer actors make a great ensemble of people to root for. Even if the efforts come across a bit too cartoonish as written for a couple of characters, this helps to show how unprepared some of the everyday people may be unprepared for a fight, but they follow the lead of others who have more grit and training.
The actors and some of their past film/TV credits: Gary (Matt Walsh, Novocaine, “Veep” TV series), Felipe (Alejandro De Hoyos, “Trigger Warning” Netflix), Chelsea Rendon (“Vida” TV series, McFarland USA), Carl or Carlos (Francisco Ramos, “This Fool” and “Gentefied” TV series), Jordan (Jason Konopisos-Alvarez, Transformers One, “General Hospital” TV series). There are numerous more not listed here.
Produced by: Kevin Smith
The Unexpecteds was selected by the Los Angeles Times as “one of 8 films to watch at the 2024 Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival” by renowned film reviewer Carlos Aguilar.
The film is now available for purchase on ITunes and DVD.
About the filmmaker: Born in Laredo, Texas and raised in Mexico, Alejandro began his career in film by studying at the prestigious Vancouver Film School. Alejandro’s feature film, Millennium Bugs, was crowdfunded and ultimately distributed by Indican Pictures. He co-starred in Eva Longoria’s film “Flamin’ Hot” (2023) and joined the Directors Guild of America. He’s currently at work on his fourth feature film “90 days in the 90’s”, based on the novel of the same name.
Source: SXSW, IMDb
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