Director Clay Riley Hassler’s compassion for his characters is evident, and his microbudgeted debut feature, shot partly in a homeless shelter among its residents, builds a naturalistic portrait of society’s lowest economic rungs. Its well-observed moments can be astounding in the understated and double-edged way they cut to the core.
The Hollywood Reporter
Fans of dark dramas, character pieces, and mumblecore-style films are sure to be enamored by Homeless: a successful debut from a director to watch in Clay Riley Hassler.
Way Too Indie
Hassler’s film masterfully portrays how both bad choices and infrastructural roadblocks combine to make the crawl away from poverty painfully slow and precariously uncertain.
Christianity Today
The film was made for just $12,000 and was impressively impactful despite the technical limitations of a budget like that. The storytelling was much more subtle than you’d expect from a first time feature shot partially in a local shelter.
Screen International
Filmed in a real homeless shelter with real homeless people sounds queasily like a sideshow come-on, but Clay Riley Hassler’s affecting feature debut is nothing of the kind. Thanks to the actors and Hassler and Anna Field’s script, we understand why the characters make the choices they do — even when we bitterly hope they’ll choose differently.
Nashville Scene
The Hollywood Reporter
Fans of dark dramas, character pieces, and mumblecore-style films are sure to be enamored by Homeless: a successful debut from a director to watch in Clay Riley Hassler.
Way Too Indie
Hassler’s film masterfully portrays how both bad choices and infrastructural roadblocks combine to make the crawl away from poverty painfully slow and precariously uncertain.
Christianity Today
The film was made for just $12,000 and was impressively impactful despite the technical limitations of a budget like that. The storytelling was much more subtle than you’d expect from a first time feature shot partially in a local shelter.
Screen International
Filmed in a real homeless shelter with real homeless people sounds queasily like a sideshow come-on, but Clay Riley Hassler’s affecting feature debut is nothing of the kind. Thanks to the actors and Hassler and Anna Field’s script, we understand why the characters make the choices they do — even when we bitterly hope they’ll choose differently.
Nashville Scene