The Black Market | Film Threat

It’s through experimental storytelling where innovations in filmmaking are made. In The Black Market: San Francisco, Alexander Roman infuses his dark noir with Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR). On its own, ASMR uses sound to elicit calming, tingling sensations emanating from the head-to-spine, but what is its effect with used within a story.

The Black Market is a story taking place today about the little-known underworld of San Francisco. I hesitate to use the term “mafia.” O’Hara’s Art Gallery & Rare Bookstore is the center of this action. Owning and operating any business in San Francisco is not easy. It’s incredibly expensive, and small businesses often resort to less-than-legitimate ventures to “pad the book.”

“…infuses his dark noir with Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR).”

Joe (David L. Klein) is the co-owner of O’Hara’s, but most importantly, he is leader of the city’s black market operations. Because of his leadership, the other black-market business owners are kept in check, and relative peace reigned for a long time. But Joe is dying of kidney failure, and the current peace hangs in the balance as the vultures circle his deteriorating body. So with the help of his employees, Elsa (Christina Ros) and Jess (Stevie Vallejo), the trio must find a black market kidney (and doctor), as well as keep the vultures at bay, and finally hide their illegal organs-for-sale operation from private investigator Correli (Brandon Michael Hall).

Now, The Black Market is not what you think it is. Though the story’s undertones are about the city’s clandestine operations, the movie’s theme is about the spirit of San Francisco. The film spotlights the community and benevolence of the city’s residence and those who choose to work there. O’Hara’s is not just a store selling art and books but also supports artists and writers looking for a place to sell their work. The film opens with Elsa helping a client in need by helping her sell of grandfather’s letters with a famed columnist at the San Francisco Chronicle. Then, she enlists another local artist to help package the letter in a shadowbox to increase its beauty and value.