"Mind if I smoke?" "No, mind if I fart?" - Steve Martin
For a simple quick moment, this was pretty good! I agree with the guy, smoking and potato chips are disgusting, but that is the option of the individual - NOT the passerby. Unck's story is excellent. Come on guys, there was a set up, plot ('motive' for complaint, action and opportunity for re-action), and then WHAM! - All in less than a minute! That's how quick it can happen... Technical aspects were average. Editing and sound were done decently; the camera work is not such a great execution (wondered if the operator were jogging as well). Maybe he was laughing as he knew what was about to occur. I will say the set up for that was choreographed well, and hopefully Miles did not get hurt in the hit/fall, nor Self by the cigarettes! The ending proves a great point outlined by George Carlin: "You could be as fit as a fiddle and die tomorrow of a horrible accident - look how old I am and I smoke like there's no tomorrow, just in case there won't be one!". I still have to add to Steve Martin's line : "I like to light up a good one after sex." and he didn't mean the cigarette. Well, this dude lit one up afer a good joke. Hmmm.... inspirations abound....
Other Reviews by Elizabeth Anne
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Somewhat intriguing, I was affected by the eery feel like that of a terrorist video, as if he were (as the filmmaker puts it) a "military tactician". In that sense the shots were thought out as was the performance. The set and lighting played into that well, combined with the edit the components created an almost horror theme.
Overall I think from a theatrical and actor standpoint,...
Somewhat intriguing, I was affected by the eery feel like that of a terrorist video, as if he were (as the filmmaker puts it) a "military tactician". In that sense the shots were thought out as was the performance. The set and lighting played into that well, combined with the edit the components created an almost horror theme.
Overall I think from a theatrical and actor standpoint, this shows the talent of Max Hunt, but I'm not sure it would appeal to a wider audience (particularly one that has no interest in Macbeth.) To see his mental musings acted out in his hands, his pace, his growing aggravation, kept me intrigued. The audio capture though, did make it difficult to understand some of the actor's speech; if I had not already known the material I would have been confused as to what was his motivation. I did see in the end credits there was additional material by Hunt, but I think I caught that more through performance than the actual script.
Overall a cool video for those into theatrical production, Shakespeare, etc, but either way I thought it was a decent performance.
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This was a fun short, with a strong message. It started out as a cute ode to a search for good Grits (and as a previous country dweller, I can relate that it IS difficult to get good, properly-prepared Grits in most cities....) But the Grits are only a precursor to the culture-shock of how big city streets are filled with the less-fortunate that no one seems to notice or care...
This was a fun short, with a strong message. It started out as a cute ode to a search for good Grits (and as a previous country dweller, I can relate that it IS difficult to get good, properly-prepared Grits in most cities....) But the Grits are only a precursor to the culture-shock of how big city streets are filled with the less-fortunate that no one seems to notice or care about.
The video was shot decently and had nice POV composition. The voice-over narration was done well, and carried/complemented the emotion of the visuals, the edit kept the pace. The acting toward the end seemed a little comedic, but I felt the pain when the lead/narrator explained he actually felt kind-of proud of himself to call out someone else for not doing their part.
Honestly it's understandable that unless one has money to give or a place to sleep, there is not much they can do to help the many homeless one would encounter. (I can relate to that living in Central Florida where in the Winter months, MANY of the homeless travel to sleep on warmer streets.) And it hurts to not be able to help, but like the narrator of this story understands, it hurts more to know no one else will either... That's just NOT what he learned growing up, and yet, like his search for good grits he knows "it's not an intentional insult - they just don't know..."
It seemed a shame that he learned, rather, 'adapted' so quickly...
I haven't reviewed a film on the site since 2008 (!) so I feel a little rusty in the process, but hopefully my comments made sense.
Separate Notes of Interest:
*This film submission (like many uploaded to the site prior to the newer embedding code) will not play and states that the plugin no longer exists, so at first I couldn't view/review it. The submitter did have a link to the film on his website, however, and I viewed it from there. (The direct link listed actually no longer worked, but the website's main page did and the title was accessible through the VIDEOS link).*
* I personally updated a couple of my titles through help with the forum - http://bulletin.triggerstreet.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=58&t=57732&sid=184d8460820e98d8a4a548402001e330 *
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Talk about taking all roles - Shooting, Directing, Acting, Script, Makeup, Props, even Craft Services (funny) - Palmer's esquite idea is played out really well by Alleto and crew. Although the film took a team to create, it was totally believable within these images that it could have been accomplished solely by this cat alone. Inspiring work, GREAT script. Some really great...
Talk about taking all roles - Shooting, Directing, Acting, Script, Makeup, Props, even Craft Services (funny) - Palmer's esquite idea is played out really well by Alleto and crew. Although the film took a team to create, it was totally believable within these images that it could have been accomplished solely by this cat alone. Inspiring work, GREAT script. Some really great shots, vibrant photography with odd yet intriguing composition. Loved the opening credit visual too! This film offers a nice view into this filmmaker's 'special effects'. Good use of the outdoor shots with the dad, and how the final shot activity sounded on the 'other side' of the production. Nice to see the dad involved in the final shot as well, brought the film 'home' for the closing. Alleto's performance(s) seemed silly, but done quite well to give the impression of an actor searching for his characters.
An extremely effective edit offers non-stop interest to the silliness of the acting and script of this film-within-a-film. Quite creative, especially within it's low-budget means. Fantastic how he punches 'himself' as the other character, I was still attempting to figure out how he achieved that shot, and I wondered if it was split screen in this film's edit. A very fun soundtrack mix enhanced the overall mood and pace of the film.
I actually let a previous assignment for this film lapse too much time, so I am fortunate I had the opportunity to review it again. Palmer certainly has potential to become a sucessful filmmaker. A really fun, excellent work, a high recommend, I definitely think this is one of my top favs.
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