My Granddad Is A Hitman - by Jamesh & JoshP

aravance said:
I thought the music that sort of plays as the Granddad's theme was pretty awesome.
It fit perfectly.

I did feel however that there didn't need to be as much music as there was. I think it would've been okay without it for some scenes.
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Thanks - I agree that the piece could've done well with less music, but the way the first half was approached called for using a lot of music throughout the whole film. There's one scene in the middle without music though, which (I think) strengthens the music in the scene after it.
 
I enjoyed this one. I thought it was well filmed and cut. I especially like the subtle dolly shots. Liked the computer shot fx. One thing I didn't get was when we were looking through the night scope the final time the visual dropped out of IR green to your cool CC look. Was that on purpose?

I would agree with others about the cheesy gun shot in the end. With a big gun like that, you should have a more manly firing and skip the blood...or at least desaturate it to match the scene. This fx test shot of my 7 yo gun freak is kinda what I'm thinking.

All in all, great film.
 
kurtmo said:
One thing I didn't get was when we were looking through the night scope the final time the visual dropped out of IR green to your cool CC look. Was that on purpose?
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yes kurtmo, it was on purpose. If you notice carefully the effect doesnt just cut but it distorts out, as if he was turning the nightvision off. This was meant to show that his reconissance was over and that he was about to move in for the kill.

Thanks for watching
 
Amazing film. You are clearly a very professional filmmaker. But unlike some others with a pro touch, this one was fun and entertaining. I got caught up in it right away.

And I did not see it coming. For the first time in any fest, I scream-laughed :"Oh my God!" WAY out loud. NICE. :):)

If I had one critique, I would do away with the effect in that spot. Only because in a film so perfectly crafted, it stands out as not quite looking right.

But great, great work.
 
And though he's done some amazing stuff for my films and many others, this is far and away Herman's best film score, I think. Really, so perfectly suited to the piece, as well as very cinematic. Just great work, Herman. Which reminds me, I need to call you about a project before another fest gears up :)
 
Cheers Mark, I'm glad you enjoyed it. I'll probably end up doing another cut of it with a tidier ending, seeing as how many people have brought it up.

Yes. Herman's score is great. The guy is a diamond. Cheers Herman.
 
Mark Harris said:
And though he's done some amazing stuff for my films and many others, this is far and away Herman's best film score, I think. Really, so perfectly suited to the piece, as well as very cinematic. Just great work, Herman. Which reminds me, I need to call you about a project before another fest gears up :)
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Thanks Mark - Looking forward to the collaboration :beer:
 
Very well put together.

I'm afraid the cinematography may go unnoticed or un-lauded because the content of the piece is so light. But it was really really well done. Especially the first spy at his computer. I also love the shots through the dingy Plexiglas of him preparing the gun.

My only ding is that I expected the fact that he was a granddad to play a bigger role. He could have been anything, a dad, a single guy ... I expected a bit more satire ... I dunno, like a rocket shooting walker or something, or having to deal with the grand kids in the middle of a mission. But like I said I liked it a great deal nonetheless, that was just an expectation that I felt which wasn't wholly met.

Agree the music was perfect for the piece.

Great job to you and your team!

Thanks for screening it for us :beer:
 
Behind the eight-ball and still trying to watch entries. I am so glad I watched this one.

I must say, this whole thing impressed me. You guys have talent. I seem to recall from early posts that you were approaching this as a bit of a lark, but the end result came out as far from that, in my opinion. It was really beautifully shot. Loved your work with colour and the wide array of shots. I thought the story was great too (and I hadn't read the tagline and was pleasantly surprised).

As far as gripes, there really aren't any except (1) your two balaclava'd guys in the garage were just telegraphing the fact that they were about 11 years old; and (2) the final shotgun shot should be redone so it matches the calibre ("caliber", get it?) of the rest of this fine film (12 gauge shotguns are rather nasty tools at close range).

Without getting maudlin, I note the use of the "Grandad" and "Granny" and that they are related to you. May I just say that thirty years from now you are going to view this little gem in an entirely different light - it will be absolute gold. And they were great in their roles.

This was to me a beautifully crafted, good-natured piece. Loved the music. Loved the pacing. Loved the short. You have demonstrable talent. I will watch with interest to see what you produce for the next fest.

Well done.
 
I expected more of a comedy by the title, though I wasn't in th least disappointed by the turnout, as the production was more professional than I expected as well (again, I made presemptions due to the title - which could be a lesson to the filmmakers with regards to marketing ... ensuring the title conveys what you want to the target audience).

Opening titles were EXTREMELY cool and professional. Loved them. Some nice cinematic shots, though there were a couple of spots where I felt the handheld was in appropriate and/or distracting (one point in specific is when we're on the other side of the bushes from the Granddad as he approaches the hideout - I felt we were looking through someone else's POV that was about to attack him). Music was great (nice job, Herman!), and the edits and angles for the most part were well done also. One spot, in specific, where I felt the pace dragged was how long we looked at the gun via close up, as he looked down the barrel. Though it wasn't LONG, move on already! :) I feally liked the overall feel of this, and feel it was quite well done.

However, from a believability stand point, I have some frusterations, all of which could be moot if this was INTENDED to be corny and/or unrealistic in the following: I assume (until the end, which left me confused about this) that his being a hitman is a secret from his wife ... as such, he wouldn't have the speakers playing loud on the laptop for just anyone to hear. Also, wouldn't he notice the guy speaking to him as a HUGE gash on his forehead & is bleeding? If he's a pro, he'd suspsect a setup ... not to mention the curtain/cloth that clearly shows up behind him, screaming of some kind of terrorist/hostage forced camera thing.

Next, we have the two bad guys in the barn ... when the door opens, no one in their right mind will stand in the VERY center of the door like that. Who ever WAS outside would have ample time to blow their legs ou from under them, shoot them in the gut, etc., long beore the door would be all the way up to see who's out there. Anyway, once they DID get outside, it was cool to see their legs shot up, as the door was closing again.

Cool to see the Grandmother show up, but I don't know if that was plannedor a surprise to the Granddad. It should be explained, as that tells a lot of backstory in its own way as well, IMO. All the nit-picks aside, GREAT JOB!
 
Thanks for taking the time to really get stuck in there Norm!

Norm Sanders said:
wouldn't he notice the guy speaking to him as a HUGE gash on his forehead & is bleeding? If he's a pro, he'd suspsect a setup ... not to mention the curtain/cloth that clearly shows up behind him, screaming of some kind of terrorist/hostage forced camera thing.
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You're also right about the fact that Robin might have guessed he was being setup from the gash on his handler's head and the crappy blue cloth behind him. The Robin character was meant to be a bit dopey, after all it's supposed to be a dark comedy. We felt that watching the handler on the tiny window on the laptop wouldn't look obvious to Robin that he was being setup, but then the scene where the camera pulls out after te conference to reveal the gun at his head would show the audience the truth. Also the blue sheet was meant to convey a neutral background that maybe they are used to having their conversations against.

Norm Sanders said:
I assume (until the end, which left me confused about this) that his being a hitman is a secret from his wife ... as such, he wouldn't have the speakers playing loud on the laptop for just anyone to hear.
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Yes, he was keeping the fact that he was an agent from his wife (but she knew anyway) maybe this wasn't clear enough because i had planned to do a close-up of the grandmother twitching in her sleep when we're in the zipping up scene in the bedroom, i never got around to doing the pickups though.

Norm Sanders said:
Next, we have the two bad guys in the barn ... when the door opens, no one in their right mind will stand in the VERY center of the door like that.
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We were trying to make fun of the stereotypical dumb henchman found in generic action movies which is why they get fooled so easily by Robin. I also had that cool opening scene from Leon in my head whe we were doing this bit.

Norm Sanders said:
I don't know if that was planned or a surprise to the Granddad
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The grandmother showing up wasn't planned, the granddad was meant to be in total shock, hence his rather confused turn & look just before the credits roll.

Thanks for watching and thanks for your feedback.
 
Really enjoyed your film. It was shot very well. Had a good story, and a beginning middle and end. One thing I really really liked is how the movies fell changes mid short. It gets u feeling comfortable and pleasant and switches very smoothly.
 
My Thoughts:

I really liked this movie up until the thugs in the garage. Bad audio or what.. they were just bad actors. I was a little let down in the end by granny's performance, but regardless, I think it was well done and I applaud your grandparents for being such great sports. Makes me wish I still had mine.

cheers!
/j
 
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