SINNERGY - Geoff Reisner

Fantastic. Bloody fantastic. This one just hit me right between the eyes with two bullets of awesomeness.

I for one think the acting was perfect. Even the lead's large performance in the alleyway seemed tonally right for this particular film. And dialogue like the secondary cop's lines in the bar often seems expository and badly written, but here it worked great.

Only two complaints, and they are minor. The way you started the VO made me think that perhaps it might have been the bad guy's inner voice, although it quickly becomes clear who it is. Not sure what the best solution to this might be. Maybe there is none.

The other thing is that the shot of the girl wasn't really shocking enough given the buildup. I actually think in this case, I wouldn't even show her. Just leave it to our imagination to think about how awful she looks after what he's done to her.

Anyway, you rocked my socks off. Great flick.
 
Oh I forgot to mention the light walk that was supposed to be running in the alley looked off. However the perp really did a good job of looking like he was going fast while going slow. I also loved the locations, it was also good to see those aliens from 'Signs' got some work after that stinker. :)
 
Just watched your short. Very well done. Congratulations.

Good going on choosing anamorphic as your format. It really adds a delicious quality to the image. Also, the B&W cinematography was particularly well done. It's hard for most people to get the contrast ratios right, and you guys nailed it.

Well done.
 
Robert Sanders said:
Just watched your short. Very well done. Congratulations.

Good going on choosing anamorphic as your format. It really adds a delicious quality to the image. Also, the B&W cinematography was particularly well done. It's hard for most people to get the contrast ratios right, and you guys nailed it.

Well done.
Click to expand...

Thanks, Robert. I have Matty to thank for that. I don't think I mentioned exposure/contrast to him at all during the entire shoot. I just trusted him.
 
jasonthewho said:
Fantastic. Bloody fantastic. This one just hit me right between the eyes with two bullets of awesomeness.
Click to expand...

Thanks man! Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for commenting.

Chris_Keaton said:
... it was also good to see those aliens from 'Signs' got some work after that stinker. :)
Click to expand...

They don't come cheap... Most of our budget went to feeding it... when we ran out of the giant tubs of peanut butter, we had to think fast or they were gonna walk... so we fed them the 2nd A.D.
 
just watched this one again. liked it a lot more the 2nd time, prolly one of my favs. i still get taken out of it a bit towards the beginning with the chase scene where they're all kind of briskly jogging, but after that no issues. i really like the mood you establish with this, and that shot with the light bouncing off the dude's hat near the end was awesome. and i especially like how little little the monster is featured but his presence is still felt.
 
wow ,

awesome.

your film is absolutely fantastic looking. top notch!! congrats on achieving such looks!

didnt read the thread so forgive any repeating...

story- really cool idea! some thoughts in no particular order - incredible looking monster- spot on. the backup detective - spot on. he was terrific.

the lead- spot on as well - especially when he was trying to get the location of the girl, i liked that a lot, the look at the perp ,the look down at the street - and then back and all the while he's gripped. cool. but his fedora - it looks great but it threw me off only because everything else is contemporary. he looked out of place with it. its minor but its not. the perp is wearing sneakers and a sports varsity kind of jacket and the dect is film noirish. that made me look at the parked cars and all else to see where i am, what year is this anyway. i dont want to be distracted. i want to follow this punk piece of garbage ...

the voice over is well done too but i think it's sort of out of order. i think it would be more dramatic if i learn of this det. complete frustration up front. that he's not going to give up. and then where does the vengeful alien come into this... its cool to leave it like it is, but if there was a link i missed it. not sure how the story works out or where its going. the det. comes clean about being a vigilante himself, about putting a couple of rounds into an ex cop. was this before the alien came into his life or after. and if so is there a link there?

the bar shot is abs amazing. brilliant looking stuff.

congrats on a terrific film.
 
Great film. The GH1 looks amazing here. I pretty much agree with everyone else about the chase but that did not take me out of it all. good job
 
I like how you incorporated noir into this fest. I think it helps the film stand apart from the others. Your cinematography is excellent and for the most part, your actors are very good. I really liked your monster and I liked the effect you used to kill the guy in the alley.

However, I would have liked to have seen more of the monster. It seemed like it was part of a larger story, but the film left me confused as to how the monster ties into everything. I also thought that the pacing in the alley chase scene could have been faster. With some quicker cuts, it could have been a bit more intense, but after watching the film a second time, it seemed like that would make the scene feel awkward, since the rest of the film has a slow and steady pace. Maybe you could have just tightened it up to where the guy being chased was already hiding behind the wall? Just a suggestion. Overall, I think you've got a pretty good piece.
 
REHov520 said:
... and i especially like how little little the monster is featured but his presence is still felt.
Click to expand...

Cool. That's what we were hoping for.

Hoz, thanks for the in-depth comments and review.

Thanks, Richard. Yep, the GH1 is quite impressive. It holds up very well at 1080p as well.

Kenneth, thanks for the comments. Some good thoughts there.

Thanks, Johnny. Glad you enjoyed it.
 
Brilliant! A beautiful film to watch. Well written. Well executed. Congrats!

I don't read the other comments, so sorry if I repeat anything, but that would be a good thing... I think?

Although this isn't my favorite style of film, it makes me think I'm back playing Max Payne...that frickin game wasted hours of my life...but I digress. This one really caught my attention. Right from the opening shot, I was hooked. Cinematography was spot on. The aspect ratio kicks ass! Sound, lighting... everything just clicks.

If there was anything that tweaked me it when the VO started and we're looking at the bad guy. I thought it was him talking at first... but caught on a second later. Maybe showing the good guy looking at him first as the VO starts... then cut to the bad guy slowly turning his head. Just a thought.

The other thing...your bad guy runs like a little girl! I didn't believe he was trying to get away from anyone. Then again maybe that's how child molester's run?

Either way....fabulous film that I will watch again & again. Really great job... this is a film to be proud of.
 
Wow! Geoff, Matt, Kholi, great here guys. Well acted, very well shot, good noir'ish take. I like the more intense subject matter.

The camera didn't handle the highlights well, so it would have been my preference to not lean that heavy on the highlights.

Great fx work!

On the story I was absolutely loving it until the turn where the inspector was being hunted too. This story works well on solid good/evil black/white lines and to suddenly say the inspector was vulnerable because of feeling guilty for not doing enough just nose-dived the story for me. Now if you just had to end with him being hunted too then maybe he was a reformed pedofile trying to make amends and the demon is holding off for the time being? But to punish the guy for effectively doing right just doesnt fly.

Very solid entry Geoff, your best yet. Looking forward to more!
 
Nice work, guys. I like the style. I might have preferred revealing the monster at the moment, rather than telling us about it, let us think this is a standard cop story, then let the VO kick in when the monster comes out as a surprise. Let us wonder what's going on up to that point as they race to get the info. But that's just a minor quibble.

Another thing I thought might have been improved that alley scene right before the monster shows up. They are in a real race for time to get the info, but their actions for getting the info seemed kind of vague. Like it might have been nice for him to have a pat trick he uses on guys to keep their attention. And then see that trick start to work as they get closer and closer to getting the info, the guy holding on, with them, giving it up, then BAM! It's kind of a matter of details vs. vagueness. Given the character more specificity.

Really nice work!
 
Hey Geoff! Nice to see you back again. It has been a few days since my viewing of the film, so if I miss things or am vague, I apologize. Now, time to tear your film apart! (Just kidding.)

From the first shot, one can surmise that this is a film was skillful filmmakers operating behind the image and sound. It always fascinates me to see indie troupes putting together noir films. What's interesting about your film (and I think actually helps sell the surrealism of some elements) is the fact that the film and characters inherit styles seen in classic 30's and 40's Hollywood cinema, yet they're in quite modern locations. Production design on a small film can only be so vast, so it's understandable. In a way, it detracts from the film's validity, but conversely, it also lends to the protagonist's "altered state," which he does seem to be in. It's almost as if he's an old, salty veteran PI that's stuck in the past, and the apparition-type character is the personification of time catching up with him, proving that he should be retiring and letting the chase go to someone younger; to someone more agile.

I doubt this is where you intended the film to go, but I thought it was an interesting slant.

The cinematography was quite good. The images were crisp and made great use of hard sources with less fill. A few shots from time to time felt just a little misplaced or misaligned in the guidance of the audience. At times, I felt some perspectives were a little odd (there's a bit in the first scene in the bar where we get a s/rs of the protag. and the ...rapist? I believe he was?) The shots might have benefited if the protag wasn't framed in center and the two were a little more balanced on halves of the screen. This is just a very minor instance of pickiness. The film did indeed flow very well and the direction of the camera was very strong. For instance, I loved the floating, meandering steadicam work. It just felt natural in this piece instead of trying to rigidly mimick a dolly.

I think the acting and some of the writing were my only hang-ups. The lead, though strong in some scenes, just went so far over the top at times with his tight-lipped, hard-hearted grimaces and stern speech patterns that it got a little too campy. Some of the dialogue seemed a bit difficult to deliver as well. Can't remember specifics anymore.

The story itself, outside of my intepretation that I just came up with, didn't sit quite right with me. I'm not sure what it is. I felt like some elements were a little discordant and needed some work.

Overall, it's a really good effort and demonstrates some effective storytelling, pacing, and direction. I feel like this film would benefit from reigning in some of the acting and adding about another 45 seconds to fill some odd spots.

Hopefully I can rewatch it and point out specifics for you. I feel like I was too vague. Anyway, nice job! :thumbsup:
 
Thanks for checking it out, Mark. Appreciate the thoughts.

Jon, you're actually not too far off from the detectives (archy) character. He is moreso a hard-nosed, stuck in the past character whereas his partner represents a more modern angle. I think some people think we were aiming to create a period piece but Archy is really the only period element IMO. Everyone else is dressed normal and his partner talks on a cell phone in the hall. I'm tempted to shoot an establishing shot of the rapists building that has modern cars in front just to clear up that issue.

Appreciate the time you took to lay down some thoughts.
 
This was great! The whole production was on spot. The acting was great, all the crew work, and great monster! The effect of how the guy died was crazy! But really cool. Very much enjoyed!
 
Geoff_R said:
Thanks for checking it out, Mark. Appreciate the thoughts.

Jon, you're actually not too far off from the detectives (archy) character. He is moreso a hard-nosed, stuck in the past character whereas his partner represents a more modern angle. I think some people think we were aiming to create a period piece but Archy is really the only period element IMO. Everyone else is dressed normal and his partner talks on a cell phone in the hall. I'm tempted to shoot an establishing shot of the rapists building that has modern cars in front just to clear up that issue.

Appreciate the time you took to lay down some thoughts.
Click to expand...

Makes sense. He definitely felt like the relic in the room. I'm really glad to see you took that approach. Makes his character more dynamic and interesting. And I think that single establishing shot you mentioned would probably seal the deal while only adding a few seconds to the run-time.
 
Geoff,

I really liked this one from the opening shot. Great use of the aspect ratio in every shot! The color (or lack thereof), characters, costumes, and locations gave this a great feel. Very film noir. The only time I was taken out of the 'period' was when they are running down the alley, about TC 1:23, with the mini van, and cars in the shot.

The cinematography in this is beautiful, and as I mentioned, great use of the aspect ratio. None of the screen real estate was wasted. With so many great shots, it's hard to mention my favorites, but I really liked the opening shot and there was a long alley shot at about TC 1:28 that was really nice. Good use of motivated camera movement as well.

I liked the subtle reveal of the 'monster' and although we didn't see it much, there seemed to be a 'presence' throughout the film. I'm curious if the monster was just a monster or if it represented something? I have my thoughts, but would like your explanation of the monster.

Thanks for a great film to view. Great Job!
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top