Rodney V. Smith
DVXFest Promo Guru
The magical words! APPROVED! Happy times in las Casa del Me tonight!
Symbiosis - a Flyin' Monkey Films production
- Thread starter Rodney V. Smith
- Start date
thetvirus513
Well-known member
REVIEW!
This was one that I was looking forward to watching, and I was pretty happy with it.
What I liked - The concept in itself was fun and enjoyable, and creepy. I think your actors did a good job and your camerawork was nicely done. I really liked the lighting when your main character is handing the "stolen" stuff off to get sold, and I loved the shot down the hallway. Also, the sound design was really nice, loved the sound of the bucket wheeling down the hallway, that was creepy to me.
What I didn't like as much - The scene on the rooftop, was a necessary scene, but the music drowned out the dialogue, and also because of the music, that whole scene had a mood that really didn't fit the rest of the story for me. I would suggest not making it as loud during dialogue, maybe make it coming from the car and have it be somewhat muted when he closes the car door. Your sound for the paper towels in the bathroom, didn't feel right to me, it sounded like he was crumpling tissue paper.....though who knows what they provide in those subway bathrooms
Lastly, the line where the rich guy asks "are you alright in there?" or something to that extent should be taken out I think. This is due to the type of person he is. He just blatantly cussed out a janitor because he is "below him" as a result of this I find it hard to believe that he cares about anyone else besides himself, and probably couldn't care less if someone is feeling sick in the bathroom.
All in all this was a well put together film, that seemed to be an ambitious project. You got some good locations, acting, and good lighting and overall I enjoyed watching it!
Also I don't know if it was intended but when the lead character told the woman to go in the second door, because she will be "much happier" I laughed pretty hard. No idea why but that line was just hilarious to me.
This was one that I was looking forward to watching, and I was pretty happy with it.
What I liked - The concept in itself was fun and enjoyable, and creepy. I think your actors did a good job and your camerawork was nicely done. I really liked the lighting when your main character is handing the "stolen" stuff off to get sold, and I loved the shot down the hallway. Also, the sound design was really nice, loved the sound of the bucket wheeling down the hallway, that was creepy to me.
What I didn't like as much - The scene on the rooftop, was a necessary scene, but the music drowned out the dialogue, and also because of the music, that whole scene had a mood that really didn't fit the rest of the story for me. I would suggest not making it as loud during dialogue, maybe make it coming from the car and have it be somewhat muted when he closes the car door. Your sound for the paper towels in the bathroom, didn't feel right to me, it sounded like he was crumpling tissue paper.....though who knows what they provide in those subway bathrooms
Lastly, the line where the rich guy asks "are you alright in there?" or something to that extent should be taken out I think. This is due to the type of person he is. He just blatantly cussed out a janitor because he is "below him" as a result of this I find it hard to believe that he cares about anyone else besides himself, and probably couldn't care less if someone is feeling sick in the bathroom.All in all this was a well put together film, that seemed to be an ambitious project. You got some good locations, acting, and good lighting and overall I enjoyed watching it!
Also I don't know if it was intended but when the lead character told the woman to go in the second door, because she will be "much happier" I laughed pretty hard. No idea why but that line was just hilarious to me.
As I said, I was going to watch this one first...and guess what...I'm watching it first.
The "intro" (first scene, the scene in which persons are introduced etc..) is good. Only one thing...the "titles" are going a little bit to fast...
The dialogues are ADR ? All of them or just the roof ?
Nice sound of the "rolling-thing" (don't know the word for it, the bucket on wheels thing)... Was it the "real" sound or added something to it ?
I would also have made the "monster" sound splashy, but maybe with a little more "groawl" in it... a "splashy-growl".... But it sounds nice.
To bad for the small "distortion" in the line of that guy in the toilet.
Nice VFX for doing these in a short time. Was it made brand new or something they had from somewhere (library or so....Don't know)
The "intro" (first scene, the scene in which persons are introduced etc..) is good. Only one thing...the "titles" are going a little bit to fast...
The dialogues are ADR ? All of them or just the roof ?
Nice sound of the "rolling-thing" (don't know the word for it, the bucket on wheels thing)... Was it the "real" sound or added something to it ?
I would also have made the "monster" sound splashy, but maybe with a little more "groawl" in it... a "splashy-growl".... But it sounds nice.
To bad for the small "distortion" in the line of that guy in the toilet.
Nice VFX for doing these in a short time. Was it made brand new or something they had from somewhere (library or so....Don't know)
Rodney V. Smith
DVXFest Promo Guru
I'll reveal the secret of the tentacle later on... lest it ruin the magic...
Rodney V. Smith
DVXFest Promo Guru
Only the rooftop scene was ADR. We had a great location sound guy on it Vik Moudgill and he captured excellent sound for the rest of the shoot. He just wasn't present on the day we shot the rooftop. As for the rolling bucket: that was from the location sound, nothing Foley'd there.
Rodney V. Smith
DVXFest Promo Guru
REVIEW!
This was one that I was looking forward to watching, and I was pretty happy with it.
What I liked - The concept in itself was fun and enjoyable, and creepy. I think your actors did a good job and your camerawork was nicely done. I really liked the lighting when your main character is handing the "stolen" stuff off to get sold, and I loved the shot down the hallway. Also, the sound design was really nice, loved the sound of the bucket wheeling down the hallway, that was creepy to me.
What I didn't like as much - The scene on the rooftop, was a necessary scene, but the music drowned out the dialogue, and also because of the music, that whole scene had a mood that really didn't fit the rest of the story for me. I would suggest not making it as loud during dialogue, maybe make it coming from the car and have it be somewhat muted when he closes the car door. Your sound for the paper towels in the bathroom, didn't feel right to me, it sounded like he was crumpling tissue paper.....though who knows what they provide in those subway bathrooms
All in all this was a well put together film, that seemed to be an ambitious project. You got some good locations, acting, and good lighting and overall I enjoyed watching it!
Also I don't know if it was intended but when the lead character told the woman to go in the second door, because she will be "much happier" I laughed pretty hard. No idea why but that line was just hilarious to me.
Thanks for the honest review. Glad you mostly enjoyed it and were able to follow it easily. We had some fun with the shots on this one and really used the location as much as we could. Most of the really dramatic lighting was necessary to make an otherwise ugly corridor interesting. Some well placed lights really do help the mood, especially when you're going for creepy.
I blame myself for the sound mix since it got into Alan's hands at a really late stage (more on my sound disaster later... when you pick a sound mixer STAY with your sound mixer especially if it's late in the game.) Alan would have done an awesome job if we'd had time to tweak and review, but unfortunately with so many films counting on him and so little, some things fell through the cracks. So I'm the only one to blame for sound at this point.
The Paper Towels were actually from source audio and you're right: the paper in those bathrooms is horrible.
Maybe the character didn't want anyone puking on his shoes? Self preservation and all that? :happy:
Thanks for the review dude. And glad we got a laugh out of you. The delivery of that line was priceless.
And kudos to Mr Keaton for putting up with my **** during production.
Edgen
Veteran
and.... ?
Did the reel just catch on fire? Who hit pause? Why'd it stop?
So, I'm not sure it was supposed to end, or if you just ran out of time. Perhaps it was an editing or an unresolved musical note that just left me (and hopefully everyone else) hanging in mid thought and wonderment. So I'm not sure if the characters were hired as gatekeepers to a supposed subway set or guards to a much need food or slave drive or... Wait. I couldn't hear that part because of the random Song in the middle of the movie. It completely random and totally distracting. Two guys met up on a roof top and were saying.. wait, no. I'm going back and still have no clue from deductive reason because I still could not get past a random song. I'm not sure if it was the mix, but Dialog is "KING". If I can't hear someone talking in a scene, i have no idea what's going on.
I think I will have to watch it again to understand. perhaps I missed something that was lost in translation, but it had so much damn potential and just left me hanging. I don't really want to go back and hang again.
Technically, and visually there were some great aspects to the look of the film. I'm not sure if what happened in the audio dept.
Acting was not bad really. The executive chum at the end could have been given a little more direction and not so much cliche. Even an asshole still deserves a small moment of sympathy on film. (perhaps a phone call to his wife's anniversary saying he's late, or perhaps another important job interview that now he has to take the time to clean himself back up. Hell, even a rental car from an even higher boss that hates the smell of lysol would give him an excuse to be rude toward a lowly worker)
after watching this film, i'm curious to see the other comments as they trickle in...
/j
Did the reel just catch on fire? Who hit pause? Why'd it stop?
So, I'm not sure it was supposed to end, or if you just ran out of time. Perhaps it was an editing or an unresolved musical note that just left me (and hopefully everyone else) hanging in mid thought and wonderment. So I'm not sure if the characters were hired as gatekeepers to a supposed subway set or guards to a much need food or slave drive or... Wait. I couldn't hear that part because of the random Song in the middle of the movie. It completely random and totally distracting. Two guys met up on a roof top and were saying.. wait, no. I'm going back and still have no clue from deductive reason because I still could not get past a random song. I'm not sure if it was the mix, but Dialog is "KING". If I can't hear someone talking in a scene, i have no idea what's going on.
I think I will have to watch it again to understand. perhaps I missed something that was lost in translation, but it had so much damn potential and just left me hanging. I don't really want to go back and hang again.
Technically, and visually there were some great aspects to the look of the film. I'm not sure if what happened in the audio dept.
Acting was not bad really. The executive chum at the end could have been given a little more direction and not so much cliche. Even an asshole still deserves a small moment of sympathy on film. (perhaps a phone call to his wife's anniversary saying he's late, or perhaps another important job interview that now he has to take the time to clean himself back up. Hell, even a rental car from an even higher boss that hates the smell of lysol would give him an excuse to be rude toward a lowly worker)
after watching this film, i'm curious to see the other comments as they trickle in...
/j
Michael Anthony Horrigan
More Cowbell Pictures
Spoiler:
This looked pretty cool. I liked a lot of the shots, especially the stuff in the bathroom at the end. Nice back and forth movement there.
I'm going to ***** at you about the sound on the roof because you can barely hear what they're saying. Grrr....
Aside from that it has some pretty cool moments. I really wish I felt for the lead a little more. As is there weren't too many characters to care for.
I wanted to get a better sense of "why?". Trade one of the victims for that screen time and use it to flesh out the lead a little more and and I think it would have felt better.
Love the locations and the way it was cut together. Very nice job.
Nice to see a real monster too!
Alan H. Chang
Veteran
Ok fellas, I have to admit it's nobody else's fault besides mine while we are watching the roof scene. Music too hot and dialogue too soft. Lack of sleep hinders your ability to perform your duties. Moving on...
Chris_Keaton
ScriptFEST Mod
I like the idea of having the music start normal and then appear coming from the car. Make it happen!
Hawk Teflon
Veteran
SPOILER REVIEW: Ok, you know the drill by now I hope ... don't read the following unless you've seen the short (Where is the spoiler tag?!)
The good: The story. I really enjoyed it. But I expect no less from a Keaton script. I like the coloring inside. Looks good. Acting was pretty solid all the way around, too (except when he's talking about the subway system ... I think that's what he said at least). The music was good throughout. Good job on the monster as well. Very well done (and good choice to slide on that one). Very solid entry.
The not as good: C'mon man ... what kind of font is that? Also, I won't bring up the music on the roof again ... oh ... wait... The ADR on the roof looked off as well ("That's right!"). I'm not sure the second guy to go to the bathroom would have reacted so violently so quickly. AND if that's all he did, did he deserve to die?
Favorite part: The monster, of course.
Congrats, man!
The good: The story. I really enjoyed it. But I expect no less from a Keaton script. I like the coloring inside. Looks good. Acting was pretty solid all the way around, too (except when he's talking about the subway system ... I think that's what he said at least). The music was good throughout. Good job on the monster as well. Very well done (and good choice to slide on that one). Very solid entry.
The not as good: C'mon man ... what kind of font is that? Also, I won't bring up the music on the roof again ... oh ... wait... The ADR on the roof looked off as well ("That's right!"). I'm not sure the second guy to go to the bathroom would have reacted so violently so quickly. AND if that's all he did, did he deserve to die?
Favorite part: The monster, of course.
Congrats, man!
Sunk99
Well-known member
Not a fan of the language. He walked into the toilet stall twice. Hallway green - others yellow/green. Colors are distracting. Magenta filter.
So what did they hear in the ceiling? The reason for the spider? Music to loud on roof. Best light so far was coming in the little glass door window on to the guys face.
Like the min wage comment - now we don't mind him getting munched. He asked - you okay in there. Out of character - he is a mean guy.
5:30 - okay now I get the spider earlier. But it's too late. Why'd he say thank you? Story, lighting, and sound need work. Acting was good.
Look forward to seeing more.
So what did they hear in the ceiling? The reason for the spider? Music to loud on roof. Best light so far was coming in the little glass door window on to the guys face.
Like the min wage comment - now we don't mind him getting munched. He asked - you okay in there. Out of character - he is a mean guy.
5:30 - okay now I get the spider earlier. But it's too late. Why'd he say thank you? Story, lighting, and sound need work. Acting was good.
Look forward to seeing more.
Matt Harris
Veteran
Rodney!
There's some good stuff here, here are my favorite parts:
1. cool titles but they needed to stay on screen for at least a second, but i know what it's like trying to fit the 6 mins.
2. i love how intense your movie starts, that's cool, right off the bat there was tension.
3. good score.
4. good all around acting.
5. love the blinged out black dude in the stairwell, nice lighting, he was a cool lookin' dude.
6. nice locations, the rooftop was sweet, as were the interiors.
7. nice dolly moves!
8. believable monster effects, impressive!
9. great ending.
10. SOLID JOB! (I'm not going to echo shortcomings that others already mentioned)
There's some good stuff here, here are my favorite parts:
1. cool titles but they needed to stay on screen for at least a second, but i know what it's like trying to fit the 6 mins.
2. i love how intense your movie starts, that's cool, right off the bat there was tension.
3. good score.
4. good all around acting.
5. love the blinged out black dude in the stairwell, nice lighting, he was a cool lookin' dude.
6. nice locations, the rooftop was sweet, as were the interiors.
7. nice dolly moves!
8. believable monster effects, impressive!
9. great ending.
10. SOLID JOB! (I'm not going to echo shortcomings that others already mentioned)
taylormade
Well-known member
SPOILERS!
I really wanted to like this one. it has a great look to it and an interesting premise, but there are just too many confusing plot points and sound problems to make it work.
I never really understood what these guys were doing or why. Wouldn't it be easier to just mug these people and take their stuff? Why and how would you get in league with a killer monster in return for some pocket change
from fenced items?
Okay performances, but the lead drops a lot of his lines and is hard to understand. He's also such a wimp you can't really like or feel for him.
The fence was great and the other guy did fine.
Nice look and feel, good composition on the shots, the grading worked for the subject matter. I think things suffered a little in the compression.
The scene in the hallway where the guy says "How many more?" looks out of focus. The sync seems to be off, too.
From the dialog in the hall between the two guys apparently a steady stream of people are being fed to the giant spider/octopus in the stall. Nobody notices that all these people are missing and all of them vanished in the same area?
What's with the spider CU? Did it bite him? Is that why he's rubbing his arm? The arm thing is never explained and is just plain confusing. Is this part of an initation rite to enter the group?
The dialog on the roof is totally incomprehensible. I feel I'm missing important story points and can't hear a thing!
After watching five times I finally got that the bag is full of loot from the victims.
Great lighting on the hall scene where he's giving the fat fence the loot, but the lead guy seems to blow his lines and the last exchange - something about customers - is too low and poorly delivered to understand.
I found the sound to be hard to understand throughout much of the film, lines delivered off-mic, muffled, slurred and otherwise hard to hear.
Why does the guy hesitate to go into the bathroom after the scene of the roof? This shot didn't make sense and didn't add to the story.
The last victim is so over the top bad that it's laughable. He answers "Nice night." with "**** off." Come on.
The tentacles were great. The creature tossing (or spitting) out the loot and the "Thank you" line just made me laugh.
You've got a great look, and nice feel and a well done shock moment, but no story.
I think if there was some interesting reason for all this happpening this would be a terrific film, but accepting that these guys would go through all this with a slithering nighmare for a few cell phones and some gold teeth just doesn't cut it for me.
I really wanted to like this one. it has a great look to it and an interesting premise, but there are just too many confusing plot points and sound problems to make it work.
I never really understood what these guys were doing or why. Wouldn't it be easier to just mug these people and take their stuff? Why and how would you get in league with a killer monster in return for some pocket change
from fenced items?
Okay performances, but the lead drops a lot of his lines and is hard to understand. He's also such a wimp you can't really like or feel for him.
The fence was great and the other guy did fine.
Nice look and feel, good composition on the shots, the grading worked for the subject matter. I think things suffered a little in the compression.
The scene in the hallway where the guy says "How many more?" looks out of focus. The sync seems to be off, too.
From the dialog in the hall between the two guys apparently a steady stream of people are being fed to the giant spider/octopus in the stall. Nobody notices that all these people are missing and all of them vanished in the same area?
What's with the spider CU? Did it bite him? Is that why he's rubbing his arm? The arm thing is never explained and is just plain confusing. Is this part of an initation rite to enter the group?
The dialog on the roof is totally incomprehensible. I feel I'm missing important story points and can't hear a thing!
After watching five times I finally got that the bag is full of loot from the victims.
Great lighting on the hall scene where he's giving the fat fence the loot, but the lead guy seems to blow his lines and the last exchange - something about customers - is too low and poorly delivered to understand.
I found the sound to be hard to understand throughout much of the film, lines delivered off-mic, muffled, slurred and otherwise hard to hear.
Why does the guy hesitate to go into the bathroom after the scene of the roof? This shot didn't make sense and didn't add to the story.
The last victim is so over the top bad that it's laughable. He answers "Nice night." with "**** off." Come on.
The tentacles were great. The creature tossing (or spitting) out the loot and the "Thank you" line just made me laugh.
You've got a great look, and nice feel and a well done shock moment, but no story.
I think if there was some interesting reason for all this happpening this would be a terrific film, but accepting that these guys would go through all this with a slithering nighmare for a few cell phones and some gold teeth just doesn't cut it for me.
