Film Review #5: Mud (feature film)

Yes, an actual film.  Crazy, I know.

So, basically, Mud is about an Arkansas kid named Ellis who goes with his friend Neckbone (good old Arkansas) to a little island in some big river where there's a boat in a tree.  They figure out a guy called "Mud" lives in the tree, and they basically run errands for him and help him build up the boat to floating status while he hides from some extraordinarily pissed people with shotguns and talks about how his girlfriend Juniper is gonna come and join him in the boat.  Really, that's the gist of it; in itself that doesn't sound all that bad.  However, it goes a bit deeper; lots of less-than-subtle metaphors, philosophy, and relationship psychology, plus a gunfight and some snakes.  I don't make it out to sound terrific, but honestly, it's simply a good movie.  Clean cinematography and lighting, respectable acting, great soundtrack (except for the occasional dissonant country song, but hey, that's just me), awesome settings.  Really long, but it's fine.  Not the greatest film ever made, but hey, 98% on Rotten Tomatoes ain't lyin'.

Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pv30J05U2nI

Poster correction sheet thing

Yep.

Film Review #4: SUPER HOT (game)

I know, it's not a film.  Tough luck, deal with it.  I'm more a game dev than a film maker.  Anyway, SUPER HOT.

This is the single greatest sci-fi time-bending Matrix-esque game of all time.  Quite a few games have been made by massive studios with massive budgets, and they all turn out clunky, over-complicated, repetitive, and altogether lousy and at least remotely unplayable.  This indie game pulls off time-bending FPSing better than anything before with one simple mechanic: time moves when you do.  In other words, the speed of time increases from a certain low point depending on the angular and linear velocity of the player.  When standing perfectly still, everything moves incredibly slowly.  Bullets drift like dust motes through the air while the rest of the scene is ostensibly frozen.  As a bullet passes by one might turn to look at it-- and time would suddenly move just a tad faster.  The bullet drifts somewhat more swiftly, and everything around begins to move nearly imperceptibly.  Should one begin to strafe, time will move about 75% normal speed.  At the fastest forward motion of the player, time moves at 100% speed.  Firing a gun slightly drags on the speed of time due to the recoil moving your hand.  All around, it's incredible.  Just running around, jumping, clicking, and hitting R to throw guns.  That's it.  No weird key combos for special moves.  Just the basics...  Which work brilliantly.
Now, technical reviews.  The graphics are stylized, but they look really nice.  Easily readable, unique, dynamic, not overbearing.  Movement is primitive, but it works fine, given how one spends most of one's time in slow-motion.  The lack of an ADS (Aiming-Down-the-Sights) action is noticeable, but really doesn't matter (a crosshair makes it more or less obsolete, or, perhaps, something that would clog up the game or maybe make it too easy).  The number of levels is really low (4, 5?  Something like that), but hey, it was made in 7 days (I'll get to that in a moment).  Model detail/quality is fine except perhaps the glock (has some somewhat visibly repetitive textures, but I'm nitpicking, it's totes fine).  There's not really a HUD (which means no ammo indicator), but really, I think it makes it better.  Not knowing the ammo in your mag makes it just that much more fun.
Now, about the 7-day thing:  This was made for the 7DFPS (7-Day-First-Person-Shooter) Challenge (http://7dfps.com/).  Competitors have 7 days to build some sort of game, generally FPS, though I've seen others.  That's right.  Made by (as far as I can tell) one person in 7 days, with the wonderful Unity 3D.  Amazing.  Kick-ass.  It's still being developed for more content, but you can:
Play it here (on any platform.  It's online)- http://superhotgame.com/
And keep up on updates here- https://twitter.com/SUPERHOTTHEGAME

Play it, now.  NOW.  It runs incredibly fast (even on mah mac), and is definitely worth the playthrough, and the possible hundreds more to follow.

Film Review #3: The Go-Getter

K, guys.  Let's go.

The Go-Getter.  One of my favorite films.  Kinda a classic decent-but-really-great movie, ya know?  Anyway.  It's about a guy whose mother has died, and so, in something like a pre-mid-life-crisis, steals a car in search of his long-disconnected brother, in something between seeking to tell him the news, reunite with him, and change his life a bit.  It's just kinda about the adventure on the way, and the final outcome.  All in all, it's interesting, fun, and relatable.  Lots of deepness and whatnot, but these things are best left to seeing the film, not reading a crappy review.

Now, specifics.  Cinematography is pretty nice.  Shiny-glowing, like a sunset mixed with Moonrise Kingdom (in mood.  Not Wes cinematography).  Soundtrack is amazing: Black Keys, M. Ward, more amazing artists.  No complaint there, even in the songs I might not listen to on a daily basis…  In context to the film, they work brilliantly.  Acting's great (Zoe Deschanel, c'mon.  Don't know if I spelled that correctly, no internet, don't really care.  Lots of other actors in their earlier roots.  So great).

Not much else I can really say about it.  Be warned, it's (probably) rated R for a reason.  Just see it, it'll give you that nice just-slightly-unsettled-but-in-a-good-sunny-kinda-happy-way feeling.  A bit like Moonrise Kingdom, in that respect.  Watch it.

Trailer doesn't do it justice, nor portrays it quite in the right light.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6u3Xn3ZfsA

What I did today

Somehow I got the impression we have to put up what we did today.  I made a couple concepts for the Human Rights #17 poster:

and also began making a CG toaster, as toasters are, of course, crucial to symbolizing universal morals.

Merry Christmas, have a good day.*

*No, it's not really Christmas.  Sorry to shatter your dreams.

Symbolism assignment-- concepts

K, guys.  Let's go.  Symbols:

(I think I lost the paper)
-hand with index and middle fingers up, others in fist (peace)
*-hand with thumb and pinkie extended; others in a fist (hang loose)
*-nuclear disarmament sign (peace)
-Tim the Enchanter
-Anderson family crest elements
*-goats
*-Bella the dog
-dead trees
-semi-hollow-body red electric guitar
*-boss hats with feathers
-fire axe
-skull

There's some other stuff, but I've forgotten it.  It'll come to me; else-wise, best hope I find that paper.

If I were to use any of these, it'd probably be Bella, some goats, and the nuclear disarmament symbol…  Bella because Bella's my awesome lunatic dog, goats because they're bosses, and the peace sign because it's part of my creed.  With that in mind, I'd probably also throw in the hang-loose hand.

How am I gonna organize these?  Well, frankly, I don't want this poster to look cool.  In fact, I'd prefer it if it were a bit unsettlingly insane.  Thus, I've made a sketch of what I want it to look like.  This is gonna be fun.

They kinda speak for themselves.  Lots of anatomical horrors and such.  Obviously these might be a bit overdone, what with the time frame, but hey, shoot for the moon, even if that means lodging tiny bovine and canine heads in your eyes.  Via photoshop, that is.  Yeah, definitely photoshop.
So yeah.  Unless anyone has any objectives, I'm doing one of these.  Merry Christmas, good day.

Film Review #2: Breakfast Club (film)

Yes, we all know Breakfast Club.  Well, you know what?  It took me until last week to watch it.  Shame, I know.

So, first the initial stuff.  Style all-around is super-80s/70s.  Silly, straightforward camera work, somewhat cheesy acting, an absolutely ridiculous number of sexual innuendos.  All expected.

What I didn't expect were the characters.  Well, I did.  After a while these things become pretty predictable for the most part when you see the early archetypes.  Nonetheless, they were mostly likeable, in a way that reflected how you should have thought of them had you met them as real people.  All well and good, really.

The film doesn't really have any deep meaning nowadays (let's face it, for about 15 years all that came out were dramas about embracing life, who you are, and other people, and that the STRUGGLE IS REAL), but nonetheless, it's enjoyable.  Not much more to say about it...  Just watch it, would you?  Thank you, good day.

Human Rights ideas

Let's see.  If I were to do one of these, it would be 12 (right to privacy and such), 17 (right to property and such), or 19 (freedom of expression and such).  I'm on the fence about which to do right now...  Were I to do 19, it would certainly maintain a sort of 60s-comic aesthetic...

Something looking more like that one super-hero with the laser eyes, though.  I dunno.  Really retro.

12 and 17 would follow a similar style (posterized, dilated, ect.), though more digital, with sharp, black shadows.  They'd be roughly semblant of meme stylizations when taken from films.  12 would have a guy making the hands-up "step off!" gesture, with a furious facial expression.  17 would be a guy tenderly hugging and caressing a toaster.

No, I can't just decide on 2.  GOSH.  Ok, if I were to, it would be 17 and 19, or 19 and 21, or 17 and 21.  One of those.   Heh...

Film Review #1: I Am Legend

Big budget, apocalypse, Will Smith.  'Nough said.

No, not 'nough said.

Thing is, nearly every recent big-budget film (in my eyes) has been poorly written, composed, etc.  It's depressing.  Thus, I Am Legend cannot simply be summed up as an apocalyptic big-budget blockbuster.  No.  Thing is, I loved the movie.  I may be alone in that view, but it was beautiful.  First off, aesthetics: every shot was fluid and well-composed, tuning in intensity to the action of the moment, the mind of the character of focus, and the scenario that had just played/would immediately play out.  Lighting was altogether quite dynamic, with a coherently decrepit style ranging directly from gold-orange-brown to a grey-blue.  Different hues meant different tones, and towards the end it could get you on edge without your realizing it.  The scenery was brilliant.  I gotta know how they got that location to shoot at at all (center of NYC, c'mon) or if they used CG for it...  Either way, beautiful.  Convincing, unique take on the abandonment of humankind's ventures.  Of course, then, there's Will Smith.  What a boss.  Great choice for that role.  His temperament and internal struggle with delusions to (ironically) keep himself sane amidst a near hell is explored through his gait, perception of the world, voice, and action/living.  The movie in all was suspenseful and, emotionally speaking, fairly dramatic, but more than everything else intriguing.  Great score, too.

Now, if I were to rant about anything in the film, it would be the plot toward the end.  It wasn't in any way bad or poorly written...  But they failed to delve more into other characters.  The mother and son who show up are never quite set up to be relatable, and thus the viewer fails to quite connect as well with them as would be optimal.  Of course, the film wasn't about them, but Will Smith; in my mind, they were an event in his life, and no more.  The film's more about the protagonist's struggle for hope and progress than about them...  And thus, they are simply lost souls he must guard and guide.  He embraces this, obviously, and thus the relationship between the viewer and the mother and son is less so much direct as a loose bind through Will Smith.  There is another little plot inconsistency toward the end, but it isn't really an inconsistency so long as you accept that there was more to the protagonist's setup than met the eye, in the form of escape.  Anyway.  I Am Legend.  A good film, you should watch it.

A not-very-good trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFNPNT_4Qww