Ham Sandwich

This week I watched an entertaining comedy about a special ham sandwich with the power to time travel. If that sounds like an odd premise, that's because it definitely is. A sloppy intern buys a ham sandwich from Pappy's Shoppe and with each bite is thrust farther back in time. I liked this because it could very well have been one of the scripts we wrote in lab section. "When Adobe Attacks" is the new "When Ham Sandwich Time Travels." That being said, the cinematography was very nice, with some creative back-lighting in sets like Pappy's Shoppe, the dance club, and the castle belonging to Earl of Sandwich. There is relatively sparse dialogue, but the main character (who looks something like Jonah Hill) keeps us interested with his ever-changing expressions. Besides that, it's pretty silly. Check it out if you have some time to waste.


HERE

Review of Truth In Advertsising

I'm a little behind this week with the review, partly because my Google account decided to split itself like an early zygote and divide all my account information between two separate accounts with the exact same email address and password, making it a little hard to find the one linked with this blog. Anyway the short film I decided to review this week is called Truth In Advertising, and it's an early web video sensation from 2001.
Truth In Advertising  follows a group of employees at an ad agency throughout the completion of an average television spot, except all their usual banter is replaced by what they are really thinking. That is to say, their entire inner monologue is given vocal form instead of their usual conversational facade. The expressions, tone, and body language remain mostly the same, but in this altered world, "How are you, boss?" becomes "Go to hell, you egomaniacal prick" instead. While not exactly laugh-out-loud funny, the short seems pretty keen on the way the American people are very cautious to say things that sound good but are rarely true or meaningful, especially in the corporate workplace. Since classes this week are focusing on writing, I was paying more attention to the dialogue and the flow of the story than the visuals. The short is broken up into several segments depending on the phases of the ad's creation, and some new characters (such as the director) are introduced and promptly spoofed. This sectionalizing made the eleven minutes of mostly talking (a long video by my generation's standards) less boring and helped to clarify each scene's purpose. Not exactly a groundbreaking idea, the short was nonetheless well executed and fun. Go check it out!




HERE

Review of The Rules of the Game

This week I happened upon an entertaining what fourth wall? story about a man seeking revenge on his cheating wife-to-be. The script is easy to relish when delivered by a playful and charming solo actor, as he tells us directly about a not-so-familiar scandal. The fiancé is known to be cheating with the best man, but what does the groom do next? The answer to that question is what takes up the majority of the film's seven-minute run time, but it doesn't feel too drawn out. The film is also certainly not bad to look at, although the most unique elements are probably the narrating protagonist's frequent acting-out of events from his story (including a one-man wedding and some nasty squirts of fake blood). From the script to the technical to the score to the satisfying ending, this short film gets everything right from my perspective, and is pretty unique to boot.


Watch it HERE.

Review of Somalia

This week I watched a very short branded piece called Somalia about a group of pirates attempting to take over a ship, only to have their plans thwarted by a team of friendly robots. This short showcases a lot of midlevel special effects work, which is nonetheless impressive and effective for the purposes of the story. I liked the use of the sun as a light source on the open boat and the lens flares added a stylistic touch. There was also a lot of variety in the shots and a good amount of engaging camera movement. The spot as a whole is fast-pace and obviously well-designed beforehand. What all that planning makes for is a relatively short, two-minute piece that shows a lot of talent for different creative people (read: is useful) and also tells a satisfying story in the timeframe while frequently plugging the electronics company (read: does it's job as a promo). All in all, this is something I would be proud to have on my reel in a few years.


Watch it HERE

Review of Dennis

   This week I watched the short film Dennis, a Danish short about a painfully shy bodybuilder who lives with his needy mother. One day he decides to ask an acquaintance out on a date and, against his mother's wishes, sets out on an awkward and somewhat embarrassing evening. Dennis is preparing for the Danish National Championships, but his hard physical work doesn't seem to give him much confidence and on the contrary he sees his body becoming a freak show instead of an accomplishment in the eyes of women.
   Dennis is most notable for it's non-intrusive shooting style (likened to dogme-95 by the website review) and emotionally-driven plot. In my opinion, the emotional backbone of a story is the true bottom line; with or without a hundred other things (lighting, blocking, sound mix, etc.) the story and the emotions behind it are the only things that really matter to the audience. In other words, everything else is just icing on the cake. Unfortunately many short films seem to struggle to establish any meaningful characters or emotions within their limited time frame. Dennis succeeds in doing this by portraying the emotion of its characters not through excessive dialogue, but through effectively letting the camera be an observer into the silent actions of a man. I don't know if it qualifies as "dogma-95" filmmaking, but it certainly qualifies as an emotionally moving short film.


Watch Dennis HERE