However, if the entire film is meant to actually be a dream, the washout does fit with that idea, although it’s still a too extreme in the places I mentioned. Also, if that is the reason for the washout, then the shots where Kirby wakes from his dream should have been properly saturated and exposed, in order to differentiate them from the “dream world,” but they're not.
Use of Audio
I really loved the soundtrack to this movie. I loved the Latin litany at the beginning; two very unique versions of “Amazing Grace,” my favorite of which was a minor-key version that played over the “Trust Jesus” montage; and a bit of Gregorian Chant during the end montage, just to name a few.
The dialogue was clear and easy to understand, and there were some good moments of ambient sound. For instance, when Kirby was in the hotel room, there were always some faint sounds that appeared to be coming from the TV and/or radio in the next room over. This made for a nice atmosphere during these scenes, since there usually isn’t much dialogue.
However, there were a few instances where the ambient sound needs to be tweaked a bit. For instance, at the beginning when Kirby and Owen are driving there is music playing, but also ambient sound. This is a nice effect because it makes it seem as though the music might be coming from the car’s stereo, but each time there is a cut, the ambient sound changes. It would probably be a good idea to either get rid of the ambient sound, or to go out and record consistent room tone to put into this scene. There are a few other moments where the ambient sound doesn’t match, especially at the beginning, but this can be easily fixed by adding in recorded room tone.
Use of Budget
$5,000 for a 56-minute movie is not a bad price at all. It looks as though the filmmakers did a good job in balancing out their budget between a variety of things, and were able to get quite a good product in the end. Though it may have been a good idea to invest in an ND filter, and perhaps find a different restaurant to shoot it.
In my opinion, however, the best-spent money was that for the soundtrack for this movie; it really was amazing!
Lasting Appeal
There are some really great elements to this film; the acting was good, there were some interesting camerawork and editing effects in the montages, plus a great soundtrack. There are a few minor elements that could stand some tweaking, but all in all it’s not a bad final product that I am interested to watch again and to show others.
Overall Comment
I think a lot of people would be able to connect with the characters in this film. The theme is classic – everyone has things about their past that they’d like to forget, but that somehow keeps popping up their minds. This is not a new story, but it’s told in a very unique way.
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
Content |
8.1 |
|
Visual
Look |
8.0 |
|
Use
of Audio |
9.0 |
|
Use
of Budget |
8.5 |
|
Lasting
Appeal |
8.0 |
|
Overall
Score |
8.3
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
