Use
of Audio
The audio had a lot issues on this film, due to the ad-libbed
quality of the film and the spikes resulting from people
screaming and running around. There are a couple of scenes
where everyone starts talking at once and it gets difficult
to hear what is going on, (sounds like any group of friends
I'VE ever hung with) which is a shame; I rewound scenes
a couple of times and there is some pretty comedic dialogue
that gets lost in the shuffle. While redubbing is a pain
on ad-libbed films, it would be worth it to catch a lot
of the dialogue in this film. Plus, the effect of 5 or
6 guys arguing isn't too difficult an audio byte to replicate,
and when the camera is in an XCU on a character, much
of the background hubub can be cheated..
The
soundtrack was pretty good and went really well with this
particular style of movie. Suspenseful with a touch of
jest thrown in.
Use
of Budget
Neck of Da Woodz boasted a $10,000 budget. Honestly,
this seems a little much to me. With all of the handheld
shots and night footage, I believe the same shots could
have been pulled off with a much less expensive camera
then renting two XL1s. To me the fast paced editing style
and visual effect choices kind of negate the quality gained
from an expensive-to-rent camera. Since a desaturated
effect was chosen for the daylight shots, it really eliminated
a need for a camera with good color depth. In my experience,
I have found that sometimes less is more when working
with a budget. Imagine if you will, certain grainy, black
and white footage shot with a low cost camcorder (it's
a throwback to the idea with C-Bizzle as a camera man).
It would save lots of green to only procure one hi-cost
camera.
Lasting
Appeal
Even though I love the idea Mr. Hendricks came up with
for this film, as it stands right now, my desire to rewatch
the film in its current state isn't real high. And due
to the amount of issues that crop up in the film, I'm
not likely to want to show this to any of my friends.
Now,
here is what I would love to see.. I would love it if
someone walked up to Mr. Hendricks and offered him 100k
to remake the film, because I really think there is potential
in the idea here. There is a good mix of comedy and gratuitous
violence in this fusion of Boyz in Da Hood meets
Deliverance. There are just some things that are
hard to accomplish when on a budget.
Overall
Comment
You
have to respect Chad Hendricks and his cast and crew for
going out and doing what so many people fail to accomplish.
Once in a while you will find people who realize that
filmmaking is worth the effort, the sleepless nights,
the arguments and the technical mishaps. I believe that
Chad is just such a director and writer. I have seen his
work Everything Means
Nothing and a good portion of Insane
in Da Brain. Both affirm his creativity and versatility
in his field. My encouragement to him is to keep at it
regardless of what the critics say because I know he has
that Creative Spark in him. Neck of Da Woodz was a start,
and you can't put a price on the experience gained by
going out and doing what critics only talk about. It takes
guts to make an indie film with the amount of characters
involved in Da Woodz, and, when you add a heavily ad-libbed
script, it makes me cry to think about trying to keep
that many people under control. Kudos to Chad and crew
for keeping everything running smoothly, I can only imagine.
I would love to see a series of films along this line
about the guys from the city, I think there is some potential
here for some real character development and comedy potential.
And
finally, thanks for doing what you love Chad!
