Bezman's movie Reviews on Newgrounds

[KIN trailer]

impossible to do

++++ That fight scene - awesome. Fluid movement, dramatic camera sweeps...

-- I don't understand why partd go all washed-out, as if there's a translucent white sheet over it. A few moments before, the blacks are properly dark and the colours are fairly saturated. But when animations start, that suddenly changes. Why?

- The smile of the dude as he stands over her is a tad too flickering, I feel.

++ Nicely timed to music

+++ Lovely beginning. Nice use of blurring and the teasing glimpse of that sketch adds so much.

+++ Poses enough questions and gives enough clues to give no direct answers but get us all thinking. Exactly as a trailer should.

==
Awesome.

I watched part 1 previously and left with slight disdain. When faced with that awesome fight scene though, it's practically impossible to do so.

Alamus responds:

Yeah, I was going for a type of moonhaze...it just doesn't look as good when its the quicktime file in flash.

[Steve Irwin: Croc Heaven]

on the news

++++ Great caricatures and drawings. Lively, full of energy, just as they should be. Animation - though limited - is well implemented so as to not leave any seams visible, so to speak.

+++ Some luscious lighting/colouring effects.

+++ When the music started up, I chuckled.

+++ Nicely arranged audio.

==
I normally hate giving a review without at least one piece of constructive crit. But really, there is nothing which would significantly improve upon what this is - it'd only change it.

Both as a tribute and as a short joke, this works beautifully.

I'd never really seen him until he was on the news, so can't fully appreciate this. But even I can enjoy a large bite.

[Hobbit Holes Ep.1: SE]

If I see

++++ Voices are all great.

++ Subtitles at start add extra humour.

-- I feel the starting animation could be a little faster. Considering its simplicity, I don't feel you can afford to keep us staring without distractions.

--- The way you mixed up auto-traced bg, fine lines on the fed-ex package and the south-park style. If you'd carried on mixing styles, it might have become a style in itself if done carefully. However, with the way that line weights and styles were mixed, seemingly with little thought, it just looked kinda awkward.

++ I enjoyed the tiny look into the bg with the genuine outtakes and screenies.

- Easter egg. Well drawn but disappointing.

-- I felt a few of the jokes (mainly the whole orc scene) were tired.

-- The end seemed a bit sudden.

--- Terrible buttons. Specially the 'next' buttons in the 'bg' section. Check the 'hit' frame. That's the area over which it can be clicked. Generally, a rectangle slightly larger than the actual picture works well.

+++ It sets the scene fairly well.

==
If I see #2, I'll watch it.

[Ask Al: Babies]

one or two

++++ Still loving the voicing and character.

-- No actual mouth shapes. Slightly out of time synching.

- I think he should've maybe struggled with some of those words in q1 for added comedy.

--there was no real payoff for the Macaulay Culkin story.

- I still feel the generic-looking starburst startup screen doesn't serve you well.

==
I do enjoy the idea and remember finding one or two previous episodes funnier. (Specially the chicken/egg one.)

Here, I just enjoyed hearing his voice again, but little else.

NeptuneCircle responds:

Thanks for the review. Al is a work in progress really. We're trying to iron out the bad parts and build up the parts people like.

[Become Anniversary Collab]

context and the various

++++ I love how everyone brought their own style to a consistent theme: just as it should be but all too often isn't.

+++ Start's graininess gave it a 'happened a long time ago feel'.

+++ Puts it all in context.

+++ Clay controlled by the wizard had some funky movement. Specially loved the blue bits splurting up.

- Face was a bit rough there.

++ The creation of a female counterpart was mildly amusing.

- Though her body shape was really odd. It came from the 'stickman with circles' school of thought.

++ Introducing hands was an interesting idea.

+++ Loved the charming text. Specially 'O'.

+++ Nice expression as he 'awoke'.

++ Fbf animation made for an interesting change.

==
A far better tribute than your solo endeavour, I felt. Your own film works better in this context and the various styles and ideas thrown into the mix add so much.

MackProductions responds:

Thank you very much! I respect your reviews a great deal, and love that you reviewed each of my Become films.
Yes this was planned to be the main piece of tribute for the anniversary, and Become 2 is more of an extended version of one of my pieces for it.

All of us in the collab thank you

[Become 2: The Anniversary]

compared

+++ Great special fx (the red things).

++++ I do REALLY like the little curvy things on the chair.

++ Some varied expressions.

-- I think you could have gone further with them. Exaggerate his fear and other facial shapes. Maybe try to reflect his attitude with his stance.

+++ The song is definitely growing on me. It's Magic!

-- I don't like the way that we're not sure of his situation in the world. #1 was pretty clear - the wire was gaining sentience and 'becoming' a model. In this, we're never sure what his control over the environment amounts to. Neither in a crazy bizarre world like Mr Coo, nor strutting around shooting out flowers, I feel that the stage feels like it's never really established.

++ Charming ending.

==
Cool movie. I enjoyed it. Though it seems slightly lacking compared to #1, it's a fairly worthy successor.

MackProductions responds:

Thanks, I love that you look deeper than "did i enjoy it?" Although I don't mind those types of reviews too much, you give a true review, and I respect that.

The special effects pieces were just me editing each frame with photoshop, and I'm happy you feel it worked well.

The curvy things on the chair are meant to just be cool to look at at first, then they Become the reason of color change for the table. Thanks!

Yes the expressions only went so far. In fact I feel all his movements only went so far, and this is because I did a poor job building him. The armature was with too stiff wire, so that every movement I did, the wire would break out of the clay and I would have to re-shape it.

Ah yes, I still love that song after hearing it a couple hundred times. I'm happy it's growing on you, some people are getting a little sick of it. As you saw in Become: Festival Edition, it was a test to try a different song, and I think it worked alright, but wasn't a success. Magic is the song for Become and that shouldn't change a whole lot.

Yes his situation in his world is unclear. I just felt that he lived on the table basically, and that was all there was too it, but I should have worked on that aspect more.

Thanks!

[Become: Festival Edition]

to the

compared to the original...

--- The music doesn't have as much character, I felt. It felt a little too 'dry' and 'soulless'. It's a good tune for what it is, and taken on its own rights, I like the oriental-style melody that comes in. But it has a fast, slightly industrial, feel that the visuals don't really keep up with imo.

++ I like the ending a lot more. It gives more closure and gives more resonance to his smiling.

[Become]

stick

+++ Unique subject matter.

++++ Instantly captures the imagination, dealing as it does with universal themes such as birth etc.

++ You inject everything's movement with a little personality. Even the wire snake-a-like at the start looks so damn groovy, possibly helped by the tune.

-- I thought the guy at the end could have looked a lot happier.

-- I thought the white-out was kinda cheap.

-- Maybe you could have had the movement even more flamboyant? I found that when he became more whole, the movement became a bit stiffer. Some strutting would have gone down very well.

++ Some synching with music.

==
Great movie. Will definitely stick in my mind.