Thursday, July 12, 2012

Student Film - The Scarlet Avenger

Most movie reviewers will not revives submissions of student films. I understand that you can get buried with many films that all surround, ninjas, pirates, scateboard tricks or have suicide as a main theme. I imagine that for some it’s painful to watch an armature film. I however love the passion and the raw energy of a student driven project. Many are not done well, but really what do you expect, it’s a student making this film. They are just learning this art form. Even Spielberg, Coppola and Stone have all started out as students.

However there are some film makers who really shine with their story telling and there used of the equipment. If you want my honest opinion and critique of your work feel free to send me a link and I will post it on my blog.

My first student project review comes from Scott Clements, he is Canadian and has made a hero film that harkens back to the days of cliffhanger serials, and it mixes elements from Indian Jones and The Phantom.

Please enjoy it and I will give you my thoughts after you see it.
The Scarlet Avenger (1997 student film) from Scott Clements on Vimeo.

The movie was fun to watch, I appreciate how much work went into this film. They had a very diverse cast; usually student films have a bunch of young people all doing the parts because the film maker gets his buddies to perform. It was well cast and had a good spread in the ages of the performers.

Normally you have to overlook the sets and props and costumes because of budget constraints but the set design in this film really gives you the feeling of being in that time period. Great work on making sure you had the small details.

 I think that making this film all in black and white would have been better because of the setting. It has all the trappings of a good noire film.

Clements wants to develop this character into a feature length film. He has a plan to modify the story. There are a lot of similarities with Captain America characters but after talking with him, he explains where he got the character names.

“We'll definitely be changing the character names for the feature. The name for 'The Scarlet AVENGER' actually came from a mash-up of 'The Scarlet Pimpernel' and 'The Avengers' British TV Show. BUCKY came from the 1939 Buck Rogers serial. I saw it when I was a little kid and misheard the sidekick's name as 'Bucky', when it was actually 'Buddy'. I actually meant it as a tribute to that far off memory. THE SKULL was inspired by 'The Crimson Ghost', but admittedly the name was partly borrowed from 'The Red Skull', because I didn't know what else to call him and it was a bit of a tribute to 'Skeletor' from 'He-Man'. However, we've chosen appropriate new names for the feature.”

With the quality of this student project I think he has a good chance of making a go at this kind of film. Imagine what he could do with a real budget and support of a production team.

Friday, July 6, 2012

'Total Recall' Comes to Theaters August 3

Total Recall is coming to theaters August 3rd. In anticipation of the release, the studio is sponsoring a sweepstakes that gives you the opportunity to live life you have always dreamed about. The Film makers have been posting images with Welcome to Rekall for a few weeks hoping to make this message viral.

Movie Synopsys

Total Recall is an action thriller about reality and memory, inspired anew by the famous short story "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale" by Philip K. Dick. Welcome to Rekall, the company that can turn your dreams into real memories. For a factory worker named Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell), even though he's got a beautiful wife (Kate Beckinsale) whom he loves, the mind-trip sounds like the perfect vacation from his frustrating life - real memories of life as a super-spy might be just what he needs. But when the procedure goes horribly wrong, Quaid becomes a hunted man. Finding himself on the run from the police - controlled by Chancellor Cohaagen (Bryan Cranston) - there is no one Quaid can trust, except possibly a rebel fighter (Jessica Biel) working for the head of the underground resistance (Bill Nighy). The line between fantasy and reality gets blurred and the fate of his world hangs in the balance as Quaid discovers his true identity, his true love, and his true fate. The film is directed by Len Wiseman. The screenplay is by Kurt Wimmer and Mark Bomback and the screen story is by Ronald Shusett & Dan O'Bannon and Jon Povill and Kurt Wimmer. The producers are Neal H. Moritz and Toby Jaffe. Sony Pictures Entertainment

Welcome to REKALL
Live Out A Fantasy Life And Enter To Win One Of Nine Fantasy Prize Packages In The "Welcome To Rekall" Sweepstakes

Ever wish you could be a sports anchor, behind the scenes at ESPN? A Rock Star, chilling with Green Day? A fashionista, hanging with Heidi Klum? A professional videogamer? A Club DJ? A secret agent? Now, Rekall will give moviegoers the chance to live out their fantasies.

 In the new movie Total Recall an ordinary factory worker visits Rekall - the company that can give you real memories of a fantastic life. In Sony Pictures Entertainment's "Welcome to Rekall" sweepstakes at www.WelcomeToRekall.com, moviegoers will get their chance to bring the Rekall experience to life with a fantasy sweepstakes package.

 In addition, all visitors to the site will be able to link their Facebook profiles to their entry to receive a personalized Rekall video, detailing the story of their brand new memories and successful Rekall experience, which they can share with their friends on Facebook.

 With nine different categories to choose from, moviegoers will enter to win a premium prize package with top partners:

- The Sports Anchor winner will spend the day at ESPN headquarters to get the full experience of a day in studio, provided by ESPN

- The Rock Star winner will hang with Green Day, attend a sound check and receive backstage access provided by Pandora

- The Fashionista winner will meet Heidi Klum and her stylist in Los Angeles, sponsored by AOL

- The Secret Agent winner will attend the Stiletto Spy School or the MI6 Academy, sponsored by Yahoo! Movies

- The UFC Champion winner, sponsored by UFC, will train with pro fighters and sit octagonside with the trainer

- The Celebrity winner will live like a celebrity in Los Angeles and attend a red carpet event, sponsored by Wonderwall

- The DJ winner will receive DJ lessons from a high-profile DJ, sponsored by Complex

- The Video Gamer winner will travel to Microsoft headquarters to meet a game developer and receive the chance to battle it out with a pro, sponsored by Microsoft

- The Millionaire winner will receive 1,000,000 Sony Rewards points, sponsored by Sony Rewards. With Sony Rewards, members can get rewarded for doing the things they already love - like going to the movies, playing games, sharing and more. The points can be used to redeem for the latest Sony electronics, movies, music and games - and even once-in-a-lifetime experiences.

Commenting on the announcement, Marc Weinstock, president of Worldwide Marketing for Sony Pictures, said, "Blurring the line between fantasy and reality and questioning what is real versus what is imagined is at the heart of this movie and our campaign. Through welcometorekall.com, moviegoers get a true taste of the Total Recall experience as they vie for real and unique, once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to live out their own fantasies."

 In addition
There will be "Welcome to Rekall" experiences in New York, Los Angeles and at Comic-Con. At these special kiosks, users will be able to choose their Rekall experience and receive a photo badge of themselves experiencing the Rekall-provided memory.

Published at News Blaze