When spoilers are involved, I will say when, and when they stop.
I thought overall this was a successful short, from the concept to the production value. I went in without knowledge of the subject but for the assumption it was generally a war film. Thus, it delivers righteously some Saving Private Ryan-level instances in spurts. It was sad to watch but also intriguing in the fact that it takes place (presumably) in the near future, which I wholly employ. What's preventing it from being an 8/9 is some of the acting and how the story itself was composed.
The lead actor was phenomenal; I would very much love to hire him in a film of my own. The antagonist was good, though his character does feel a little overblown, it does add more conflict to the film, especially how antagonistic people are today when it comes to xenophobia, racism, whatever or however you want to slice it. The rest of the acting felt more stiff. I felt like the lead actress / her character could have been more compelling; while we believe the main characters love for her, her as a person is not as easy to get emotionally attached to, making the motivation for the boy a little less relatable.
Other than that, it's an interesting ride. The war scenes are proper, intense, and gritty. I love the lead's acting, the editor(s) did pretty well for a story told out of sequential order. It was even a little affecting to see the character go through what they do; a war film for a new age. The music/score was solid (a little reminiscent of Hans Zimmer, which is fine. It was a little distracting in the end when all I could think was "is this Hans Zimmer?"). Overall, if this came out as a full-lengther, I'd respond, take my money and let me watch it already. The possibilities are pretty endless with what they could do with this thing. It's pretty damn good. Great job, you guys.
SPOILER REVIEW. In the beginning, it's also a little hard to tell what it was that happened between him and his girlfriend. I guess he got in a fight with her father--luckily that's sort of out of the way. The ending was also a little obnoxious, with the serious text interrupting the chain of events... I had to watch it again to secure whether I thought happened or not. So, yes, the kid saved his life and killed their general (I dunno maybe it's just me). It was a little confusing at first.
I thought overall this was a successful short, from the concept to the production value. I went in without knowledge of the subject but for the assumption it was generally a war film. Thus, it delivers righteously some Saving Private Ryan-level instances in spurts. It was sad to watch but also intriguing in the fact that it takes place (presumably) in the near future, which I wholly employ. What's preventing it from being an 8/9 is some of the acting and how the story itself was composed.
The lead actor was phenomenal; I would very much love to hire him in a film of my own. The antagonist was good, though his character does feel a little overblown, it does add more conflict to the film, especially how antagonistic people are today when it comes to xenophobia, racism, whatever or however you want to slice it. The rest of the acting felt more stiff. I felt like the lead actress / her character could have been more compelling; while we believe the main characters love for her, her as a person is not as easy to get emotionally attached to, making the motivation for the boy a little less relatable.
Other than that, it's an interesting ride. The war scenes are proper, intense, and gritty. I love the lead's acting, the editor(s) did pretty well for a story told out of sequential order. It was even a little affecting to see the character go through what they do; a war film for a new age. The music/score was solid (a little reminiscent of Hans Zimmer, which is fine. It was a little distracting in the end when all I could think was "is this Hans Zimmer?"). Overall, if this came out as a full-lengther, I'd respond, take my money and let me watch it already. The possibilities are pretty endless with what they could do with this thing. It's pretty damn good. Great job, you guys.
SPOILER REVIEW. In the beginning, it's also a little hard to tell what it was that happened between him and his girlfriend. I guess he got in a fight with her father--luckily that's sort of out of the way. The ending was also a little obnoxious, with the serious text interrupting the chain of events... I had to watch it again to secure whether I thought happened or not. So, yes, the kid saved his life and killed their general (I dunno maybe it's just me). It was a little confusing at first.