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Reviews
Klay World: Off the Table (2005)
Just a bad "film"...
Although Robert "Knox" Benfer has his fans, I'm not one of them. His films are asinine and amateurish, and and just not very funny, unless you're a 14 year old with an underdeveloped sense of humor.
He's certainly not famous, as him immature fans would like you to believe, by harassing people at Wikipedia, or stuffing the ratings votes here at the IMDb. He's certainly not been profiled by any major media outlets, which speaks volumes about his and his creation's "fame".
Benfer does have some slight skill at limited animation, but he needs to get away from his young sycophants and learn to write some actual funny material before he'll be taken seriously as a real entertainer. As of this moment, though, he's just a kid with a camera, and it shows.
An American Haunting (2005)
Decent film, worth a matinée
Whatever of what you may think of the caliber of actors in this film, "An American Haunting" is just one more lightweight PG-13 movie that poses as an honest to goodness horror film. It's a very beautiful and whimsical ghost story told in two narratives - one concerning a single mother in modern times, whose daughter is being ravaged by horrifying nightmares every night - the other about the Bell family in the nineteenth century.
The film is less about supernatural entities and more about our childhood demons and the loss of innocence. Solomon's direction presents an always evolving story that transforms from a ghost tale to a tale of crime, and when the parallel of the modern family to Bell's family is finally revealed, it leads to a shocking final scene that pretty much sums up its allegorical socially relevant message.
Pink Five (2002)
Pretty to look at, but annoying
"Pink Five" is an annoying fan film.
The special effects rock, which is important with explosions and lasers fired all around Stacy, but Amy Earhart's Valley Girl persona gets old very fast.
If Stacy was actually the Rebel Force's only hope instead of Luke, they might as well say bye-bye to everything they stood for because the Empire would take over in an instant.
The sequels (if you can believe that) got a lot better, as they incorporated more characters into them, and Stacey doesn't talk quite so non-stop anymore.
V for Vendetta (2005)
Successful adaption, no matter what Alan Moore thinks
V for Vendetta is one of those must-read comics that I never got around to reading. In spite of Moore's well-known hatred of all things Hollywood, this movie does it justice.
On a visceral level, this film could just have been about the title: revenge. But it's more than that. V is an English-major's protagonist, spouting alliterations and quoting Shakespeare. Dressed in a Guy Fawkes mask and voiced with honeyed tones by Weaving, he's instantly likable and frightening, a madcap spirit who heralds the clarion call of change.
Yes, there are obvious jabs at current events. If anything, they're too obvious. The film doesn't need to have watchwords like "avian flu" and "terrorist" interspersed throughout. The message comes across regardless of the setting: the price of freedom is fear. Give it up at your own risk.
Crazy Watto (2000)
Short but sweet...
Want a used AT-AT? An abandoned X-Wing? Whatever you want, Crazy Watto's got it! Heck, our favorite junk dealer even has stuff from other science fiction universes, if that floats your boat. Those used car dealers during the late-night hours are certainly well remembered here.
By that alone, it's easy to see that the Z-Team Productions team (including Men in Black creator Lowell Cunningham) started their consistently funny run of Star Wars fan films with Watto selling like crazy. Don't worry, he promises not to use any Jedi Mind Tricks on you and whatever dents you find, he'll bump it out. It's Watto after all - he's like the shifty bookie you wish you never dealt with.
Great, great work here. I need to see if a Jedi Mind Trick might work on the Z-Team Productions crew: You *will* keep making material as funny as this - you *will* keep finding obvious quirks in the Star Wars universe that you will use to your advantage. You WILL make another film!