1. #1
    I hope you all enjoyed the film, even if it's only just parts of the film. One of the main things I try when making a film is how to grab your interest/attention/mood. I'm sure some aspects do, and some things just backfire. I'm very interested as always in finding out what people think. Please let me know, and thanks in advance for your comments.

    Just a reminder of what the film was: http://il2mdb.montydan.com/nachthexen
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  2. #2
    Will do, snatchio. I just need to get some peace and quiet at the home PC. I've only managed to do a couple so far, but will get to them all soon.
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  3. #3
    Just a quick comment to start things off: your Movie had an engaging Story, a comical one in this case. In the end, that is what won the day, along with its creativity/originality.

    Telling a Story of interest is the most important aspect of making a successful movie. Many/most IL2 movies fail in that regard, stressing instead near-constant Action just for the sake of Action alone. You had action, of course, but it was the Story told thru dialogue which held the viewer's rapt attention to the very last frame and the very last belly laugh.

    Others will comment soon on cinematography, editing, compositing, etc..
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  4. #4
    Well, snatchio, what a brilliant and entertaining and funny film. I laughed so much the first time I watched it, and I still giggle at the best parts.

    I expected something original from you, and you delivered. You are one of the few moviemakers who really bring variety and creativity to the community.

    So, why didn't you get first place? Well, you really had some stiff competition. I'll be talking about Eagle's in Jafa's thread shortly. It was a hard call to make, but the overall package of Eagles was just that little better.

    Some of the things you might want to consider for future projects to really give your movies more impact. You probably realise anyway, you do know how to make a great package To Do and Die' still gets me when I watch it, and I have watched it many times.

    To some specific points then:

    Cinematography this is one area where you could have done better. Don't get me wrong, it was good. It was solid. It didn't, however, have some of the style that Eagles had. A little more imagination into the camera work would have gone a long way. I do realise you were on a tight time schedule, and I do know that getting that perfect camera shot does take a lot, a LOT, of time.

    The feel of the visual wasn't quite right either. That's a combination of the darkness and the raw colours of IL2. Again, I know you are good with filters to enhance the look! You could have really done something stylish with the filters to enhance the whole experiemce.

    Sound mostly good. The use of music was excellent. However, there were long spells with just music and dialogue. There was no SFX, and there was no filtering of the dialogue to make it sound like it was coming across radio. This was quite a distraction for me. It just didn't sound right. Never underestimate the power of sound to make or break your movie.

    Technical issues You had some interlacing in the added footage, a minor point, but nevertheless distracting. You haven't set up your video editor to render in widescreen, you used letterbox instead which means on my widescreen monitor I only get a small image in the centre.

    Other minor details I didn't get the flashing lines of LA5's at the start. That again was a distraction and broke the spell at that point.

    Enough negativity, let me remind you of some of the points I loved mixing real carrier footage was cool even though it was a different era it still worked because the whole thing was light hearted. The Hollywood beams were neat. Lord Baddy Daddy was a star, and deserves an Oscar! Very original credits. And finally, how did you manage to get the Russian actresses? They were really good. Oh, you got one of the translations wrong I'm sure she didn't say Oh Poo'
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  5. #5
    Originally posted by Joe-90:
    ... And finally, how did you manage to get the Russian actresses? They were really good...
    I've been wondering the same thing, Snatchio.....!!
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  6. #6
    Thanks for the review Joe-90. You must be tired reviewing and reporting on 13 films!

    I agree with your constructive criticism entirely. Truthfully many were points I hoped no-one would notice but obviously didn't escape your hawk-eye.
    I did try too many things, and I'm happy that I did but unfortunately many corners had to be cut because of the deadline. I'm not moaning though because the tight deadline was what made it interesting, as I learnt to be pragmatic and realistic about what was achievable or not.

    I'm glad you didn't find the 80s carrier shots too distracting. Essentially I wanted Top Gun intro and Star Wars' Death Star trench run to be the the back bone of this film (how trashy is that!?). Lots of geeky references in the dialogue to the galaxy far far away.

    Those Russian girls? Well, as Doolittle (a Russian speaker!) was quick to question, the dialogue wasn't actually Russian but Polish. It's taken from a Polish film and, according to my Polish friend, one of the lines in my film translates something like "wow her **** are soooo big!" I am told that the film I used is still a respectable film.
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  7. #7
    It was a really cute film Snatchio, cheered me up at least! I was expecting something more... well, historical, but I'm glad I saw it. Definitely brought a big smile to my face.

    большое спасибо!
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  8. #8
    GL2's Avatar Senior Member
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    I really enjoyed your work here, Snatchio. I loved the creativity and originality of it all. There is so much detail here that you really have to watch this several times to appreciate all that you put into it.

    I think the reason this film didn't win is that a majority of the judges preferred the more 'classic' film that "Eagles" offered. However, that in no way means this isn't a quality film. It's really a matter of preference, and a different panel could have made a different choice.

    The only constructive criticism I can think of is, as Joe said, that some of the cinematography could have maybe been a little more stylish in parts. However, you certainly had some nice cinematography on display, particularly when you racked focus between the air crew in the near field and the plane in the background. And I loved the credits, particularly the end credits. (But why Lenin and not Stalin? ) In fact, I was disappointed the end credits weren't longer!

    I just want to reiterate that I really enjoyed the creativity here, and I hope you and other filmmakers continue to go outside the envelope like this. While I'm a fan of classic IL-2 cinema, we have an ocean of it and very little of stuff like this. I hope to see more from you and others in the future.
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  9. #9
    Hi Snatchio

    Most entertaining vid. Very creative!. You have added a new dimension to IL2 film making. Congrats on the success of the movie!
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  10. #10
    Thanks for the comments.
    I'm glad you all enjoyed it even if it wasn't your cup of tea. The biggest test will come when my daughters grow up and let me know what they think about being used in such a way.

    Why Lenin instead of Stalin? I wasn't sure the politics of it really. I know the original game maker didn't allow swastikas on the skins, and similarly I wasn't sure how Stalin would be received even in a comedy. Maybe I'm being too politically correct.

    My wife is expecting our third daughter in December, so watch this space, there will be more girls flying in this virtual sky!
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