My review of Hughes the Force

After a week of interview clips promoting Hughes the Force, it seemed only fair that I weigh in with a proper review.

Like I said earlier this week, a good film cannot exist without a strong concept.  That holds true of both short and feature-length films.  Fortunately Hughes the Force has a rather novel concept that should appeal to anyone who grew up with the films of the 80s. Two high school geeks, Henry (Justin Okin) and Simon (Nathaniel Weiss) are determined to go to the big end-of-the-year party.  Simon in particular has a major crush on Jennifer, but in order to get into the party, they need a hot girl.  To that end, the guys decide to make their own hot girl, Weird Science-style and bring a Slave Leia action figure to life (Taylor Treadwell).

The idea of a John Hughes/George Lucas mash-up is so clever, I'm rather surprised it hasn't been done before.  As a geek for the works of both filmmakers, I found it to be an irresistible hook.  Naturally, that's what director J.C. Reifenberg and his team are banking on.

But the filmmakers are just riding on a strong premise - they bring some production savvy to the mix as well.  By soliciting the services of a local Star Wars costuming guild, Reifenberg and his producers populated the film with costumes and characters that couldn't have appeared more authentic if they were stolen right off of Skywalker Ranch.  So much of what you'll find on YouTube seems to be hastily-shot, cheaply-produced garbage.  From a visual standpoint, Hughes the Force can stand with the better of the fanfilms in release.

The value added elevates the film and really helps sell the magic used by the Leia genie, coming in a scene where she transforms the patrons into a Barney's Beanery into beings one might expect to find at the Mos Eisley cantina and Jabba's Palace.  Among the crowd are pool-playing stormtroopers, a Boba Fett, Darth Vader and even a mostly-naked green Twi'lek dancer. (For the layperson, that's the first character to meet her end at the hands of the Rancor in Return of the Jedi.)

Another bonus: the bar scene features cameos from a couple of Star Wars-affiliated actors.  The performer behind the Chad Vader videos lends his voice, while Star Wars: The Clone Wars actors Catherine Taber and James Arnold Taylor appear in costumes as characters they've only played in voice - Padme and Obi-Wan Kenobi.  The later straight-up steals the film, playing Obi-Wan with a relish that would make one think he'd just signed a contract for an entire trilogy of movies in that part.  Brief though his appearance is, I found myself wishing he could come along for the rest of the adventure.  Kevin Smith also makes a fun cameo that probably is even funnier if the viewer is unspoiled.  (Ooops... sorry about that.)

So did Hughes the Force reach the heights of my gold-standard, George Lucas in Love?  Not quite.  At over 30 minutes, the pacing is a bit of an issue.  Even though Reifenberg explained his rationale in our interview, I did still find myself yearning for a brisker pace at times.  I suspect it's less of an issue when watching this film with a group of like-minded Star Wars fans.  So if possible, gather your friends and watch this as a group.

I also felt that the characters showed the strains of carrying such a long short.  Had there been greater contrasts between Simon and Henry's characterizations, this could have been alleviated somewhat.  After a while, I couldn't escape the feeling that the characters were rather similar in a way that may have inhibited some comedic chemistry.

As for Leia herself, while I can't deny the logic of Reifenberg's explanation in our interview that this Leia isn't really Leia, but just "the embodiment of their perfect woman put into a plastic action figure," I would have liked to have seen Leia written with a little more of her trademark spitfire.  Treadwell plays the character with a bit of a flirtatious side, but a little more sass and spunk could have enlivened things even more.

Still, Hughes the Force is worth checking out.  It's clearly a labor of love for everyone both in front of and behind the camera.  There's little doubt that this was made by talented people passionate about what they were doing.

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From the filmmakers press release:

Hughes the Force is available for download at www.hughestheforce.com and on SiT - SModCast Internet Television.

The film will be freely available to all for download in a number of digital formats for both PC and Mac, as well as mobile versions for Android and iPhone. 

Also available are Blu-ray and DVD files complete with menus and bonus content for burning to your own discs. 

A galactic number of bonus features, including: 

· The Making of Hughes the Force featurette – behind-the-scenes footage from the set and interview clips with the Director J.C. Reifenberg, Producer Ruark Dreher and actor, James Arnold Taylor. 

· Commentary Tracks – multiple tracks featuring the lead actors and the production staff covering a range of topics including the writing, cinematography, production work, and acting. 

· Pop-Up Video Track – behind-the-scenes trivia throughout the film.

Stalking Kevin Smith: Getting celebrities to make a cameo appearance in your film

Part 1

When you're making a short film, one tactic you can use to get people interested in watching it is by having a celebrity or two appear in your film.  Even a small cameo can be useful in getting some buzz generated, as that star's fanbase will follow them.

When it comes to Star Wars fandom, there are few more famous superfans than Kevin Smith.  In this part of our interview with Hughes the Force director J.C. Reifenberg, J.C. discusses the... we'll call them... "determined" tactics he used to get Smith to do his movie.

The film also features cameos from Star Wars: The Clone Wars voice actors James Arnold Taylor and Catherine Taber, appearing as their characters of Obi-Wan and Padme for the first time in live action.




Part III - How long should a short film be?
Part IV - "The best thing I could have done for my career from a networking perspective."

Webshow is back! Interview with "Hughes the Force" Director J.C. Reifenberg - Part 1

Yes!  After months of waiting, The Bitter Script Reader webshow is back with a new video, this one the first of a four-part interview with J.C. Reifenberg, the director of a Star Wars fan-film called Hughes the Force.

As someone who's made several short films and assisted on many others, I can attest that it's never easy.  A short filmmaker is almost always going to be struggling against not having enough time, money and resources to complete their vision.  But even before that, the filmmaker needs to have a solid concept worth producing - and sometimes it's harder thinking of a short idea than it is a feature.

Then once the film is done, the already exhausted filmmaker has to figure out some way to get his short in front of people.  With sites like YouTube, the process of distribution is simplified, but at the tradeoff of needing to stand out from the pack.

I first heard about Reifenberg's film last year around the time of San Diego Comic-Con.  It had what I considered an irresistible hook: a mash-up of Star Wars and John Hughes's Weird Science.  Better still, Reifenberg came up with some savvy ways to add production value such as costumes and some sly cameos from the Star Wars Universe.

Long time readers of this blog will recall my spotlighting other Star Wars fan films Troops and George Lucas in Love, two productions that stand as A+ examples of short films/fan films in my estimation.  Seeing the potential in Hughes the Force, I contacted the filmmakers through their publicist, and after arranging a viewing of the film, director and co-writer J.C. Reifenberg was good enough to sit down with me.

So watch the interview below to find out more about the premise, how J.C. got such great costumes and props, and why getting an actress to perform mostly naked and in green body paint was actually one of the easiest tasks the filmmaker accomplished.



Hughes the Force will be released this Friday, May 25, on both the Hughes the Force website and Kevin Smith's YouTube Channel, S.I.T. - SModCo Internet Television.


Part II - Stalking Kevin Smith: Getting celebrities to make a cameo appearance in your short film
Part III - How long should a short film be?
Part IV - "The best thing I could have done for my career from a networking perspective."

Friday Free-for-All: Comic-Con edition - Slave Leia PSA

It's that wonderful time of year again when all of the faithful flock to Nerd Mecca - San Diego Comic Con. Over the past eight years of so, I've watched it go from being a fun event where I could easily attend a lot of panels to an overcrowded exercise in herding people across the floor like cattle.

Last year I didn't get into a single panel, and the year before that I didn't have much better luck. It's a shame because that used to be my favorite part. Checking out the exhibition hall is fun too, but often the booths are so crowded that you can barely see anything.

What does that leave? Checking out the costumes. As a retailer friend of my father's told him during his first visit to Comic-Con (yes, my parents have been to SDCC. TWICE!) "You'll see so much fucking eye candy this week!" And it's true - there are a lot of elaborate, well-made costumes as well as a bevvy of scantily-clad women. Slave Leias are to Comic-Con what pumpkins are to Halloween. They also are excellent words to have on your blog during Comic Con week if you want to goose your search engine hits. (Additional good words to draw in those hits: Joss Whedon, Team Edward, and "How bad is the line at Hall H")

Fortunately for those suffering Leia fatigue, Chuck star Zachary Levi and his Nerd Machine have produced this Slave Leia PSA with The Big Bang Theory's Kaley Cuoco. (Don't get your hopes up guys... she doesn't appear in the outfit.)



If anyone else has some good Comic-Con related shorts, please post them in comments.

A Year at the Movies - Part 1

When I get around to seeing more of this year's likely Oscar contenders and big-budget hits, I might compile the obligatory "Best of" list. The simple fact is that there are a lot of movies I haven't seen yet and even more that I made a conscious choice to skip until they were out on DVD.

Occasionally someone will make fun of movie critics because "it's not that hard to sit there and watch movies all day" but they forget that there are a LOT of movies released each week. It is time consuming, particularly when one doesn't have the option to pick and choose the bad ones. I recall getting zero sympathy from my non-Film classmates in college when I complained about having to endure yet another "classic" my professor insisted was educational. Watching movies seems fun until you realize you have to do it three nights a week and are at the mercy of someone else's tastes.

So for these reasons I embark on my Year in Review with the acknowledgement that it is imperfect. I can't see everything and I didn't want to see everything, so if I overlooked your favorite movie, don't throw a fit.

I've decided to write the year up thusly. Movie tickets ain't cheap these days, and in a cost saving move, there were several films I decided to wait for the DVD rather than brave the theatres. Films are listed in order of their theatrical release, with the ones I saw on DVD listed in red text. After each review, I'll render a verdict as to if it was worth either the cost of full admission, or if I had been wise in waiting for DVD. Let's see how good my screening process was.

January

Valkyrie (*** out of four stars) - I'm cheating a bit because this actually came out last December, but I didn't see it until January. Overall I liked it. Bryan Singer's direction was tense, the supporting cast was excellent, and Tom Cruise did a good job. The non-accent didn't bother me, and any film that has you coming out of it mad with frustration at how close someone came to killing Hitler has to be a good one. Verdict: Worth the $12

The Unborn (**1/2) - Without the final twist, this might have had a shot at a solid three stars. The problem is that the ending comes with a reveal that seems to mean that everything that came before it made no sense. I rather liked the hook of the girl being haunted by her unborn twin, and it's rare to see Jewish mysticism used in horror films, so that was an interesting novelty. The cast is pretty solid, particularly Gary Oldman and Idris Elba. Star Odette Yustman is like Megan Fox's good twin - she's less skanky looking and a fair bit better at acting. Verdict: Wish I'd Waited for DVD.

My Bloody Valentine 3-D (**) - I've already covered my biggest issue with the film in this post. Nothing else in the film is exemplary enough to make up for that - save for seeing the 3-D visuals on the big screen. The fact that can't be duplicated as well on DVD is the ONLY reason my verdict is: Worth the $12.

Taken (***1/2) - This was a nice surprise, and the casting of Liam Neeson is the smartest decision the filmmakers of this story of an assassin racing to save his daughter from a human trafficking ring could have made. If you just read the script without knowing who was attached, you might be tempted to dismiss it as a potential direct-to-DVD project for Jean Claude Van Damme. There were at least three or four instances where my jaw was on the floor in disbelief at the turn the movie had just taken (for instance, Neeson coldly shooting his friend's wife.) Best of all, throughout the film it felt like the kind of movie that would have had the guts for Neeson to fail in his rescue attempt, a decision that makes either a happy or an unhappy ending much more powerful. Verdict: Should have seen it in theatres.

February

Push (**) - My displeasure might be colored by the fact that this script followed me around like a homeless puppy, as I had to read it for several different bosses over the years. Bored me to death, and it was pretty much miscast across the board. Verdict: Money well saved.

Friday the 13th (*) - about 22 minutes into this, I asked myself, "What am I doing here? Why did I think this would be any different from the other films?" Aside from a marginally more talented cast, I was right. Verdict: Wish I'd waited for DVD.

Fanboys (**1/2) - I'm kind of burned out on the whole mocking of Star Trek and Star Wars fans. It was novel when Kevin Smith did it, but the joke's been told and retold a lot. This film isn't immune to that, and the whole cancer subplot is rather badly executed. The main cast is decent, though, and the film is largely redeemed by the cameos - particularly Danny McBride's - and the visual appeal of Kristin Bell in a Slave Leia outfit. Still, I didn't miss anything by waiting a few months for the DVD. Verdict: Money well saved.

March

Watchmen (***) - I probably need to see this again to put it in it's proper context. It's not without a few pacing problems, but I think there are some really stunning visuals and great shot compositions. On top of that, Jackie Earle Haley's Rorschach steals the movie and Malin Ackerman is appealing when she's not called upon to act. The downside: Matthew Goode does everything he can to sink the movie with his valim-inspired performance as Adrian Veidt. Overall I think there's more good than bad here. Verdict: Worth the $12.

The Last House on the Left (***) - I'm still conflicted about this one, as my original review indicates. I'm sort of glad that I got to experience this in the comfort of my own home and not in a theatre full of ignorant moviegoers heckling and yelling at the screen. Verdict: Glad I waited for DVD.

I Love You, Man (***1/2) - The best Judd Apatow movie that Apatow never touched. This bromance comedy clearly has the DNA of Apatow's better movies beyond featuring his regular players Paul Rudd and Jason Segal. Rudd plays a man who's never had a male best friends and finds one for the first time in Segal. Three-dimensional characterization is a major asset to a premise that could have easily been tired and hackneyed. Best of all, the script keeps the Rudd/Segal dynamic as its main focus and avoids the Apatow tendency to let the secondary characters gobble up too much screentime. Apatow's supporting players are usually reliable for laughs and good characterization, but the reason his films always feel about 15 minutes too long is because the director isn't merciless enough to cut funny bits in service of keeping the script focused. I Love You, Man uses some supporting characters to great effect - particularly Jon Favreau, Jamie Pressley and Lou Ferrigno (!) - but director John Hamburg (who shares a writing credit with Larry Levin) keeps things moving in one of the best comedies of the year. Verdict: Worth the $12

Monsters vs. Aliens (***) - A fun romp. Kids will be entertained and even if Dreamworks Animation will never hold a candle to Pixar's in terms of story, I enjoyed it. Verdict: Worth the $12.

April

Adventureland (***) - A decent indie comedy, and one that convinced me that Kristen Stewart actually could act when she isn't bored stiff by the script (see: Twilight). Jesse Eisenberg comes off as a bit of a poor man's Michael Cera at times, but still manages to have fun in the role. Bill Hader and Ryan Reynolds also get in a few good moments. Still, it's probably a better viewing experience at home rather than in the theatre. Verdict: Wish I'd waited for DVD.

Observe and Report (1/2 star) - I know this film has it's defenders. I am not one of them. The kindest thing I can say is that I respect Seth Rogan for trying something different. Halfway through I considered turning off the DVD. 45 minutes later, I wished I had. Verdict: Money well saved, time badly wasted.

17 Again (***) - You won't find much original in this story that can basically be called Big-in-reverse. I also can't find much that I hated, either. The cast has a ball with their roles and the story's well-paced and structured. Maybe I'd have felt differently had I paid full price for it, but it's totally watchable as a Netflix pick. Verdict: We'll go with "Money well Saved."


May

Wolverine (no stars) - In any other year, this would have been my pick for Worst Film of the Year. Alas, I underestimated certain other filmmakers. So bad it makes X-Men 3 look like X2. Anyone involved in any creative decisions on this film should have their filmmaking licenses revoked. Verdict: Glad I waited for DVD.

Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (***) - This is little more than a Scrooge rip-off with a womanizer (Matthew McConaughey) learning the error of his ways just in time to win back his childhood sweetheart (Jennifer Garner). Part of me thinks the concept is clever and another part wants to say that the lead's transformation isn't believable. It kept me entertained, so I'll be kind to it. Verdict: Glad I waited for DVD.

Star Trek (***1/2) - My favorite film of the year. J.J. Abrams and his team found a way to give Kirk and company an origin story that leaves their futures wide open without disrespecting everything that came before it. They pulled off the very difficult task of entertaining Trekkies and people who never watched Star Trek. If the opening sequence doesn't tug on your heart strings, you have no heart, and that's just the first of the surprises here. The visual effects are fantastic, but they're always in service to the story and the casting is pitch-perfect, from the bridge crew on down to Bruce Greenwood's Captain Pike and Eric Bana's Nero. Verdict: So good I paid to see it twice.

Up (***1/2) - Remember what I said about Trek's opening tugging on the heart? Up sees that and raises it a few. A while back I singled out the early montage as a masterful example of non-verbal exposition, and I think that bears repeating. This is just a really beautiful movie, and my only issue with it might be that I felt the villain was one of Pixar's weaker ones. On the other hand, without him, we'd never have the talking dogs so that's almost a fair trade. Verdict: Worth the $12.

Come back tomorrow for the rest of the year!