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To create an interesting connection between the story’s action and the TV sets that are in every room of the Hotel Motel, the director chose to have someone adjusting their TV for the first 2/3’s of the film. Each time the set is adjusted, a new scene or shot is cut through a transition of static, causing the film and the staticky channels in the TV to occupy a similar sort of space in the viewer’s mind. This is a very surrealistic way to tell the story, but fits together nicely with the opening sequence from the security camera and later footage in which the Hotel Motel’s proprietor sees the two bandits on the television news.
With that being said, there were a few areas that could have been improved. First off, the concept of the flickering TV as a way to cut between shots is awesome, but it has to have some physical connection throughout the film. While the first part of the film always has someone messing with the TV to cause the statticky transitions, the latter part of the film lacks any impetus for the transitions. As such, either the static needs to go away at the end, or we need to have something like someone accidentally turning on or off the TV to give a physical cue to the transitions.
Additionally, there were a few times where cuts and transitions started coming a little too fast, at which point the pace should be slowed just a bit so that the viewer doesn’t get too overwhelmed. Finally, the director tried to play with dissolves a few times, which do not work well due to the fast paced nature of a film like this. (FYI, standard dissolves are very rarely used in professional films of any pace, because they tend to feel sloppy and there are better ways to get the same feel without using them, usually via a dip-to-black dissolve.)
While the visual style was pretty impressive, there was one thing that really needs to get changed. Currently, the Hotel Motel in which the film occurs is represented by a very tell-tale model of a motel. As the picture of this model is just an establishing shot, the director needs to get a picture of a legitimate hotel building and use that instead.
Use of Audio
There were a few times where the dialogue audio was a bit soft, but, all told, it was pretty solid for the entire film. Considering that the director said they had a loose mic connector in the camera from which they plugged their Sennheiser which caused them to get no sound, I’ve got to assume that they redubbed the film in post. If so, they did a phenomenally good job, as I wouldn’t have known the film was dubbed if the director hadn’t mentioned the “dodgy” audio issue.
The sound effects are a bit over the top, but work with the afore-mentioned Guy Ritchie-style feel. (And probably also cover up any unnatural silences from the dubbed audio.) The same thing is true with the music, which is high octane rock for the most of the film and ties in well with the frenetic feel.
Use of Budget
While $3700 for a 13 minute film isn’t terribly cheap, considering how much equipment had to be rented, along with the cost of things like location rental, an armourer/firearm specialist, and a number of other considerations, it’s definitely reasonable. As the director pointed out, they had started with free equipment from a community center, but much of it was poor enough quality that they had to rent a huge amount to replace it at the last minute. Much as it was drilled into my head on my first film, I’m sure Mr. Wannenmacher has learned to always test equipment before the shoot day. As such, I’m sure these sorts of expenses can undoubtedly be decreased in future films due to experience in this regard.
Lasting Appeal
I watched this film a couple of times as I wrote this critique and I found it really has a lasting appeal and charm to it that grows with rewatching. As such, it is one that I want to watch again and one that I wish to show to friends, which definitely qualifies it as a success in my book.
Overall Comment
Hotel Motel’s frenetic look at crime capers and bizarre endings is well worth watching by anyone who has enjoyed the work of Guy Ritchie or Darren Arronofsky. While there are some rough edges in Mr. Wannenmacher’s first film, these are definitely the sort of rough edges that surround genius rather than a lack of talent. I look forward to seeing his next film endeavor. If this is any gauge of his future work, then Mr. Wannenmacher will be a director who’s career should be highly anticipated.
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Content |
8.5 |
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Visual
Look |
9.0 |
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Use
of Audio |
8.5 |
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Use
of Budget |
8.0 |
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Lasting
Appeal |
10.0 |
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Overall
Score |
8.8
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The
director of two feature length films and half a dozen short films,
Jeremy Hanke
founded Microfilmmaker Magazine to help all no-budget filmmakers make
better films. His first book on low-budget special effects techniques, GreenScreen Made Easy, (which he co-wrote with Michele Yamazaki) was released by MWP to very favorable reviews. He's curently working on the sci-fi film franchise, World of Depleted through Depleted: Day 419 and the feature film, Depleted. |
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