Change Your Image
babellec
Reviews
Closed for Storm (2020)
A Fantastic Look into the Devastating Effects of Katrina on a Specific Spot
I am a huge fan of Jake, Bright Sun Films, and the Abandoned series he makes on YouTube.
This takes his concept from that Abandoned series to a long-form feature-length medium on all major platforms for the first time.
The documentary itself focuses on the rise and fall of New Orleans first major theme park. Jake does a fantastic job finding people from the community and interviewing them. He digs to the soul behind the abandoned structures. He also does a great job giving us the history of the park before Katrina so we as viewers care about the park as much as the people in the community did.
My biggest nitpick would be I found the last 15 minutes to be a little flat. The producers on the project gambled choosing to follow a few specific people trying to repurpose the land; no one got the ending they wanted. The gamble could have paid off, but even as is, I think there was a missed opportunity to show more of the heartbreak and disappointment this plot of land has been subjected to for the last 15 years. The last few scenes in the documentary are flat because we didn't get a deep emotional pay-off on one of the narratives they set up. Digging in deeper on the heartbreak and frustration of those people that were trying to repurpose the land may have elevated the final moments of this documentary just a touch.
If you are a fan of Abandoned on YouTube, this is a must-watch. If you are just a general fan of documentaries, this holds its own without any knowledge of Jake's previous work. I highly recommend this to anyone interested in Katrina, New Orleans, theme parks, or urban exploration. For a first feature-length documentary this is an amazing achievement and Jake could easily find himself helming more documentaries in the future!
Well done and keep up the great work!
Strengths
- Jake is a fantastic narrator (A+++)
- Interesting and diverse interviews cut well against other footage and peppered throughout
- Great footage. The drone work on the abandoned park is fantastic. They also mine old footage to juxtapose the current dilapidated state of rides against the vibrant footage from the past. Very well cut and one of the strengths of both this documentary and the Abandoned series!
Weaknesses
- At times the score overpowered the narration early; they did seem to dial this down later but I found a few spots in the beginning that the narration was fighting with the score
- The last 15 minutes was a bit of a letdown.
Homeless Ashes (2019)
Emotional Indie Filmmaking and an Impressive Debut Feature!
Strengths:
-- Cinematography
-- Score
-- Emotion
Weaknesses:
-- Too many characters
-- The script could have used another pass (cut a few characters, shorten some of the dialogue-heavy scenes)
-- The dialogue recording picks up background noise at times
-- Occasional sloppy cuts between shots
This is one of my first written reviews for a movie I have ever posted. I am a huge cinema fan. I have watched a movie or two a week since I was a teenager. I went a step further than most and have watched hundreds of hours of making-of documentaries, while also taking online film theory courses. What prompted me to post this is that it is #indieapril and as an indie author, I understand the importance of reviews and social shares. I broke my "rule" on written movie reviews to share this because I am in awe of the feat.
Go into this knowing it is an indie release. A passion project made through sheer will, grit, and determination. It has flaws but it also has moments of cinematic gold! This is a colossal achievement and I have mad respect for them taking a swing like this outside the traditional avenues.
Homeless Ashes is at its strongest when the score and cinematography are carrying the scene. Some of the long, slow takes where the camera and sound suck you in will make you forget this is an indie. This project is also strengthened by some great emotional moments and heavy topics that help to overcome the weaknesses I noted above.
What gets me excited is that the director's next project is horror. I think his cinematography and use of the score will shine and I hope it is a tighter, more focused script. If he can dial into his strengths, while having a polished script to keep the plot and characters focused, great things will come.
Keep making movies!