"Broken Road" Reviews

[MinionZombie]

Well, I watched it during lunch yesterday and I enjoyed it, very cool.

I really liked the idea of the RV as the setting, you're both protected (being inside a large vehicle), but you're also completely exposed - it's like (I forget the actual word) that sort of negative space - a doorway - you're neither in nor out. The RV is like that and it's an interesting dynamic.

I also liked the non-linear form with the flashbacks revealing more and more about the characters and how things aren't as they always appear to be. The RV owner was quite a good character, in terms of the character himself was such a tosser - you know, you just wanna punch him and tell him to shut up about his social class glass ceiling bullsh*t, when he's just some wanker with an RV and a gun. It was a nicely constructed character, you're engaged and find yourself yapping stuff at the screen. :)

The gore - very nice, the zombie gal with an eye missing was a very nice effect (further glimpsed in the behind the scenes stuff).

The acting is on par with other such projects, so that's all good. The only 'grievance' (for lack of a better word) was the lighting. I saw in the BTS stuff you had some lights, but it didn't transfer to the camera as well as I'd have thought. I'd have liked to see a greater contrast to the black & white personally, but like I said, that was the only thing that niggled me.

All in all - two thumbs fresh. :thumbsup::)

(Indeed, it traversed the pond rather swiftly :cool:).

[Cereval]

Well, I watched it during lunch yesterday and I enjoyed it, very cool.

I really liked the idea of the RV as the setting, you're both protected (being inside a large vehicle), but you're also completely exposed - it's like (I forget the actual word) that sort of negative space - a doorway - you're neither in nor out. The RV is like that and it's an interesting dynamic.

I always knew I'd use it somehow or some way. Acquired during the CTD days, it served its purpose first as transport and later as a set - not bad for a dinosaur from the 70s :) . Although I will definitely claim that George stole my idea with Diary of the Dead :confused: :o .


I also liked the non-linear form with the flashbacks revealing more and more about the characters and how things aren't as they always appear to be. The RV owner was quite a good character, in terms of the character himself was such a tosser - you know, you just wanna punch him and tell him to shut up about his social class glass ceiling bullsh*t, when he's just some wanker with an RV and a gun. It was a nicely constructed character, you're engaged and find yourself yapping stuff at the screen. :)

Amazingly a lot of reviews and reactions to the RV wanker guy were very mixed. Some thought he was very effective while others thought he was weak. I actually prefer this mix of reactions - the ambivalence leaves the points as arguable.


The gore - very nice, the zombie gal with an eye missing was a very nice effect (further glimpsed in the behind the scenes stuff).

Thanks, although it wasn't my best effort it served as satisfactory. I'll be slopping on more latex and such for Deadscapes II. As you well know, being a one-man crew makes you distribute your efforts across the board. I had limited time to make up zombies for particular shoots and had to make do.


The acting is on par with other such projects, so that's all good. The only 'grievance' (for lack of a better word) was the lighting. I saw in the BTS stuff you had some lights, but it didn't transfer to the camera as well as I'd have thought. I'd have liked to see a greater contrast to the black & white personally, but like I said, that was the only thing that niggled me.

The acting was another debatable point. Some trashed it, while others praised it. I think an appreciation of indie comes into play when critiquing the performances. Comparatively to its peers, I think it fairs well as an indie feature.

The lighting grievance is one I share with you :( . I agree that B&W should be much higher contrast. But as with FX, I was running very thin - using battery-powered light sources and having cast and crew actually hold the lights during shots. Again, I don't intend on duplicating this for Deadscapes II.


All in all - two thumbs fresh. :thumbsup::)

(Indeed, it traversed the pond rather swiftly :cool:).

I'm glad you enjoyed it. It's always extra cool to get some geniune feedback from not only fellow zombie fans, but fellow filmmakers. You being a combination of the two makes me extra appreciative of your reaction. Thanks. :)

[capncnut]

Okay, just checked out Deadscapes. There's probably some official review thread here somewhere but seeing as though this link got me the film, I'll just put it here.

First off, let me just say that I loved the dark tone. Some of the shots give a real sense 'closing in' (even though there were only a few zombies) and it adds an atmosphere of unease and mystery. The story was pretty good also, I thought the claustophobia of the piece was well implemented and the RV was grim backdrop.

Acting. Obviously there's gonna be no Oscar's handed out to anyone in Deadscapes but I was satisfied with it and feel that it was acceptable. Characterisation was okay too, particularly the RV guy who was a complete asshole. Felt a little bit lost with the other two characters but I'm sure that's down to me being stoned at the time of viewing.

Direction was fine. The use of flashbacks was very cool and again, the atmosphere was suitably tense. The FX were good, more notably the zombies who were grotesque enough to want to run away from and I loved the music too, more than just a nod to Alan Howarth methinks.

I watched all the extras. Noice!

In summary, I really enjoyed Deadscapes. Dark, claustrophoic and edgy, I'll be eagerly awaiting the next installment. Two thumbs up again, good work. :)

[Cereval]

Okay, just checked out Deadscapes. There's probably some official review thread here somewhere but seeing as though this link got me the film, I'll just put it here.

First off, let me just say that I loved the dark tone. Some of the shots give a real sense 'closing in' (even though there were only a few zombies) and it adds an atmosphere of unease and mystery. The story was pretty good also, I thought the claustophobia of the piece was well implemented and the RV was grim backdrop.

I've noticed these as common observations and as Doc Logan would say, "Pleased! I'm very pleased!" I'm glad that some mood was tranferred.


Acting. Obviously there's gonna be no Oscar's handed out to anyone in Deadscapes but I was satisfied with it and feel that it was acceptable. Characterisation was okay too, particularly the RV guy who was a complete asshole. Felt a little bit lost with the other two characters but I'm sure that's down to me being stoned at the time of viewing.

The overall response was definitely passable. Some reactions were particularly critical but in the end, as I've said, I'm glad that my friends even agreed to do in the first place.


Direction was fine. The use of flashbacks was very cool and again, the atmosphere was suitably tense. The FX were good, more notably the zombies who were grotesque enough to want to run away from and I loved the music too, more than just a nod to Alan Howarth methinks.

I'd never heard of Howard Nowarth previously. I looked him up on IMDB and saw he has quite a track record. Although his credits are primarily sound FX? Is there a particular score he did that you're referring to?[/quote]


I watched all the extras. Noice!

In summary, I really enjoyed Deadscapes. Dark, claustrophoic and edgy, I'll be eagerly awaiting the next installment. Two thumbs up again, good work. :)

Awesome. This is very enouraging and appreciated. Thanks for watching. :)

[Cereval]

This will be a comprehensive list of reviews for Deadscapes: Broken Road. If you find any reviews not listed here, please PM me and I'll add it to the list. Otherwise, feel free to add your own written review to this thread.


Microcinemascene (http://www.microcinemascene.com/artman/publish/review_deadscapes1.php)
ZMDB (Zombie Movie Database) (http://www.trashvideo.org/zmdb/view/movie.php?id=1791)
DVD Resurrections (http://www.dvdresurrections.com/MovieReview_Deadscapes.html)
Evil Dread (http://www.evildread.com/horror-reviews/horror_review.php?id=255)
Cinema-Crazed (http://www.cinema-crazed.com/deadscapes.htm)
Horror Talk (http://horrortalk.com/reviews/Deadscapes/Deadscapes.html)