RobMakesMovies.com

I’m going to start doing this from time to time, showcase other student’s films. I think it will keep me busier on this site, as well as offer the other filmmakers here another site to have their project listed on. My first will be a short film entitled “Closet Party.” I was not involved in production on this at all, I merely just found it, watched it, and asked about it. Before I dive into a review, here’s the film:

Closet Party – Project: Direct from R. Cameron White.

“I was intrigued, and I did, admittedly, chuckle.“
This film, a dark comedy seemingly about the journey to insanity, is entertaining. It is not the quintessential film of the year, nor is it even the most complete. It doesn’t try to be. It stakes it’s claim as a “fill the production minimums as quickly as possible” film, and that’s what hurts it.

There are distractions in this film that I think take away from the good parts. The most notable is in the music track. The music beats sound great at first, with an ethereal type of curiosity it draws you in, but soon after reaching the party, it sounds as if the CD was skipping and the vinyl scratches don’t feel right. At first I thought it might have been the fact that I was streaming the picture, but having watched it a few more times, it’s the way the track was laid.

The other notable distraction is the emptiness or lack of set dressing in the main character’s room. I understand it is supposed to be a college student’s room, and that is the way most of our rooms look, but it didn’t feel right and I’m pretty sure it caused problems with the audio capture.

Those “cons” aside, I did enjoy a number of aspects of this short. I think the acting of A.J. Napoli was very comical in his interpretation of someone going insane. When not paying strict attention to how each shot is lit, I found that the mood was set well. The color was a bit off, but I can’t tell if that was intended or not.

All in all I did enjoy it. I think that if there was more time to firmly lay down the details that this could have been better, but whatever circumstances there were, I still chuckled.

*** (3/5)

“Closet Party” was written, directed, and shot by Richard Cameron White. It was edited by A.J. Napoli, and stars Ryan Bradley, Jay Janoco, and Nathan Ellering. Go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWmNUKIi1vs to vote for this film.

This short is absolutely hilarious:

- Robert