Tag Archives: Short Film

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The Bootleg Files: Abbott & Costello Meet Superman

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BOOTLEG FILES 704: “Abbott & Costello Meet Superman” (2015 fan film).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: It’s kind of obvious what is going on here.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: They’re lucky that Mike the Cop doesn’t arrest them.

Fan films often represent a victory of enthusiasm over talent, with aspiring Spielbergs getting carried away with their mania over popular film franchises. For the most part, these films can be accepted as charming – a few are actually quite polished thanks to an intelligent use of digital effects.
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Surfeurs (2011)

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Two men – one is an experienced surfer, the other is a neophyte to riding the waves – are playing about on an isolated beach. They have a game where the experienced surfer buries his friend neck deep in the sand, timing how long it will take him to escape. It isn’t much of a challenge, as the buried man easily liberates himself. The experienced surfer takes his turn being buried neck deep in the sand – but he is unable to dig himself out. Rather than allow his pal to free him, he goads him into surfing in strong high tide waters. But the inexperienced surfer is knocked unconscious by a massive wave and the buried man watches in horror as the tide rushes to the beach and threatens to submerge him.
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Shorts Round Up of the Week: The Fantastic Shorts of Fantastic Fest 2019 [Fantastic Fest 2019]

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Fantastic Fest 2019 has come and gone once again and we were lucky enough to take in some of their line up from this year’s festivities. There was some damn good short films at the fest this year, and we thought we’d spotlight the line up that played as “Fantastic Shorts,” “Short Fuse,” and were “Paired Shorts” with feature films in the festival. The festival had no shortage of genre shorts; if you’re ever near a film festival or are attending one, be sure to look out for these titles.

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Hellarious (2019)

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In this anthology, seven short films are gathered together to create a fun, humorous, and bloody collection. The short films included here are Killer Kart by James Feeney, Horrific by Robert Boocheck, ‘Till Death by Jason Tostevin, Death Metal by Chris McInroy, Bitten by Sarah K Reimers, Born Again by Jason Tostevin, and Lunch Ladies by Clarissa Jacobson.

The films included here are all high production values short films with some hitting better than others. Of course, as they are festival circuit darlings, some of them have already been reviewed at Cinema Crazed. So let’s start with those and their previous reviews.

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The Bootleg Files: Bedlam of Beards

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BOOTLEG FILES 700: “Bedlam of Beards” (1934 short starring Bobby Clark and Paul McCullough).

LAST SEEN: On YouTube.

AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.

REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: There is no great commercial interest in restoring the Clark and McCullough films.

CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Not likely.

This column marks the 700th entry in The Bootleg Files series, which ran from 2003 to 2015 on Film Threat and came over to Cinema Crazed in 2017. I would like to take this moment to thank Cinema Crazed’s publisher and editor Felix Vasquez Jr. for having this column here on the site and to thank the longtime readers of The Bootleg Files who have offered invaluable comments, recommendations and support for my work.
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Stellar Short Films Roundup

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The Shipment (2018)
A man who has turned his life around must make hard decision in his quest to become a better man and to protect his daughter at the same time. This short film is one of the most expensive ones we’ve seen in the last few years and the budget shows. The special effects are on point, the score sounds expensive, if a little familiar, and the film as a whole comes off looking and feeling like something that is part of a much bigger universe. The acting in The Shipment is good overall, with a few scenes here and there that feel a bit off. The visuals are fantastic and show how much of a passion project this was for writer/director Bobby Bala. It’s a fun watch with some deeper issues being approached in a way that is perfect to make some think without even knowing it. The issues at hand are very real and timely.

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Small Gauge Trauma Shorts 2019 Block [Fantasia Festival 2019]

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As with every year, Fantasia Film Festival is also a place to showcase the talents of filmmakers that specialize in making short films of all genres. This year I tackled the “Small Gauge Trauma” block and thankfully didn’t find a single bad apple in the whole bunch. These shorts aren’t just creative, but they’re incredibly original and delivered in the realm of horror big time.

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Cinepocalypse 2019 Shorts Block 2: Sex, Blood, and Heavy Metal [Cinepocalypse 2019]

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This year I covered Cinepocalypse’s second shorts block, and for this round the topics included Sex, Blood, and Heavy Metal. Not all of the movies are horror here, nor are they particularly scary, but they’re an interesting variety for the festival.

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