«Brilliant, still holds up today. 5 stars»

«Watched this from being recommended by Johnny Ex. What a movie! Love it.»

«Watched again....classic.
»

«This was so sgreat! Especially the visuals were amazing. Very inspirering :-)»

«I watched this some time ago and happen to stumble on it again and was surprised to find I had not left a review. I found the movie extremely well done on all levels and I didn't find the added production effects off-putting. The story detail and concept were just very creative and extremely well executed. »

«Very Creepy And Strange But Loved It 5 Stars !!!!»

«Hey Rachel,

I found "A thousand Angels" on Newgrounds, credited to SaturnCrow, that's why I put that name.

On the other hand, the youtube link you gave me doesn't work, it says "cannot find user".

But I did look around and found your song, amongst other really nice songs.

So I'm sorry for that, but heh, it was on NG....

Re-uploading the whole movie will take a lot of time, so I will do it when I have time to do it, like ASAP.

Well I hope you liked the movie, tho... you have an amazing voice and great music and I'm happy to have found more about you!

Cheers

Rik
»

« Wooooooooow! What an intro to this movie, everything is first class, Congrats Rik!The story is weird but very interesting. ROCK ON DUDE!»

«Brilliant! Top notch work. This really blew me away visually. Interesting story that felt like something out of the Twilight Zone. Congratulations on a really good movie that made a huge impact on me. Continued success. »

«Hey !

Très bon film ! bravo !
Bon scénario, beau travail de l'image, de la musique, de la bande son en général, beaux plans, et bon boulot de la part des doubleurs.

Aucun aspect négligé ! Bien joué à toi et aussi aux doubleurs !»

«Ciao Rik !

Et bien c'est avec grand plaisir que je me suis replongé dans Dreamtown, le travail sur ce remake étant poussé et recherché. On sent que tu as vraiment cherché à créer un style particulier avec ce travail assez particulier sur l'image par le biais des filtres et effets, la luminosité et la couleur, l'ensemble est esthétique et donne une touche particulière à ton film.
Par contre, j'ai moi aussi une petite retenue quant à certains mouvements de caméra et enchainements de plans très "speed", en général ce n'est pas trop ma "cam", comme dit précédemment c'est une question de goût. Néanmoins, ça ne m'a dérangé. Le choix des plans m'a plu, surtout ceux rapprochés, c'est un style que j'affectionne.
Côté histoire, j'ai été emballé mais je dois bien admettre qu'il va me falloir attendre la version sous-titrée pour comprendre la fin dans son intégralité (ne tarde pas trop à les faire même si je suppose que ça doit te saouler un peu^^). J'ai bien aimé les passages à l'intérieur du bar, je trouve que les personnages sont complémentaires et que la mayonnaise prend bien.
Félicitations aux doubleurs qui sont vraiment excellents, ça fait plaisir de retrouver de vieilles connaissances et Al en guest.
La bande sonore est réussie, avec notamment les bruitages très immersifs et les musiques originales (j'ai particulièrement aimé certains passages dans la ville). Il y a juste la musique au tout début lorsque les soldats se font taillés en pièce que je n'ai pas trouvé à mon goût.

Au final bravo pour tout le travail accompli, je me referai une séance avec la version sous-titrée. Il ne te reste plus qu'à le présenté au prochain festival .
A bientôt.
Ciao»

«Well you diod it Rik.. you succeeded in making the remake better than the original. I was soooo captivated by the imagery. So artistic and spectacular. Loved the music and the sound you carefull incorporated. Thanks for the opportunity to have been a part of the Dreamtown remake! Excellent job!!!!! ==== K4»

«The opening was a freakin' cinematic orgasm!
really well edited and authentic which is hard to
pull off with such a limited use of animations.

movie was genius, VO's, mods etc totally spot on
great work again rik.»

«Planning to come back and watch this again in more detail, but from what I've seen of it so far it's an amazing piece of work at all levels.»

«I was trying to work on something while watching this, but after 30 seconds your movie had my complete attention. The technical aspects were impressive, the voice acting was great, and the story was interesting.

*SPOILER*
I may have missed it, but I didn't really get why accepting your destiny/death was a good thing - what was waiting for them if they escaped the town?»

«Amazing opening of the movie.
Excellent visuals and use of music.
Cast did a great job also.
Great script as well,
Welcome back Rik.»

«Amazing. Loved the cinematography and especially the editing. It takes true talent to accomplish a movie like this. Amazing throughout, and looking forward to your next big project, whatever it will be. »

«well, rik im not usually a western buff but this movie really drew me into the story.

well directed, voiced and the fx was amazing»

«finally got a chance to watch and i must say i am completely blown away - the opening scene just sucked me in - couldn't tell it was The Movies - very well edited battle scene- although a minor nit on the music choice - during the piano interlude (the piano was fine, just the drum part felt out of place)

great use of special effects

well written story - the town sheriff is reminiscent of American Gothic - »

«Nice work Rik.

The special effects I think worked as it helped to show the madness of battle. Some of the music choice did seem out of place at times, but apart from that this is a really nice Western with some great cinematography which I really enjoyed

★★★★★ - 5 Stars»

«The editing and effects worked very well for my experience, particularly in the battle scenes where they really created a frenetic and almost first person type of experience. However, story-wise things fell apart a bit for me.

**possible spoiler alert**

The second half of the flick involving the white, zombie Grace Jones seemed unnecessarily complicated and the ending left me unsatisfied (yes even the final ending) as I never really got the point. The moral seemed to be about letting go (ala Jacob's Ladder) but in the end that didn't seem to matter as the fight between good/evil, or in this case sheriff/evil town and the alluded group of strange reanimating zombie woman, rages on. It also merits a mention that the factor of evil in the town is tempered by the fact that getting killed by the sheriff amounts to showing up late for happy hour. Which is to say the sense of dread and time eternal was lost on me.

**end spoiler alert**

All that said, it was an enjoyable experience and machinima shooting for this level of professionalism if few and far between. I watched it twice and will probably try to see the original trio again some time in the near future (if possible) as it will be interesting to compare.»

«Your style is too much of an inspiration to what I'd love to do with any program I may choose. The casting, the visual presentation, the contemporary effects that made this take on a period war more dynamic, they worked out perfectly. Respect to your casting choices as well, they did a great job, as you did for putting this out. »

«Once again you have proved to be the master of 'The Movies'. Your brilliant mind has shown that a program that some see as useless can be manipulated into a masterpiece.

Between the visuals and lighting, the sound direction and musical arrangement, you once again have shown that dedication to entertainment and attention to detail can pay off.

Excellent casting and voice work by all. Great use of the mods and set design. Only you can use some wierd, wild and off the wall hairstyles and make them seem natural in this film.

I appreciate the shout-out at the end in the credits although I am not sure what I did to deserve it other than follow your film career and give bits of encouragement along the way.

Great job again Rik. Well done.»

«Brilliant sound editing! Great camera work too! Some of the hair styles were a little bizzarre, but otherwise, I liked this a lot. Some of the music was a bit odd, but I still liked the film.»

«I think this movie is worth another comment, based on the reaction of the reviewers.

I find it really interesting that although everyone has enjoyed the movie, there is a huge division in the 'for' and 'against' departments when it comes to the visual effects.

Each to their own on this point and I wouldn't argue with anyone's personal verdicts.

But even those who consider it visual effects overdose cannot argue that it's also a visual effects showcase for what can be done with the movies, outside editing and inspirational creativity...and for that reason alone, Dreamtown is an extremely clever piece of machinima.

Not only is it a wonderful story, which as has been said, is beautifully edited and directed, but it's also a prime example of excellent low to no budget special effects for any machinima director.

I stand by what I said in my last comment that the visuals accompanied the story, rather than drowning it out, but I also believe that they work as a seperate entity showcase and masterclass.

Once again, well done Rik.»

«J'attendrai la version sous titrée pour mieux saisir l'histoire..
Ce que je peux dire déjà, le premier truc qui m'a frappé avant même les premières review, et qui m'a toujours frappé dans tes films c'est ton style electro/flashy à la limite de la crise épilepsie.

Et ce style là, très clairement soit on adhère, soit on adhère pas.

Perso j'ai beaucoup de mal, je trouve même qu'on frise parfois la faute de goût.

Ca passerait beaucoup mieux à mon avis s'il y'avait un peu d'humour et de légèreté ce qui manque cruellement.

Mais bref, trop d'effets, trop de flashs partout, ça va trop vite, le rythme est limite impossible à suivre!!!

Je suis pas non plus un grand fan des compositions musicales mais bon..

Et pour moi le truc qui m'a choqué, c'est vraiment les coupes de cheveux, alors là je comprend vraiment pas!!??? What the fuck?

Gros taff sinon, après le style, ça passe ou pas, pour moi ça passe pas.»

«Un remake magistrale!!! Rien que les premières scène m'ont scotcher à mon fauteuil !!!!! J'avais beaucoup aimé la première version de votre film,et las vous avez encore remonté le niveau de la réalisation avec The Movies . La réalisation est super il n'y a pas un point de négatifs question plan et mouvement de camera c'est vraiment un super travaille ,je dis respect!!!!!! Après les effets visuelle sont super bien travailler et les incrustation sont super ,on n'y voit que du feu tellement c'est bien foutu .Les doubleurs ont tous fais un super travaille d' interprétation . La musique est agréable et accompagne très bien les scènes .La seul petite chose c'est que le blanc ou la
luminosité me faisaient mal aux yeux par moment ,mai rien de grave ,par ce que l'on voit un grand film avec le travaille derrière. Je dis bravo et j'espère que vous en ferrez d'autres ! »

«Fantastic! Yes there were many effects shots, but in my case it not distract me from the plot. This is that rare 30 minutes machinima that I can watch through without getting bored. Great job!»

«This is a tough one.
I have to start with the elephant in the room: far, far too much effects for the sake of effects. It was like you used every filter you had available.

It's a shame, because it distracted from beautiful directing, and some astonishing editing.
Truth be told, I can't comment on the story because all the visual nonsense distracted me hugely. After a few minutes I was waiting for the next effect, rather than the next plot point.

Too much for me I'm afraid, sorry.»

«Great Movie!

A good storyline and concept with great attention to detail, you can see the effort and love put into this film in almost every shot. This includes the visuals, sound and storyline. You managed to utilize the scenes in very unique ways and took a lot of that 'recognizable scenes' aspect out of the film, something hard to do when you're working in The Movies. I also loved the use of the Western angle, there is an abundance of sets and costumes for it in The Movies yet we see so few Western films of this caliber.

I'll repeat what has been said already that I too found the visual effects and editing a little overbearing at times, it felt like it interfered with the film at times. I'm a VFX artist and the amount of time and effort put into them is clear, the technical aspects I would rate very highly. It's just there seemed to be a little too much of it, it didn't make it hard to follow for me, just made it feel a bit 'amateur'.

I hope you don't take that the wrong way, as I said already, the effects are done extremely well, just too much (like the recent Star Trek with the lens flares EVERYWHERE! lol)

I also found the addition of the 'twist' by adding the huntress was a little bit too much and felt it made the film a little too obvious, I thought you'd already established the points well through the use of shots and flashbacks and didn't need it 'explained' if you get my meaning.

Overall however, a monumental effort very much worthy of praise and the issues I have with it don't detract from that fact. You have a real talent for cinematography and editing (the battle scenes were brilliant), you definitely have a good concept of film-making and should be very proud of this particular film.

Great job »

«Un excellent remake d'un film tout aussi excellent !
Tout y est ! L'ambiance, musique et une panoplie de bon acteurs !
Comme tout tes films, j'ai passé un super moment en regardant dreamtown .
Merci pour ce chef d'oeuvre ! »

«Ok, I already gave you an opinion on this but I'll go into a bit more depth here...

First impression: WOW. You sure know how to make The Movies exciting! Amazing intro set the pace for a highly original western that was well shot and terrifically edited. I'm still scratching my head now days later trying to figure out how you did some of this. I understand chromakeying but this is just ridiculously well done. So much work clearly went into this and it definitely paid off.

The soundtrack was...interesting. Some of the music worked superbly and then there were other tracks that came across as a little bit bizarre, though I suppose that kind of fits the theme of the movie. Just the cheesy piano tinkling at the start while bodies are flying all over the place and the random pop tune towards the end when Tera's character *SPOILER* dies *SPOILER END*... I dunno, I can understand why you put them in but for me the effect didn't quite work the way it was meant to...

The visual effects were absolutely amazing throughout, very complex and extremely cinematic. Here's the thing though: sometimes I felt they were TOO cinematic. Most of the time the effects worked really well but I did find other times that it seemed like you were almost trying too hard and I dunno, it was like the various effects were competing with each other for attention rather than working together to make a complete composition, do you know what I mean? Sometimes the visuals were so bleached out I couldn't see what was going on, or you'd throw so many effects at me that I wasn't quite sure what I was meant to be looking at and I'd have to rewind to take it all in. Put simply, I'd say some sections were breathtaking and other moments kinda crossed the line a little and became a tad overwhelming

Overall though, this was a top-notch movie and a massive achievement. I was really proud to have played a part in it so thanks very much for the opportunity. The rest of the cast were superb, particularly dfpiii. He really played his character perfectly. I'm sure this movie will be up for several Ollies this year. Can't wait to see what you come up with next Rik

***** - 5 stars»

«Wow, you always have a knack, nay...a talent for making these cartoons look like full-blown cinematic productions. That opening battle was not only a joy to experience, but inspirational. THAT's the way to use chromakeying and compositing to its full potential. The camera angles, with all those wonderfully-paced editing throughout, is again hallmark Rik. Oh, and the music usage was just perfect. I'm going to have to rewatch and re-view this one again and again--that's the best way to learn from a master cinematographer.»

«Outstanding.

Absolutely rivited from start to finish.

For me, this would not have been the same experience without the incredible visual effects and stunning sound design, which I thought were both very much a part of the story rather than just there for the sake of it.

A beautiful and unique vision here Rik, and one to be proud of.

Great, great work.»

«Made a mistake in the last sentance.

* and if you can look past the visuals, you'll find a well made, interesting and creepy tale.»

«Interesting. This allegorical tale was very hit and miss for me, with several areas really standing out and shining, while others failed, I felt. As a side note, thank you very much for the special thanks shout out, I'm glad that I was able to provide some support.

I enjoyed the story, and the voice acting was excellent. The writing was admirabley handled, this is a strange and clever story, and I enjoyed watching it unfold.

My main complaint for the film has to be the ridiculous visuals. Never before have I seen the visuals hamper my enjoyed so much in a film. I enjoy movies with a unique visual style, and they can help a film with establishing the tone of the story and such, but the visuals do MUCH more to hurt the film.

They were overblown and flashy to a point where they not only were distracting, but they made several key scenes very hard to follow (I felt that the battle scenes were quite messy and confusing). I understand that you were going for an eerie, dreamlike feel, but the visuals are extremely distracting.

Also, as silly as this may sound, the early credits in the film were a bit annoying as well. I wish they would have stood still. A very minor issue, but the only reason I am mentioning it is that it's one of those things, like the visuals that are the kind of little artsy touches that I notice in films where it appears as if the director is trying to draw attention away from what they think is a lackluster story.

Despite my complaints, this films strong aspects make this worth watching, and if you can look past the story, you'll find a well made, interesting and creepy tale.
»