TheReviewTrickster's movie Reviews on Newgrounds

[Tourian]

Well, I don't play Metroid, but this was a bit confusing to me. The animation and art are fantastic, the artstyle especially reminds me of Samurai Jack at times. The fight an cuts do too. However, I feel like the way every shot ended with a fade out was a bit weird, made the whole thing feel disjointed. Like one moment Samus is walking, the next she's gettin assaulted by a Metroid? The uhhhh... spaghetti-O's thrown at hwr could have been shown with her dodging them from the start instead of a couple of shots of just them, cause I didn't realize what they were at first. The ending is also really abrupt. So I'm not sure what exactly transpired here and in what order. I did like the contrasted shots of her getting attacked and her making friends with the Metroid. The sound was also pretty great, very fitting.
So do keep it up, this looked beautiful and had some great potential, just maybe work on editing and story flow, making stuff clearer. Take this with a grain of salt, though, as it could be that someone who has played Metroid understands this perfectly.

Zoukeau responds:

Metroid fans are definitely the target audience for this. My hope is that they'll understand, or rather, recognize all the events from Super Metroid within my animation. However I'm very interested in how people outside that fandom perceive what I have created here. Best case scenario: they become curious about the game or the Metroid series as a whole.

If that doesn't happen, I'd still be glad if people appreciate the ambience/tone of my animation, which you seem to do.

Also the bit where Samus "makes friends" with the Metroid is supposed to be a flashback of the big Metroid. He grows a lot bigger, and I think that's what maybe makes it confusing. Perhaps I should have put that flashback in grayscale after all.

[Money " Cel animation"]

I like the animation, you did well. Maybe I'm just biased towards that style, but still. Some things need a bit of practice, like for instance when he crouched he looked like he was sitting on air. Just something off about the perspective or maybe his legs? Probably the way his body seems a 90° angle to them like if he was sitting. The twist was funny and just kinda cute. I didn't expect the dancing, and that was pretty funny too. Just that level of randomness brought in by the music out of nowhere.
Keep it up!

NightThief81 responds:

thanks !
sure , I'll do my best :)

[Happy Halloween]

Simple and short but nice and charming. The music has that wholesome spooky appeal and I like the art. The ending was just fun. Keep it up but maybe make longer/more complete feeling stuff if you're submitting to the Movie Portal next time. Happy Halloween!

VillainousVic responds:

Thank you for the feedback. I appreciate it. Next time I do plan for something longer and more complex. Maybe for christmas. This was just to get my toes in the water. I now know what I am doing...mostly.

[Horace Hermer Security Solutions]

Well, the artstyle is really interesting. Really like the way the exterior of the school looks lol. The transitions between shots are a bit weird. They make it look like video game screens are switching or something. I'd get it if they were kinda used with a brief montage of him setting up but that's not what we have here. The principal's voice acting is pretty good, pretty funny. The actual gore and stuff is really unsettling, because it's just so weird and absurd-looking. Over-the-top and doesn't waste a second getting to it and I figured the ending would be something weird and off the wall too, but unfortunately, that didn't happen. It just ended. It does have a bit of that frankness value, but I still feel like there should have been more of a progression of spooks. I can see that it was made in a pretty short timespan and you never got around to adding stuff, which I get. Either way, keep it up, and happy Halloween!

FOST3R responds:

Thank you for such a thorough review! I totally agree with you on all of it. And oof - if I could have changed one thing before uploading it, those choppy black transitions would have been the first on my list. You're right that they're very jarring, unnecessary, and distracting. In the theater it wasn't as apparent to me, but online it is definitely noticable. It was a creative choice that most certainly flopped!

Thank you for your other compliments and criticisms, too - this is why I LOVE Newgrounds. People actually put thought into feedback to artists. I'm glad you enjoyed parts of this, and that even though it ended awkwardly you still found some merit in it. I hope you had a great Halloween, too!

[Attaboy!]

Fairly funny joke, and pretty nice anination, but needs more sound, it just feels kinda empty. That punchline needs it especially, and the arm swing could have used some too.

Silberpinguin responds:

Sounddesing is hard. Thanks for the criticism. I'll do better next time

[SUMMER IS ALMOST OVER]

Wow, I'm moved to tears.
For real though, this was good. Not conventional, that's for sure. I think you did your 12-year-old self justice. This feels exactly the way I imagine a 12-year-old's comic brought to life would feel. The silly faces, the weird story and, most of all, the narration and noir, "serious" setting. It doesn't feel like it's trying to parody itself but it's also self-aware. It demonstrates sincerity in the enjoyment it gets from being what it is and paying tribute to what it's based on. It feels... understanding, I guess. The animation is fun, perfectly fitting wth the weird cut-out people and the video game moments. The voice acting could be a bit louder at times or the music could be a bit quieter. Voice acting was prettt fitting in the same way as the adaptation itself. Just feels like what a 12-year-old would want it to be. The characters cqn sound goofy or over-the-top serious, but it fits. Story, of course, is nonsensical but I feel that's okay in this case.
Keep it up, this was a wonderfully executed tribute. Happy Halloween!

RedSoul92 responds:

Gee thanks a bunch, I think my inner child is proud of me and I agree, audio dynamic could be better.
Happy Halloween!

[The Song From A Dream]

We don't celebrate Halloween here much so this made me remember to check the date.
Wow, man. This was fantastic. I don't really know where to start. Absolutely beautiful animation and background art, a perfect exercise in the Anton M style in my opinion. It's all the finesse and stylization you do so well, without any unnecessary slow-downs. Really, you pulled off the pace so well. You've been doing that lately. It takes the time to establish the setting, but it keeps moving. James' design is also fantastic. He's weird but cute, andthat makes him a really interesting protagonist because of the whole music thing. We're shown early on taht he's sympathetic but dependent on his music box. He's a coward, to put it simply. The amorphous shape the music comes from is really cool-looking as well, and it's interesting how you made certain things obscured or under-detailed but showed the close-up of the music note dude going under the shape. Makes it seem like everyone is lured the same way James is, and it's not like he's arrived in a completely foreign and non-understandable world. Or, if he did, the veil of mystery lifts for everyone when they go under. Cool story, even though it's very abtract. A kind of apocalypse we don't usually see, and I like that we only see fragments of what happened, with the scribbled names on the signs and stuff. Maybe that was just for humor value. Expert sound design in this one, really jolting, I love the bird's sounds and that visual itself was pretty great. James' skeletal shiver was nice as well. The only one I would change is the animal's carcass-munching. You really love those sounds, don't you? This one was a bit too warbly, I guess.
Keep it up and thanks for making my Halloween!

AntonM responds:

Damn thank you so much for taking the time to write these kind words man!! Got the fattest smile reading it :))))

[Interface | Episode 16]

A lot of new stuff learned this episode. The sky used to be blue, Henryk was a pilot/paratrooper, he used to speak, CE carries information/memories.
Wow, the emotion here. The colors. There was blue. Blue in the skies, on the wall. It's so jarring to see in Interface. I know everyone is meming the shit out of frog Mischief, but I found him reqlly intimidating. Acting silly and cutting straight to the chase while Henryk is probably at his most emotional. Interesting how this is the second time we've seen Henryk with a parachute. Speaking of which, I think the stadium and justice stafue were pink because they represent individual, emotional concepts. Just throwing that out there. Also, I think Mischief, Octobro and Ghost are all different individualist ways of life or thinking or something. Mischief feeds off the failure of others, Octobro cannibalizes others, and Ghost helps. I believe the true symbolism here is that Kami and GR are trying to bring these facets under ther own control, because otherwise the collective can't work. Anyways, I feel like the "no wonder you wanted to run away" line is important. The train I guess suggests Henryk tried throwing himself into doom just to escape his sadness. Unless it's talking about the time before his wife died? Guess we'll have to wait and see. Anyways, I like the symbolism of the tie in the dough, him exposing himself, leaving himself vulnerable. The music was nice too, as always, and the ending was just something else. I kept hoping Henryk would say it. Say "I love you", say "I love you". I respect you for still not having sacrificed his muteness for a cheap emotional effect. It's absolutely heartbreaking, but at this point, I have no choice but to see where this story goes. Keep it up, my dude!

u-m-a-m-i responds:

Hey man, thanks for the great review. Sometimes I put things in and they go unnoticed, possibly months down the line, I think to myself is the symbolism here too unnoticeable, is this scene too vague. But then, your reviews are always able to pick up on these subtle details, A great critical mind :)

[Test Character - Lee Shin]

Pretty nicely animated, but I just don't think the character is very original. And he's got a pretty cool look to him, so why is his power just summoning random weapons out of nowhere? It should be some demonic shit or something. I did like the choreography, especially the way he kept opponents at bay with stun hits and stuff like that, and that move when he tossed teh guy's head into the other guy's knee was fantastic, though I do think it should have been used to incapacitate the green guy, not just kill the reddish-brown dude. A bit more of that kind of thinking and this would have been a lot cooler. Also, something seems off, like some of the stickmen have been compressed, like the little guy. You might wanna look into that.
Overall this had potential, but it needed to be a bit more creative.

Sensialito responds:

Regarding the appearance of weapons, it is the character's ability. He is supposed to steal the souls of those he kills to turn them into living weapons. But I think I couldn't demonstrate the character's potential well. I usually write the skills in the description, but on my YouTube channel. About the little character, it was purposeful, I wanted to give it a fun touch (for me) and then I just put it smaller to the rest hahaha. The dynamics of the "Character Test" is to demonstrate a little that each character is going, obviously, seeing how he is able to eliminate his enemies 1 by 1, but I think he would also have to put more movements as you say. I will take your comment <3