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There was a surprising amount of labor and detail that went into some of
these shorts. Duel had some pretty good special effects as well as some
decent production values (up until the choreographed fight scenes) and
No Menus Please probably was the best overall (about two rival
menu-placers and their battle for dominance). And the really weird
Little Wings about butterflies had character actor Ron Canada, who has
been in everything from Adventures in
Babysitting and just about any TV show ever to playing Gabriel Jones in
Nick Fury the TV movie and the butler in the Wedding Crashers. Look him
up. You've seen him in something. So weird to see him on this disc.
Everything
else.
This is a film full of shorts. Called Shorts for Cats. None of which
have cats in them. What the hell is that about? Now, I'm a cat
person, so I was gearing up, cat in lap, for something we could both
enjoy, but there wasn't much of anything either of us could enjoy.
As I mentioned, the first film Duel had alright production values,
but then a swordfight started and was way too slow and
over-choreographed as if to be a showcase for someone's physical
prowess and ability to roll. Not only that, but the groan-inducing
"reveal" that anyone with half a brain could see coming a mile away
just made it ridiculous. No Menus Please suffered from overacting
from everyone that spoke (as the two main menu guys barely spoke a
word if any) and the production seemed slightly poor at times, such
as the fighting between the two men and the super-annoying woman
with the Whitesnake shirt. I wanted to jam one of the menus down her
throat just so I never had to hear her again.
The Big Break? Again, terrible acting. The main guy and girl are
trying to break into Hollywood. He has a high screechy Screech-like
voice and a Hank Azaria look to him with a very strange accent, but
I was just completely bored by it. Same with the Fight which looked
like something you would find a clip of during America's Funniest
Videos.
Little Wings? Ever heard the expression never cry over spilled milk?
Someone should have told the abusive dad that in this film because
it would have saved him an attack from killer butterflies. This
movie just made me laugh. It was strange and weird and really made
little to no sense. I couldn't figure out if it was a joke or not
but it had me laughing.
And Don't Leave Me? Again, groan-inducing big shock ending. Why
didn't they work to figure out a way to create a good character
without having to rely on the shock ending that you could see coming
if you barely even kept your eyes on the screen?
Not much good that can be said about these films. They get an A for
effort, that's for sure, and more power to them for trying to make
something with their lives and make a film. But with no discernible
qualities that tie them together, no real central theme between them,
there is a lot lost in translation when attempting to watch these films.
Questions I'd like to ask the filmmakers and just a chance to break them
down further. And where the hell are the cats?
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