U-Knighted

Interesting to see PlanetFoxFilms not go too fantastical with make up effects and curious creatures. Taking it seriously and having a mostly sit down and talk film feels a little bit unfamiliar to this team. There’s some good heart in it, but it doesn’t all clearly come through for me. I liked the animation work. I liked the characters. I’m just not sure there was enough story to keep me engaged for the whole duration.

And I say this with love as 2021’s “A Hearts Desire” is one of my absolute favourite 48Hour films. I think figuring out what you can do to play to your strengths in the competition is what makes your films as great as they are.

I think you guys are creeping into TBALC levels of scrutiny, so you should be proud of that. We set the bar high (sometimes unfairly) for those we've seen accomplish great things in the past, so remember that when you're reading reviews.

PlanetFox seems to be at a crossroads where they want to stick closely with their goofy nature but also mature into more authentic and sensitive themes, a natural change and one that's very welcome! But also hard to pull off.

There is a tension between the goofy and the serious in this film that didn't quite land in the last act in particular. The take the couch outside gag is great, but felt a bit unusual given how serious everything around it seemed to be, and how reluctant Josh's character seems to be to want to be there in the first place. I think for many of us there was probably the (very biased) assumption that there would be a wacky twist or shock, or that there would be an element that's really taken to the extreme. I look forward to watching this again with a clearer mind and one that isn't filled with 'This is what to expect from these guys'.

The cinematography, sound, animations, and rent-a-crowd was all super clean and with only a few heats to go I assume and hope you'll get some nominations for said things.

please remember to continue to enter every year until you die. It won't be long before the perfect storm comes to you guys and all your strengths will lead you to taking out this whole goddamn competition.

Hey team, great stuff.

This film definitely showed some of your strengths, particularly the animation and cinematography. I think it’s awesome to try new things and head in different directions. That’s what film making is all about huh! My only advice would be to not buy in too much to feedback on what you should or shouldn’t be doing. Stick with what feels true to you guys because regardless of what you make, it’s always a gem. Hanging with good mates and bringing whatever collective crazy mind meld of an idea come to life is what makes 48 hours a sweet sweet time. Love yo work.

U-KNIGHTED is an incredibly looking, well performed, somewhat understated entry from PlanetFoxFilms this year, and while it didn't quite make the top 15, there's still a lot to be proud of here.

As I said, the cinematography and production design is really great - the warm afternoon sunlight is kept so consistent throughout and there's something very peaceful about the way this film looks. The animation, as well, should not be overlooked, and if the cinematography wasn't so lush I'd be tempted to say it's the best part of the film.

The house filmed in is also delightfully interesting - no modern white walls, no sterile lighting! Plus filming outside looks great too. What is it that's so filmic about a couch outside?

So, what lets it down? It's hard to quite explain, but personally I actually had a hard time fully grasping the story, fully understanding what was going on, and while I have the broad strokes, I'm still left scratching my head after multiple watches.

I understand it's about one friend trying to earn another's forgiveness through playing their favourite video game, but so many other story beats just perplexed me - why is there a crowd clamoring to get into the store at the start? Where aren't the crowd let in to the store? You went the extra mile getting so many extras to appear for this scene but I'm not even sure what purpose it served.

My biggest "huh?" moment is when the main guy (Player 2) helps the friend (Player 1)grab the controller and sensually rubs his hands up his arms and caresses his shoulders - I really don't understand what the intention of this was, and for a moment I thought maybe their friendship broke up because of unrequited love? It just seemed like such a homoerotic set-up which ended up going nowhere. Would love to know what this moment was supposed to indicate, please DM me.

Another beat which confused me is when Player 2 is killed by the Gatekeeper and Player 1 is so mortified by this - what's going on? At a stretch I think it's supposed to suggest he died on purpose to prolong their playing session? If this was the case I don't think the comprehension is quite there. Or maybe it's just me.

I do also wonder if perhaps a larger problem here is the relatively low stakes of playing a video game? I wonder if something stronger and more tangible needed to drive the external story and been a conduit for forgiveness.

We're delivered the important emotional context of what caused their falling out - Player 2 started dating someone lame and Player 1 "got sick" - both of these things are delivered through telling and not showing, which isn't the worst thing in the world since the story is about picking up the pieces, but I do think both of these explanations, especially Player 1 getting sick, are told to us waaaaayyy too late in the story. "Getting sick" is also such an intriguing idea but not developed or expanded on at all. It felt more like you were using a trusty narrative trope rather than actually kneading it into the dough of the story.

I'm cautious to tell you, or any team, what I'd prefer they make films about, but for you guys in particular who've cut your teeth on wacky and bizarre stories with crazy practical effects and charmingly scary monsters, I am surprised at just how subdued your entry this year was, especially coming off the back of your city finalist film last year. I understand wanting to tell more personal stories, but you guys are just SO good at this wild and insane stuff, that I wonder if there was a more PlanetFoxian way to take this story. Do they get sucked into the video game and have to fight off goblins and ghouls as a metaphor for mending their friendship? Or does the Gatekeeper come out of the TV and serve as a grotesque mediator for their conflict?

You should write what you want to write - but in terms of what you excel at, I felt something was missing. As it stands, U-KNIGHTED focuses far too much on character backstory and sets up WAY too much but also clarifies WAY too little.

Challenge for next year: So I guess my mission statement for you in 2023 would be to find the happy marriage between these more personal stories you want to tell and the pulpy Z-Grade weirdness you're so goddamn good at. An emotional arc doesn't need to be crazy specific or complex to still be effective, and if you manage to successfully combine your crazy with your sincere, honestly, I think you'll probably win Christchurch.

Working out the PlanetFoxFilms have been entering 48HRS since 2014 really does make me feel old. The fact that a lot of this team still seems to be together is great too.

Like other reviewers, I'm left somewhat perplexed by the story in this short. It seems that this film was perhaps all quite a personal one but as an audience, we probably had to be in on it to fully grasp it. I can imagine the playing of the favourite video game was something that really happened - I certainly did this once with a couple of my friends after we hadn't seen each other in a while. So, as a set-up, it's a good one but elements of what follows (such as those mentioned by AJ above) just leave you confused. Putting the blame on the girlfriend is also rather dangerous territory in this comp - just saying.

I watched this on the live stream the first time and was chatting to a friend who was also watching at the time. When the characters first turned on the game I wrote "Cue: Crazy weird make-up character" but of course, it never came! I actually think it's a good thing that you made a move away from that, exploring some range which looking at your YouTube channel you certainly have.

Overall, a great-looking film that narratively is just missing a few important pieces.