Brian

This write up is janky. I Apologise in advance.

Cinetrance is possibly the most criminally underrated team in the 48's.
Many of us know the extraordinary lengths Dan has gone to secure a large team doing all the typical roles you would see on an A-tier production.
Until now I used to squint perplexed at this superflous team with unfinshed parts (in much the same way many of you see my fun but bumbling storyless entries).
In the past, Dans films read like a Chris Nolan film. Nolan' is superb given the time and focus required to unravel his complex ideas. But Nolan would make awful shorts.

But Nolan is finally dead and "Brian" is finally a complete film from Cinetrance.
Dan has done the seemingly impossible. He hasn't cut the fat, streamlined and edged me with glimpses of best bits of meat like every other team. He has finally put all the flavor of the whole sausage in my thirsty little mouth and I am gagging through tears "Yes, Danny, Yes!".

Sure, the Majority of Dans film is a few people chatting in a room BUT production wise everything is there. Special effects, visual effects, stunts, background extras, peformance, anamorphic lenses, setdesign, a lighting team and all the catering, producers, transport locations and care a risky world like this takes.

Faced with a decision to go with the trend or break new ground Dan has done what many of us old timers seek: Something new. For 20 years the competition has been slowly narrowing down a skit and simplify formula.
Eventually the wilder films like "shit chat" have fallen to the sides. It's clear Dan has stuck to his wild idea of a full team that many of us gave up on years ago and finally got it together.

The elephant in the room is the post. Although the edit is SUPERB the grade, sound design and music are all simply not there and it is clear they are supposed to be. In a comp where all those things are called "the edit" I fear the editor won't be recognised. Because of this I doubt it will be the winner, but Cinetrance should be recognised for the what they are: A complete film crew.

His secondary cast are classicly and distractingly beautiful too and a lazier director like me would love to see Kelly and Jono up the front in leading roles. Given the easy option of a love story with a hot young cast the story went deeper and looks at the zombified corpse of a metaphoric and literally dead relationship.

Genius. Fresh but heartbreakingly unfinished.

Peformance 6/5
Production 6/5
Production Design 5/5
Post Production 3/5
Execution 4/5

I would like to update this review.
I did not mean that ONLY the secondary cast are hot. Every character in this film, except the zombies is hot and I would watch any scenes of any of them mud wrestling.

You've got to have pretty big balls to tackle the brain eating undead in 48 Hours, but you know what, I'm genuinely glad that a team with the talent of Cinetrance took on the challenge of a post apocalyptic world with shuffling hordes.

I'm genuinely excited to see this film on the big screen because the YouTube compression did you dirty! Really fantastic use of the scope screen and blocking of actors throughout, with the lighting bulletproof and then that sensational church location came to the fore so well, just great cinematography overall.

Now, what I really liked this year from Cinetrance was the script. Yes yes yes; line deliveries and performances were all absolutely stellar, covering ground such as a relationship being on rocky ground giving some weight to proceedings, and then keeping things very relatably kiwi with the revelation that someone important is (or was) actually a prick.

The self-referentialism also was damn amusing.

In terms of other key points, the lack of a soundtrack actually really worked for me! It made the film a bit raw, a bit gritty, which really made it its own unique beast and worked so well as a double edged representation of the raw, rotting undead. No dramatic cues as key moments unfolded meant that we got to see the horror with our own eyes and resonate with the characters.

The ending was also a *chef's kiss* Nice one team.

Story: 4.5/5
Technical: 4.5/5
Elements: 3.5/5
Overall: 4.5/5

Yikes. That was a slick film. From the opening shot to the final frame everything felt purposeful and perfectly in place for the world that was built. the exterior church scenes gave beautiful vibes of horror films gone by - huge plus for me as theres a soft spot for the horrors of yesteryear in my heart.

only downside was the story. Would have loved to have seen something more unfold from this location and premise. I don't presume to tell you how to do your art as thats what makes art interesting have everyone give their own take. But to me, a bit flat

Loved the sound design which worked so well given the context of an apocalypse. Make up 10/10. Performances superb!