Magic in the Sack

A very sexually charged film focused on wizards buoyed - but the steamy atmosphere turns sour with a grim ending depicting the death of a young man on a public street. Where are the police?

The perfect adult film.

Loved the gags, you guys would've cracked odd couple.

Nonetheless, solid attempt in Fantasy, you guys also picked a good time to stop the music and really honed in the sheer awkwardness between the two wizards.

beauty

A couple look to spice things up in the bedroom with a bit of wizardry dress ups.
Some funny moments but also kind of vanilla in its approach so I don't get the sexually charged comment above! I do get the cringy awkwardness at the start but it also makes this short rather slow with a good chunk of the film taking place in the bedroom - where not a lot happens in term of their conversation or visually. The knock on the door adds some much needed conflict which classically results in a duel, the high point of the film. Not really sure what comment is being being here though - women are fickle? Look to change men into something they're not?
Tech side it's all well shot, edited and directed as was their 2022 film. Not as much "feels" in this one though - just cheap laughs.

Still another shortlisted film from this team, a crowd pleaser I'm sure and likely finals bound.

What I liked:
Did Pie Face take my advice from their last film's review where I said they needed to be sexier? Because the premise here is SO sexy and SO good! Loved the concept.

What I didn't like:
I think the performances were great but Harry and Anne could have been a bit bigger - I think their subdued delivery stopped this from soaring into SNL sketch heights or a live action cartoon. If everything was bigger, I think the ending would have had a bit more closure too - Not sure I was on the wizard's side in the narrative, but if Harry was a "bigger" character I think his death would have felt a bit more satisfying.

Something else I liked:
Fav bit was working out Anne was talking to ANOTHER wizard at the door before he was even revealed - so absurd and funny. Loved this film, am gutted and bewildered it didn't make the finals!

Robbed! Robbed I say! You took away so much of the feedback from your last film and ran with it in a great way, and yet the judges say no! How dare they!

By far the best Pie Face story, and given their technical expertise and sharp shooting, I was certain this was a slam dunk finalist.

Hard to give critique when I'm so gutted, but one thought has come to mind in terms of 'turning it up a notch' I suppose. It's in a similar vein to AJ's comment above about 'bigness', I think the first half of this film could've really been aided with some close ups of the face, and opportunity for the leads to really stretch their most absurd expressions to keep the momentum going. This picks up a bit in the final moments with some excellent cuts back in forth of their faces, I think if we had a little bit of that earlier, that would have rounded off a couple sharp edges.

That's it though! That's all I have for you, what else can I say...I guess all that is left to be said is you have evidence in this team of being able to crack into a story that kicks into gear and also equally make it the most beautiful one in the city (oh yeah, did I say robbed of cinematography nom? Robbed!) So with that in mind, perhaps the challenge for next year is to really flex those story muscles and dig deeper into something wild, and you'll have a slam dunk! Surely, surellyyy.

All the love in the world to Pie Face, you have a perfect marriage of professional skill and family vibes and I envy your talent.

#JusticeForSexWizards

Some really solid filmmaking on display here.
First off; the visual storytelling was always very clear.
The key idea of the story was pretty funny, and led to a great reveal around the halfway mark.
Unfortunately, the rest of the film sags a little as the opening gag about costuming had me feeling like I was watching Scary Movie, and a couple of moments felt like they were explaining the jokes a little much.

I loved the ending of the film; it had a real Midsommar vibe to it, where she was freed of her trash boyfriend.

What’s truly baffling is the aspect ratio. Choosing the super cinematic letterboxed look over a more sit-commy 4:3, or standard 16:9 draws attention to a pretty bland setting that isn't particularly interestingly shot or lit.

Overall, some solid performances and direction. Could have used more commitment to a specific vision as opposed to going broad with it.