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Reviews
Hawk (2011)
A visually stunning, inviting, imaginative world.
Hawk is a captivating and visually stunning tale of a young boy's journey to manhood through learning the lesson of morality.
We follow Rowan through his childhood as he is taught about the world around him with stories from his Taid, a mysterious man that seems to know more about the world than he confesses to.
The countryside is shown in dramatic landscapes, with a plethora of green forest and hills. The CGI used on the skies is dramatic and enables the world to fully form as a place of nature; a nomadic reserve full of life.
The CGI throughout the film is wonderfully enriching; each sky and landscape is used to full potential and adds to the atmosphere of the narrative as a whole.
There is a strong focus on Welsh lore, which creates a magical atmosphere. However, it feels somewhat compromised by the lack of background story development; we do not learn fully who the characters are or why they live alone, despite the use of a voice-over.
This creates a distance between the characters and the audience as further understanding is compromised by lack of development.
The story is enticing to watch and the use of the Welsh language is clever and intelligently adds to the dramatic atmosphere.
The musical score works discreetly to add an extra layer of atmosphere to each scene when used, and adds a magical feel to the film as a whole.
Hawk falls in between a short and a feature-length film, and it is pronounced in the way that the narrative is large and substantial enough to be developed further (which would push it into the boundary of the feature-length) and yet it is too rich to be squeezed into the short category.
Hawk is a world of intrigue that is well worth viewing not least for its visual beauty, but more so the interesting story of a world that is highly imaginative and inviting.
Gin & Dry (2010)
Heart-warming and definitely worth viewing.
Gin and Dry is a heart-warming tale that follows the residents of an old age pensioner care home in their quest to 'get the booze back'.
Managing to balance comedy and drama so poignantly and effortlessly within such a short running time works with Gin and Dry as the narrative manages to weave in and out of light-hearted fun and deeper meaningful points.
There is more than meets the eye with Gin and Dry as the story manages to touch on heartfelt issues in a way that enlightens the viewer without becoming too serious by using the humour of the characters to ensure it is fun to watch.
The cinematography ensures each shot is beautifully focused and framed to perfection which all works to create a warm tone that invites you further into the story; as does the music.
Gin and Dry is a delight to watch, heart-warming and definitely worth viewing.