VCDQuality Forums - Review: L.A. Twister (2004)

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-- Review: L.A. Twister (2004) (http://www.vcdhq.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=47408)

Posted by DethStar on 10-24-2004 06:44 AM:

Re: on dvd extras, how i got here, on piracy, etc...

quote:
Originally posted by Sven
The film will be in theaters in Madison, WI, Nov. 19-26

I'm makin' the two and a half hour trek up there to support the film, just so you know, Sven.

Posted by kenshinx on 10-24-2004 08:30 AM:

im considering it too but this is a bit of a turn off

Total Est. Time: 2 hours, 34 minutes Total Est. Distance: 154.08 miles

__________________

Posted by dc_man on 10-24-2004 09:54 AM:

Well the verdict is in. Sven amazing job!

9/10

Brilliant idea, great acting by all cast members, you can really feel the relationships everyone shares with each other. Not to mention hilarious! This DVD will most definetely be getting my purchase. I'm hoping this eventually goes wide, so the whole world can view it. If not it's a crying shame, but atleast I got to!

I can now not wait for this suspense picture your gonna start working on. Hoorah! Thank you for making LA Twister.

"I'm the race car, and your the thimble. Bitch!"

Posted by Duke on 10-24-2004 10:20 AM:

Re: on dvd extras, how i got here, on piracy, etc...

quote:
Originally posted by Sven
I just started playing with an IRC software myself and I'm trying to figure out how I can download L.A. TWISTER.

Wow, here about a week and he’s already a pirate

Just curious, how did you feel when you first discovered your movie was pirated?

As for the piracy issue (please note, and this is important, that when we speak of piracy we do not mean downloading and selling them to make a profit like “trunk monkeys” do. but rather it’s more of previewing a movie so to speak) , I’ll be honest, in the short run I believe it hurts the motion picture industry, how ever the damage is minimal. But I place most of the blame on Hollywood itself. They put out pure and utter shit in an effort to earn money and charge $12 to watch it. The MPAA seems to be mad that someone didn’t pay 12 bucks to call a movie crap. Piracy is a kind of way to try before you buy. It’s simple, if a movie is shit I’m not paying for it. If I like it I‘ll fork over $12.00 to watch it in the theater, $20 for a DVD or both. I think most people here are like that. In some ways piracy can also be beneficial, as with limited releases as mystic stated. I’ve watched movies that I may not have just for the fact that I could download it. Some I liked and later bought others I just deleted and never spoke of again. Piracy is the new Sundance. It can be a way for people who have made movies, to get an unlimited showing, who otherwise wouldn’t have a chance to. While no movie has became vastly popular directly from the act of piracy, I believe that indirectly piracy has help to promote certain movies. And with more and more people discovering that they can download movies be it threw IRC, peer to peer, newsgroups or what ever. The time when a motion picture becomes popular as a direct result of piracy won’t be to far off. I guess piracy is still a gray area, it depends on which side of the celluloid your on…

Loved your movie by the way…

__________________

Those who failed to oppose me, who readily agreed with me,
accepted all my views, and yielded easily to my opinions,
were those who did me the most injury, and were my worst enemies.
--Napoleon Bonaparte

Posted by 404notfound on 10-24-2004 12:32 PM:

Re: On the film "device"/on piracy

quote:
Originally posted by Sven
Now back to the "Piracy" issue:

Since this has become such an interesting thread, here is an idea: I will publish this discussion with all its replies in the special feature section of the L.A. TWISTER DVD.

So however you feel about pirating movies, whatever you think about L.A. TWISTER (feel free to slam it!). Write it here and it will be on the DVD.

Ok, i'm going to be the unpopular one here but does anyone else believe that is a REALLY bad idea?

Sven. Its really refreshing to see a director take your viewpoint but i'm afraid you are in the minority. You illustrating your tollerance for piracy on here is one thing, including it on a dvd that could essentially showcase your work to future investers/studios is quite another

I mean its not a stance a studio or an investor wants its directors to be taking. Unlike you they are 99.99% in it for the money!

I'm not 100% sure how you are currently financing projects so this may not be a concern for you but i just thought it might be a point not yet raised and something to think about.

If i may ask you one favour Sven.........

If one day you find yourself at one of those showbiz parties standing in the corner wondering to yourself exactly why you came and notice out of the corner of your eye 'director' (i use the term loosley) Paul W.S. Anderson walking past, could you please just go up to him and PUNCH HIM AS HARD AS YOU FUCKING CAN IN THE FACE!! and as he falls to the floor shout THAT IS FOR EVERY PERSON WHO HAD TO SIT AND WATCH YOU TURN EVERY FRANCHISE YOU TOUCH INTO A STEAMING PILE OF SHITE!

.....and breathe!

Well if this does make it on the dvd maybe he'll see it himself!

404

__________________

Posted by Neversoft on 10-24-2004 02:00 PM:

Re: Re: On the film "device"/on piracy

quote:
Originally posted by 404notfound
If one day you find yourself at one of those showbiz parties standing in the corner wondering to yourself exactly why you came and notice out of the corner of your eye 'director' (i use the term loosley) Paul W.S. Anderson walking past, could you please just go up to him and PUNCH HIM AS HARD AS YOU FUCKING CAN IN THE FACE!! and as he falls to the floor shout THAT IS FOR EVERY PERSON WHO HAD TO SIT AND WATCH YOU TURN EVERY FRANCHISE YOU TOUCH INTO A STEAMING PILE OF SHITE!

That's just pure poetry mate, I couldn't agree more.

As for your comments on putting this thread on the DVD, I sort of share your concerns The404 - didn't a director get raked over in the press and by the MPAA a year or two ago for speaking out and basically saying piracy has only a minor effect on movie revenues? I can't remember who it was though, so it may have only happened in my head (hey, you try drinking carpet shampoo and see how you cope!)

__________________
Statistically... 9 out of 10 people actually enjoy gang rape.

Posted by exorcist on 10-24-2004 05:16 PM:

I half agree with 404. One on hand the VCDq community in paticular is very adamant about two things: Never sell pirated software, and if you like it you should support it. However, I honestly believe that in the wide spectrum of piracy the vast majority are simply shoplifting with the intend to avoid paying period.

In a retail state of mind a movie makes it's profit in video sales, not in box office. The box office is sorta like a big ass promo that helps the production company recup it's expenses. Once the movie reaches DVD the actual profits begin to appear, if they appear at all. So when you come to a movie like L.A Twister that has very limited showings it's actually very beneficial for the movie to be pirated, since most people will not have access to a theatre viewing of the film in the first place. If they see and love them film, some may buy the DVD. If the film was not pirated, no one would have seen it, and no dvds would be purchased. As my mother always told me, some is better than none.

Now on the flipside when you come to blockbuster 100 million dollar productions, you're looking at massive investments with the expectancy of big box office weekends. If a blockbuster is a flop, the production companies won't make their money back for years at the very best. A good example would be that Predator just broke even as of 2003. It almost took 2 decades for a cult classic and incredibly well known film to turn any profit at all. Imagine what happens with some movies that just turn out absolutely dismal (The Alamo or Gigli).

So as it stands blockbuster films NEED the theatre sales, while independent films NEED the video sales and hope for the theatre showings to give the film sufficient buzz to create critical and financial benefits.

__________________

Loving God.... Vengeful God...

Posted by vip3r on 10-25-2004 01:19 AM:

Amazing. I guess all directors don't have sticks up their asses huh? Way to go Sven .. this was an excellent movie. If i get enough time off of school, i sure as well will make the long drive up to Wisconsin. If it wasn't for this thread, i would have never even heard of this movie .. and been able to see it. Keep up the good work and directing. Can't wait to buy this on dvd and for your next film

Movie: 10/10 - Favorite of the year!!! (yes - i gladly rated it on iMDB & recommended it to many friends as well)

Posted by mooseman2070 on 10-25-2004 03:28 AM:

This was defenitley one of the best movies I've seen this year, one of the few that I will actually buy . I'd go see it in theaters but its just too far :\ . AWESOME job on the movie Sven, hope to see more from you . I'm giving it a 10 out of 10!

__________________
I AM USING THE INTRANET!

Posted by wickedsun on 10-25-2004 01:38 PM:

Movie/music companies (monopoly is illegal, so the RIAA/MPAA arent companies, right.. not like they would rig prices on CDs, or movies) have a control of what's being played on the medias. Radio, TV, you name it.

You will also see that they say "IT HURTS THE INDUSTRY". While it is true, they might not be able to suck up every cent they used to get before the net became popular, they are not losing money. It's easy to say that IF a movie they made was crapy, and that lot's of people downloaded it and never bought it, it hurt them. But maybe making a bad movie in the first place was bad?

Let's look at it from another angle. The only traded movies on the net (I mean heavily traded) are movies that are in theatre, making lots of money anyway. Now, would I take the risk of *MAYBE* watch a crappy movie (with 20mins of commercials/previews) for $9, in a theatre, where the food is more expensive than a house? The movie industry has been sucking every dollars they could over the last 20-30 years, and they've been doing it on the fact that we cannot know if we're gonna like what we paid for (i.e. I loved the LOTR, seen them all in theatre, bought them on DVD.. yet I downloaded them).

And one fun twist that's been around for ages about music.. why are CDs more expensive than tapes? Quality? Vinyl has a higher quality, actualy, and when you "buy" a tape/cd, you buy the license that allows you to listen to it, and it's not a "if (%quality >= 22kHz) = %total * 2" license.

I don't post often, but seeing that the director of a movie agrees with me on movies (like, DOWNLOAD MY SHIT, ITS COOL WE'RE ALL BROS AND SHIT), it makes me very happy. Seeing someone in the industry itself agreeing is a very nice feeling

My 2 cents.

PS: I'll make sure to download it, too :P

Posted by JiggaLigga on 10-25-2004 04:19 PM:

Fitting tight with the video scene, I'm glad to see a director who has the view of a pirate himself. Pushing bootleg releases out on the net hasn't been a task for many groups so people to grab and decide to sell, but a task so people who can not afford to see a good/bad movie at the movie theater (also for movies such as this being a limited theater release). The movie industry of course sees this as a violent act towards their industry, as a bunch of dumb people actually do go out and sell crappy cam copies on DVDs. I'd like to point out a video that I've done, it's called Piracy the Addiction, its on clubten.tv . It's my view on piracy, however judge it whatever way you wish. I am a up and coming video producer, and see no problem with piracy as it just helps most people get to see movies that they normally can not see right away. Isn't the movie industry about the entertainment? Revenue usually generates back, so what money is lost? Nothing. Did we tell the industry to pay actors millions of dollars to act in their films? No . . . . quite stupid if you ask me if they want to bitch about us stealing their films. Personally, I get in the movies for free since my girlfriend works box at a movie theater. Also the managers have tons of friends they let in free. So yes, PIRACY isn't the only thing hurting the industry, the theaters employees let people slide in for free!!

About L.A. Twister, haven't had a chance to see it , haven't even seen a theater around here that may have it. Will be sure to buy it when the DVD arrives in stores.

Posted by exorcist on 10-25-2004 04:22 PM:

quote:
making lots of money anyway

Very poor outlook on piracy. You are rationalizing theft. Wal-Mart makes TONS of money, is it alright to walk in there and just slip items into your pockets? No. The general movies you are speaking of run an average of one hundred million just to produce, millions more to advertise, millions more to distribute, etc etc etc... As I pointed out in my last post, most box office hits usually don't make a profit until the movie hits video. All those millions they make in theatres is simply recuperating the expense of creating the film.

Regardless of how much money the movie cost to make or makes in theatre, when your rationale is that it's already making lots of money you are simply making an excuse not to pay for it. If you download pirated movies you ARE commiting a crime and under no circumstance is it the "right thing to do". That doesn't mean there are no benefits to piracy, but it still doesn't make it right.

__________________

Loving God.... Vengeful God...

Posted by Neversoft on 10-25-2004 06:52 PM:

quote:
Originally posted by exorcist
Very poor outlook on piracy. You are rationalizing theft. Wal-Mart makes TONS of money, is it alright to walk in there and just slip items into your pockets?

But if I went into Wal-Mart to buy a coke, I'd get a coke... If I went into a cinema to watch a movie, there's a pretty good chance I'll see a total steamer instead. Think about how many dissapointments Hollywood has produced this year, movies that could have been good and turned out to be nothing but pure, unadulterated rubbish.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to realise that the industry does lose some money to piracy but they still make more money every year, it's not as big a problem as they'd like the lawmakers to believe. I seem to remember reading somewhere that Hollywood made in the region of $55bn last year and by their estimates they lost $2bn to piracy - and you don't want to know what I think of their esimates... but I expect the equation goes along the lines of:

1 pirated movie = 1 lost sale

Which is bollocks... 90% of the releases I've downloaded this year have been rubbish. The other 10% I've paid to see in the cinema or on rental, despite having a bootleg copy.

__________________
Statistically... 9 out of 10 people actually enjoy gang rape.

Posted by sar on 10-25-2004 06:59 PM:

hi mom!

I checked the most "artsy"/experimental movie theatres around, and noone will be showing this movie on the big screen, it seems (Denmark).

Edit: Heh, I already had access to it on an ftp server - if it hadn't been for this thread, I'd never have thought to watch it.. now it will be accompanying my dinner, I can't wait.

Posted by Neversoft on 10-25-2004 07:07 PM:

quote:
Originally posted by sar
hi mom!

now hurry up someone, and release a dvd rip of the movie, so that us scandinavians can watch it too - I checked the most "artsy"/experimental movie theatres around, and noone will be showing this movie on the big screen, it seems.

There's a workprint and a DVD screener out - Mystic reviewed the workprint.

__________________
Statistically... 9 out of 10 people actually enjoy gang rape.

Posted by F0ur2o on 10-25-2004 07:10 PM:

I just sat and laughed alone for about a minute at the thought of someone like Sven or any other new forum browser clickin on Neversoft's random link.

Haven't seen this link yet...at work.....maybe it's tasty.

__________________

Posted by sar on 10-25-2004 07:23 PM:

Ah yes neversoft - found it now.. by HLS, released 29. of September - wonder why it's not on vcdquality?

Sven: If you want to see how the pirated cut of your movie looks like, I'm sure someone here could upload it too you.. I doubt you'll have much luck with IRC, I tried before, and got 3 KB/s =)

Posted by pony_sr on 10-25-2004 07:25 PM:

Great Work Sven

Sven,

It has really been exciting to have you as a guest here on the forums. I appreciate your work on LA Twister. After reading Mystic's review and your initial response, I went online to see if LA Twister was playing near me- unfortunately it wasn't, so I scoured the net for a copy to satiate my curiousity. After watching the movie a couple times through, I'm happy to support Mystic's nomination of best film of 2004. Great work- I'll definitely be buying the DVD when it comes out. I've left my support on IMDB.com in the form of a 10 rating and an exemplary review- which I'll post here as well. Thanks for the great work.

"Sven Pape has proven himself genius with this distinctly unique artwork. Covering all aspects of the "Hollywood scene," Pape holds nothing back while unveiling the beast behind the Hollywood mask. Zack Ward commands a stellar lead, and is supported by a very talented and inventive cast and crew. Pape has created a work that will appeal to the viewer at every emotional level, and leave his audience hungry for more of his work. L.A. Twister should be a huge stepping-stone in the career of Sven Pape, and will definitely be a mile marker of remembrance. In an era where the public is bombarded by senseless and unmeaning media which Hollywood dubs as "entertainment," it is encouraging and refreshing to view a work of art such as L.A. Twister. "

Posted by wickedsun on 10-25-2004 10:33 PM:

quote:
Originally posted by exorcist
You are rationalizing theft.

quote:
Originally posted by exorcist
Very poor outlook on piracy.

Copying a movie is *NOT* theft. Theft is when you take something without paying for it. It is, however, copyright infringment, which is still illegal. I tottaly agree with that, with the current law, it is illegal (not in Canada, tho).

If you can explain to me why its ok to have movies broadcasted on TV for free (i.e. I don't pay a dime to see it), but it's not ok to watch it when I feel like it? The only difference: the net is not controllable.

If I like a movie, I'll buy the license to it. At one point I saw something saying that making movies was actualy a risky business. Well, all I have to say is this, if it's that risky, how come they're making so much money, and how come it lasted 50 years? It's not risky, thats why.

The MPAA/RIAA went on a rampage about tapes, too. They just keep going at technologies because they can't control it. Sooner or later, they'll realize that net swappers are there to stay, and there isnt a damn thing they can do about it.

Posted by alexg65 on 10-26-2004 02:20 AM:

Ok so I just found this thread while browsin round the forum, read the reviews, watched the trailer, now I really wanna see this movie, so off I go to find it!
If it wasn't for the "pirates" I wouldn't be able to see this film!

@Sven
Total respect with your attitude on this one!

Alex

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