Bricks in Motion
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The Meek and the Bold
A mysterious man and his companion are on a mission to warn, punish, and forgive those who have gone astray.
It was very good, but I don't think lego brought out it's full potential. I can defintely see this in a live action film though.
I'm glad you decided to take extra time out of THAC to complete your film, it was definitely worth while 
The set design, animation, and voice acting were all great. I especially loved the use of the saxophone case. Also, the overall film had a specific atmospheric feel to it; which can be hard to do, but was extremely well done in this short.
Again, fantastic job! I'll probably watch your film a few more times this evening 
Great job. I loved the voice acting and the animation. I loved the fire.
Good to have you back, Nathan!
This is a good brickfilm, or at least I think it's good. I can't really tell, because I can't hear most of what the man with the cane says – he speaks too indistinct. I'm Norwegian; perhaps that's why I think it's hard to understand, but I feel he should have spoken more clearly. However, as far as I can see (and hear) the plot is clever.
The set is gorgeous, and I simply love the opening shot of the fire and the following cut to the old man reading the newspaper. That was beautifully executed.
I understand that this was originally a THAC film, however, I feel that you have done what Metallica did with St. Anger - did what everybody else was doing, even though they were the pioneers, and could have done anything they wanted. Granted, my gripes are small, but, they kind of ruined the film for me. (And by ruined, I mean made me like this film more than 70% of other brickfilms out there, but still.)
To start, the sound effect around 0:20 is a little confusing to me. Is it the clock, is it the record skipping, is it a doorbell, is it a train outside? And then the random cut back to the fireplace at 0:27, throws me off. - From both a directing standpoint, and from a creative standpoint; if you wanted to cut back to the fire before showing the guests entering, make the shot a little longer. Otherwise, it feels like a 3-year old was editing Casablanca. Yeah, the film will still be pretty good, but may be a strain on the eyes at times, and might not make as much sense.
At 0:36 until 0:40, the bald guy's hands move up and down much too quickly, especially for someone as old as he should be. It's almost reminiscent of a comic book type action, but that's something ForrestFire101 has perfected, and integrated into his own style...
And then the man with the red coat's animation from about 0:40 until 0:44 is again, something I've seen quite often in more modern animations, but not the classics. It looks a little uninteresting to me, and, unless the mouth moves when a minifig is animated like this, it looks rather poor. This is a little bit of a let down, as, I love your other films, and especially your mouth moving-less animation. (I think it looks more realistic anyway) However, this film just seems out of place next to Driven or even Beast.
After 0:50, however, the film really shines. The sets (especially the room with the food) are remarkable, and the animation picks up a little more. It no longer seems as if you are experimenting, now it seems as if you are animating in your own style, and with more precision than in Beast. (The walking having improved a lot since Beast, I might add.)
And, on top of that, the costumes, as I call them, all look great, especially that of the man with the red coat. His inner jacket/vest is awesome to look at, and the voice acting fits all of the characters really well.
Actually, the film's high point is probably the fireplace's animation. The bar doesn't move, and yet the light doesn't flicker in an unattractive way: it all looks just as it should be - like the firelight really is flickering. Having tried things like this in the past, I understand how hard it can be to get the lighting, and flicker, just right.
The only other complaint I have is the lack of you in your film. Aside animation, some other staples in your films are missing. A Nathan Wells cameo? The Stoic man? You voicing a character? I understand how short the film is, and under what time you were pressed to finish the thing - yet, I think you could have at least voiced one character. Then, it'd feel more like your other films.
All in all, I gave it 3 stars. Not what I'd expect from a great brickfilmer such as yourself, but, better than most for a comeback film... And at that, this isn't even your "true" comeback film. Hopefully, Alex and Derrek 5 years later will be a little better.
I'll agree with some of what Dyland says. But, I think it's actually very well put together, considering how limited he was on time. It was THAC, after all, and (even though he took a little extra time to edit this unofficial entry) as most of us know, THAC is never easy.
more like your other films
The problem is that this (along with Derricking Ball) is the only video that Nathan's put out in the last 5-6--or so--years. Of course his new stuff isn't going to be like his older stuff. It won't have the same feel or style as the old ones because, once again, this is five years later. Nathan Wells has come a long way since animating his videos using Movie Maker.
Anyways, the editing, animation, and voice acting was very well done. I'm glad you were able to upload this in the end, even if it didn't meet the deadline. Keep up the good work, Nathan, and good luck on A&D: 5YL.
Nikolai Klaus... I get it.
Wow, I really liked this. The animation was great as usual, the set design superb, and I loved the cinematography. The animation and lighting of the fireplace was fantastic, especially the way it reflected off the characters' faces (any chance of getting a behind-the-scenes look at how you did that?). Also, I loved the shot of the not-so-empty pantry. I really liked the charcoal speech as well, and it did a great job of building up tension, especially when Mr. Montgomery backed away as Klaus repeated "burnt".
The one thing I found somewhat off was the voice acting, in particular that of Nikolai. I personally thought it sounded quite mumbly and flat, and not really authoritative enough, and I sometimes couldn't understand what he was saying.
Nevertheless, this is a great film, and I certainly hope to see a lot more from you in the future!
Thank you all very much for the comments, I appreciate it!
It was very good, but I don't think lego brought out it's full potential. I can defintely see this in a live action film though.
I can see how two characters talking plus one other character opening a door doesn't exactly utilize the full potential of what stop-motion can achieve, but I have no interest in producing live-action films.
I'm glad you decided to take extra time out of THAC to complete your film, it was definitely worth while
...
Also, the overall film had a specific atmospheric feel to it; which can be hard to do, but was extremely well done in this short.
I'm glad I waited too. With four hours to go I was lacking some of the most important scenes, so I would barely have a presentable film if I had rushed it for THAC. I'm very happy with the atmosphere of this film, too. It's also probably what cost me entering THAC. I spent a very long time designing my set to fit the mood I wanted (subdued but not gray colors, hints of a Christmas (red/green) color scheme. I also spent a lot of time considering blocking and cinematography. For almost every shot I wanted Mr. Montegomery and/or Nikolai Klaus framed by the fire in the background. I made the set modular, but it still took a long time to set up each shot, especially since I was switching out between three different lenses. From now on I will definitely be storyboarding all of my film so I can plan out my shots properly.
Great job. I loved the voice acting and the animation. I loved the fire.
I'm very happy with how the fire turned out. I'll post pictures of the rig soon.
This is a good brickfilm, or at least I think it's good. I can't really tell, because I can't hear most of what the man with the cane says – he speaks too indistinct. I'm Norwegian; perhaps that's why I think it's hard to understand, but I feel he should have spoken more clearly. However, as far as I can see (and hear) the plot is clever.
I've gotten several complaints about the difficulty in understanding Nikolai Klaus. I never had trouble understanding the lines, but of course since I was already very familiar with the lines I am not a neutral party. I have added closed captions to the video, which hopefully clears up some confusion. I think this has been my most valuable lesson from this film: get uninvolved 3rd parties to review sound and dialog quality. Of course, this is harder to do during THAC, but it would be good practice to adopt for films without such a short deadline.
To start, the sound effect around 0:20 is a little confusing to me. Is it the clock, is it the record skipping, is it a doorbell, is it a train outside? And then the random cut back to the fireplace at 0:27, throws me off. - From both a directing standpoint, and from a creative standpoint; if you wanted to cut back to the fire before showing the guests entering, make the shot a little longer. Otherwise, it feels like a 3-year old was editing Casablanca. Yeah, the film will still be pretty good, but may be a strain on the eyes at times, and might not make as much sense.
I'm surprised by this, I thought it was pretty clear the sound was of a grandfather clock tolling. It was meant as a nod to A Christmas Carol, when Scrooge is visited by the first Ghost after the bell tolls 1. As for the editing of that scene, I stand by my choices. But I always welcome what others would have done.
At 0:36 until 0:40, the bald guy's hands move up and down much too quickly, especially for someone as old as he should be. It's almost reminiscent of a comic book type action, but that's something ForrestFire101 has perfected, and integrated into his own style...
And then the man with the red coat's animation from about 0:40 until 0:44 is again, something I've seen quite often in more modern animations, but not the classics. It looks a little uninteresting to me, and, unless the mouth moves when a minifig is animated like this, it looks rather poor. This is a little bit of a let down, as, I love your other films, and especially your mouth moving-less animation. (I think it looks more realistic anyway) However, this film just seems out of place next to Driven or even Beast.
This I can chalk up to my go-to excuse for this film: It was filmed during THAC, after over five years of not animating any dialog scenes (most of my stuff that I have animated already for Five Years Later was non-dialog). Simply put, I was out of practice, and was still trying to find my groove again. Most of the shots after 0:50 were animated after THAC and after I had gotten more comfortable with animating dialog again.
The only other complaint I have is the lack of you in your film. Aside animation, some other staples in your films are missing. A Nathan Wells cameo? The Stoic man? You voicing a character? I understand how short the film is, and under what time you were pressed to finish the thing - yet, I think you could have at least voiced one character. Then, it'd feel more like your other films.
Actually, my cameo makes his customary appearance. You just have to look extra hard! I would never neglect putting him my films.
The Stoic Man wouldn't have fit at all and any other cameos would have been forced and detract from the story.
This my surprise some people, but I'm not the biggest fan of voicing characters in my films. I want my different characters to stand alone and be different, but when I voice most of them they all lose some of that individuality. Plus, I don't think my voice has that much variance. Throughout my films I've voiced Alex, Derrick, the Delivery Guy, Inspector Bill Gristle, Alice, Mac, PC, and the Minister, and they all sound pretty much the same. I'd much rather get other people who can provide a rich spectrum of voices for my films. That doesn't mean I won't voice characters in my film, I just don't want to be the star (besides Alex and Derrick).
I'll agree with some of what Dyland says. But, I think it's actually very well put together, considering how limited he was on time. It was THAC, after all, and (even though he took a little extra time to edit this unofficial entry) as most of us know, THAC is never easy.
Dyland wrote:more like your other films
The problem is that this (along with Derricking Ball) is the only video that Nathan's put out in the last 5-6--or so--years. Of course his new stuff isn't going to be like his older stuff. It won't have the same feel or style as the old ones because, once again, this is five years later.
Absolutely. It has been five years. I have changed and grown as a person. Five years ago I wouldn't have been making The Meek and the Bold, and today I wouldn't be making w00t, or Spoilerz!. But I'm not abandoning what I've done, I'm building upon my foundation of earlier films, and working to make each new film fun to make and watch. I want to always growing and learning and improving as a filmmaker and storyteller.
The animation and lighting of the fireplace was fantastic, especially the way it reflected off the characters' faces (any chance of getting a behind-the-scenes look at how you did that?). Also, I loved the shot of the not-so-empty pantry. I really liked the charcoal speech as well, and it did a great job of building up tension, especially when Mr. Montgomery backed away as Klaus repeated "burnt".
I am also happy how the tension builds up in those shots. Here is a behind-the-scenes picture of how I got the reflecting orange light onto the minifigure's faces. This setup was only used for the two extreme closeups. Everything there is LEGO except for the sticky tack and LifeLites. I was VERY happy with how the LifeLites worked out and I would recommend them for anyone wanting to play with more interesting lighting for their films.
Thanks again for everyone's comments! I'm looking forward to releasing Alex and Derrick: Five Years Later. I don't have a release date set yet, but I hope to get it out either mid to late February, or early March. I still have several complex shots to do, and I need to sort my LEGO before I return to animating.
After Five Years Later I will probably dabble with a few more One Brick Studios Shorts (similar to Derricking Ball but probably a bit longer), and then I have several more serious film ideas I want to tackle.
The shots that stood out for me were the fire flickering on the faces in the extreme close ups - very well done!
Pretty much everything about the film has been discussed already, but I wanted wanted to say that although I could certainly feel the rust, I still really enjoyed the film; it was very well written, the Christmasy feel was quite nice, and the set was beautiful, as your sets usually are; I especially liked the staircase in the hallway outside the room, not sure why, just do. Also, I was clicking through the playlist and noticed that GO MINIMAN GO was released about a week after I started freshman year of highschool, and I'm now a sophomore in college, I found that amazing. A lot of us are really glad to see you back, I'm sure I'm not the only one around here who was inspired to get off their butt and start animating because of your films.
I'm surprised by this, I thought it was pretty clear the sound was of a grandfather clock tolling. It was meant as a nod to A Christmas Carol, when Scrooge is visited by the first Ghost after the bell tolls 1.
Ah. I did assume that it was the clock, but, it did sound a little odd. (Or, at least different from my grandfather clock at home.) Though, the whole concept of adding a chiming clock is great foreshadowing of what's to come. Better than just having the other characters just waltz in, after all. lol
As for the editing of that scene, I stand by my choices. But I always welcome what others would have done.
I guess you're more of a "fast paced" editor than I am. The film is edited fine when watched with sound, but, without it, the cuts do seem a little sudden to me. Again, this is probably just differences in perceptions and tastes between us.
This I can chalk up to my go-to excuse for this film: It was filmed during THAC... Simply put, I was out of practice.
It happens to the best of us. - I for one should know, having had a rocky time getting back into brickfilming myself. (Though a little more stable now, I still wasn't able to enter THAC, so, I guess that still puts you ahead of me 
You made a film, at least. I only edited and voiced for a friend.)
Most of the shots after 0:50 were animated after THAC and after I had gotten more comfortable with animating dialog again.
I can tell. Especially the shot from 1:16 to 1:19 - It has that Nathan Wells' touch that gives a simple action (moving an object) more life, and a bit of unique style. Similar to how the classic Disney films have a "feel," from here on, the video is obviously yours. (And it shines too!) The slow zoom when the pantry door is opened, to the continued fireplace effects on the minifigs faces - it all comes together beautifully.
Dyland wrote:...A Nathan Wells cameo?
Actually, my cameo makes his customary appearance. You just have to look extra hard!
This is the part that just drives me crazy. I've looked and looked, and, unless he's in the darkness of the pantry (which would be nearly impossible to see at 360p), in the reflection off of the LEGO walls, or visible in just one frame, I can't seem to find him. 
Though, I've watched your film 5 more times now, so I guess that's added some free views for you.
If you could point him out for me, it would be greatly appreciated!
Absolutely. It has been five years... Five years ago I wouldn't have been making The Meek and the Bold, and today I wouldn't be making w00t, or Spoilerz!. But I'm not abandoning what I've done, I'm building upon my foundation of earlier films, and working to make each new film fun to make and watch. I want to always [be] growing and learning and improving as a filmmaker and storyteller.
Sounds like some sound words. I can't wait to see what you'll do next!
Thanks again for everyone's comments! ...I need to sort my LEGO before I return to animating.
Ain't that the truth! I think everyone could always be sorting through their LEGO, and brickfilms are (or should be) the rewards. Though, some cake every once in a while is nice too. lol.
In reviewing, I might as well change my vote to 3 and 1/2 stars. Not quite 4, but still better than my first impression was. Keep up the animating, Nathan. I just love to watch your films.
I loved the fire effect. How did you do that? Did you use a flickering light?
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