Dead Moon Rising (2007)

Very Cool!!!

Good start, but then it gets ruined

Yes, absolutely, there is fun to be had, as well as many, many things to go boom, all amid an atmospheric urban jungle.

Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

It would be very hard to actually call this a film. It's more of a collection of bad, poorly lit shots.I would first like to mention that the majority of the good comments here are biased. And they all admit to being so. An unbiased review of the film would be the one to look for if you're going to be downloading or, god forbid purchasing this film.The main reason I am saddened by watching this atrocity is that I am a struggling film-maker. And many of my favorite directors (and influences) have made their debut feature films with very very little money. Christopher Nolan, Darren Aronofsky, and Robert Rodriguez all filmed beautiful extremely low budget films. The films in order are: Following, Pi, and El Mariachi.All three films had been performed by either non-professional, or non-actors. And all three films were originally shot for less than $10,000. Pi was the only one that cost more than $7,000 to shoot (listen to commentaries of these films, and/or read 'Rebel Without a Crew').This film (Dead moon rising), for lack of a better word, is a steaming pile of waste. I continue to ask myself 'Where in the world did the $50,000 go to making this film?'. If anyone has a real answer to this, i'd love to hear from you. Email me at: [email protected] But I digress. Lets look at the reasons this film deserved a 2-star rating. Well, lets talk about the camera work to start. There were rarely any smooth pans, and suffer countless zooms. I'm sorry, but you never, ever ZOOM! Bring the camera to the subject/object with a dolly, or a steadicam.Okay lets talk about sound. I don't know how or why this film came to be with such horrible sound. The quality, cutting, effects, everything was either off, or just bearable. Once again I ask myself what happened to the $50,000? Everyone that has praised this film has said that "it's a very low budget film, what do you expect?". I say that if there was any planning at all to this film, it was done horrifically.You don't have a $50,000 budget and end up with one of the worst films i've ever seen. But then again there are tons of 10-20 million dollar films that are horrible. I should re-phrase that: You don't shoot a $50,000 film and not even BUY (not rent) at least an XL2 (less than $3,000) camera. That is probably the cheapest way to get 24P (Film speed), and the quality of video that is more than acceptable. Sadly it looks as if the consumer camera being used might have been one that a crew member, or the director himself already had.There are countless errors in the plot, story structure as well. But there isn't a point in getting into every single detail. In fact, i've written too much on this film.My advise to you Mark, if you're reading this is to PLAN! Plan every shot. Have auditions, and rehearse with your actors. Watch a lot of zombie movies. If your intent is to continue with the genre, pay attention to them. Zombies are better shot at night (less detail needed in make-up, etc) than broad day-light. Start by working with a lot of static shots. Read books on filming (if you email me, i'll suggest some excellent books on editing, cinematography, etc) techniques. Take to criticizing with out effecting you (hardest part of this industry). PLAN every move! Storyboard and make scene lists. Any scene should be able to flow visually and through sound on its own. This is extremely important when it comes to omitting useless scenes.

I may be a bit biased when it comes to my love of this movie because I'm a Louisvillian, I'm also a huge indie movie fan. However, that is not the only reason I LOVE Dead Moon Rising. It is just plain fun-a good time-(with some great characters), it's also filmed in Louisville, which to anyone born here should be really exciting. It's a local film from a great bunch of people who all have a real passion for what they're doing. The males are more than hilarious, the ladies are not only sexy but crazy/vicious and so great to watch... The movie, as a whole, is just a damn good time. Those are only a few reasons why I LOVE, with a passion, this movie!If you enjoy low-budget indie films, give this movie a chance, you won't regret it.

This is a failed attempt at a humorous zombie horror flick. It's somewhat funny, but not at all scary; it's along the lines of 'Zombie Town', but not as good.This seemed like a bunch of comic skits, some funny/some not, spliced together to make a movie.There are a lot of serious problems with this film. The most obvious and annoying is the sound; it's ridiculously patchy --- the sound just cuts out over and over again. The gun fights lack the sound of gun fire. This is especially notable when the lead character comes out with a mega-gun, which he introduces as his "Noisy little friend", and uses the gun to blow away a mass of zombies and yet the gun makes no noise.The special effects are lame. Half the zombies just have their faces painted yellow --- it's not scary, just really weird. The scenes where victims are devoured look as if the zombie characters are just snacking on some red licorice. The acting is a mix; some of it is okay, but too many times it's stiff.After reading the comments of other reviewers, there is some obvious bias that shows how this movie got a rating higher than it deserves. One of the reviewers appears to be Jason Crowe, one of the main characters in this flick. From him it sounds as though everything was warm and fuzzy on the set --- good to hear Jason, thanks for sharing. But, no one really cares; it's the final product that matters --- and this turd is still steaming.

So this is what I have been waiting for. Real reviews from people who have nothing to do with the film nor live in Louisville. Now in truth I figured it would be rough. I know what kind of film we have and I make no bones about it. However the film IS fun. We did indeed have a blast on set. The film does have it's rough points. I mean its a no budget film. But if you rent these films looking for Oscar worthy productions then you're looking in the wrong place. However if you rent these films because you're a fan of low budget B-movies then DMR is for you.It's fun. It's campy. It's a B-Movie! I love it. I'm proud to call it my film debut and I look forward to doing part 2!My original post: OK so I may be a little bias since I did star in the film and it was my first starring role... However I am first and foremost a fan of low budget indie films.Now I will agree the film has it's moments where one has to stretch the imagination, but what film doesn't? DMR is a great first outing for Mark Poole and Anubis Digital Productions. It's well written and very funny. The music is really well done and I think the acting was above par for an indie film.No I'm not talking about me (I always feel I can do better) I'm talking about Mike Seely (DMR's Nick) That guy is hilarious. I personally think he stole the film and I loved working with him in our scenes together. Gary Williams is another funny man and was very enjoyable to watch on screen. As well as Tucky Williams and Kiki Wallace... Hell honestly I thought everyone did a great job...Mark Poole created a fun film full of likable characters and sharp humor. He did one hell of a job directing his first film. I mean handling 1200 extras in one scene as seamlessly as he did was a sight to be seen. Mark is someone who loves what he does and has a blast doing it. Every day on set was a great day and Mark was always there at the end of the day with a hug and a word of encouragement...HE and the cast and crew of DMR became like my family and made every day on set unforgettable.So if you love indie films and want to have a great time, check out DMR. I promise its a fun ride!