Madisun's Arc - Reviews By Darth Marsden

[Darth Marsden]

O-ho! I see what you did there. Tricksy!

Quick question - did the Metal Gear Solid 3 joke work? I think it was too rough around the edges, since I didn't get the actual font and I forgot the Continue Quit things. Did it still work?

-x-

Next review'll take a while (probably a whole week) since I've just had to completely re-install Windows. Now I've got to go through the whole process of re-downloading & installing everything else, like Firefox, and K-Lite Codec Pack, and Radeon drivers, and etc. Fucking virus.

[der_ketzer]

Sorry. I don't play console games unless they are 16-bit or lower.

[Darth Marsden]

So you didn't get what it was from?

[Icedhope]

I got where it was from. I thought it was well placed...I think the only problem I had in this review is the lack of hearing the actual films audio. I laughed more in this one than I did the last one.

Goodjob.

[der_ketzer]

Originally Posted by Darth Marsden

So you didn't get what it was from?

Sorry. I have no clue about the whole Metal gear series. I play games. Not full length movies with 2% action sequences. I wanted to watch Playthroughs of these games and started with 4. After 4 hours of video I gave up. there were about 20 percent real live action in this time and the rest FMV. Not even well paced stuff. Just boring crap.

But that's normal. There are always references that some viewers will never get.

[Secret Fawful]

I got the Metal Gear joke, and it was well placed. Iced mentioned something I totally forgot: the lack of much background audio in the video.

[Darth Marsden]

Background audio? Do you mean actual clips from the film, or just stuff happening while I'm talking?

[Secret Fawful]

I mean: the video is really quiet. Some background music from the movie/game/etc. playing in the background at a low but audible volume would be great. Or just any background music. Something to break up the silence, but not something distracting from you.

[Darth Marsden]

Ah, I see. So if I didn't lower the volume of the clips so much, would that work better?

[Secret Fawful]

Just as long as YOUR voice is the dominant sound. You have to make sure that the other audio isn't too distracting. Otherwise we're all gonna COMPLAIN.

I am a terrible person

[Darth Marsden]

No no, I got it. You want me to be the dominant one. Can do!

[StrongBrush1]

So, you do video reviews now. Very good for you.

I must admit, I'm curious as to how one would go about making these kinds of videos. Because I want to do so.

[Alcoremortis]

Originally Posted by StrongBrush1

So, you do video reviews now. Very good for you.

I must admit, I'm curious as to how one would go about making these kinds of videos. Because I want to do so.

If you have a Mac, video editing couldn't be easier. Even the basic iMovie is fairly intuitive and does most of the things you'd need, like splicing clips together placing various volume tracks, title, etc.

With PC, all I know is that the Final cut series of programs is pretty good, but they're also really expensive.

[Darth Marsden]

Allow me to guide you through the process I do. I've developed this over the course of the three Librarian films, so it'll generally work for Movies or TV shows as opposed to games.

First, watch the movie. Sounds simple enough. Don't take any real notes, just sit down and watch it. Form an opinion on it as you go, and remember anything that particularly bugs you so yo can come back to it later.

Second, watch the movie again. This time, grab a pen and paper (or open Microsoft Word) and get ready to take notes. You'll be doing it a lot, so be prepared!
Start the movie and any time a comment or point of interest comes up, pause it and jot it down. It doesn't have to be perfectly worded, it can be just a brief note, but write it down. Also, write down the time it happens in the film / show. Keep going until you've finished.

Third, take these notes and turn it into a script. Here's a sample section from my still-in-progress script for Curse of the Judas Chalice, to give you a rough idea of what to go for:

Video _____ - (Gets up from floor, clambers over chair, looks at camera)
Oh, hey guys. What time is it? …What DAY is it? Ugh. What was I..?

<The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice title screen> (0:00:15)

Video _____ - Oh, yeah. Right. Uh, I’m gonna need a minute, let’s do the recap thing.

<Trailer for The Librarian: Quest for the Spear>
Audio _____ - Ah, great, thank you. Ahem. The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice is the third, and to date final, film in the Librarian series. While the first movie, Quest for the Spear, had a rushed opening act and an unlikable lead character, the second film, Return to King Solomon’s Mines, fixed these issues, if only to introduce a few new ones.

<Trailer for The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's Mines>
Audio _____ - The second movie contained possibly the most unconvincing actress in the world – after Paris Hilton, anyway – and while Noah Wyle’s character is more likable, that’s because all his most annoying traits are transferred to her. The film also suffered from a lack of a credible villain, mostly because his motivation boiled down to him being a jealous little schoolgirl, and an odd attempt to make Noah Wyle even more destined for greatness, which seemed ill at odds with the character.

Audio _____ - That said, it really was a better movie, with more time spent in one country, allowing for some amazing, if unoriginal, imagery, and it also had the most kick-ass character ever in the form of Jomo, who dominated every single scene he was in and single-handedly made the film three times more awesome.

Video _____ - So, with two films down, we’re going for the hat-trick with Curse of the Judas Chalice. (Looks at camera) …what?

Audio _____ - The film opens on…

You'll notice I preface each section with either an Audio or a Video number. That'll come up later.

Once you have your script, you have to record the video. Because my lighting is mostly reliant on the weather, I've learned to shoot all the live action stuff (the bits where you actually see me sitting in my comfy chair) first, and then record the voice-over stuff. You can shoot it however you like, it's just what works for me. This is why I've given the three different sections of the script - live video, voice-over and movie clips - different types of highlighting, so I can better tell them apart.

Here's where the 'Video _____' text comes in. Each time I record a section, I jot down what number it'll be. If it's the first bit of video I record, I jot down the number 01 over the line. If it's the fifth, I write down 05. And so on.

I do the voiceovers a little different. For that, I record it all in one big video section, just reading off the lines in the script and leaving pauses in between paragraphs. Then I take the video, rip the audio from it using Audacity and save each section as a different file. Audio 07, for example. And I write that down on the script as well.

I don't do much with the audio in Audacity, just remove the background noise so there's not a faint hissing sound in the background. That's one of the many problems with my review of The Crow: City of Angels. I highly recommend you do this too, if your camera picks up a similar background buzzing.

Anyway. Now you have your video sections, your audio sections and your film clips. Time to put them all together!

I use VideoPad Video Editor (I got a good deal on it, don't ask how), but any decent video editing software will do. And since you know which clips match up with what's being said in the script (you did remember to write it down on the script, right?), putting it all together should be somewhat easier.

Editing your video together takes AGES. It took me forever to put together my first review, and even my review of Solomon's Mines took me 10 + hours, all told, to put together in editing. But that's mostly because it was a long review, 25 minutes altogether. If your review is shorter, your editing time will be as well.

Once you've spliced it altogether, all that's left is to give it a quick watch to make sure it's all still synced up (mine never are, and I honestly don't know how it happens), and then you're ready to convert it into an actual video!

Once it's converted, you just need to upload it for the internet to see. I went with Blip.TV for a couple of reasons, but you can also use YouTube if your video is under 15 minutes (you'll need a mobile to unlock your YouTube account and allow you to upload longer videos. Guess who doesn't have one?).

...and once it's up, we can all enjoy it and give you feedback!

Hope that helps. (And I hope everyone else enjoyed a little taste of how I start my next video!)

Also, can anyone think of a worse actress than Paris Hilton? I couldn't think of anyone else myself, and she's just my default 'makes everything she touches worse' person, but I'm almost positive that there's a better punchline to that joke out there. Care to lend a hand finding it?

[StrongBrush1]

Originally Posted by Darth Marsden

Allow me to guide you through the process I do. I've developed this over the course of the three Librarian films, so it'll generally work for Movies or TV shows as opposed to games.

First, watch the movie. Sounds simple enough. Don't take any real notes, just sit down and watch it. Form an opinion on it as you go, and remember anything that particularly bugs you so yo can come back to it later.

Second, watch the movie again. This time, grab a pen and paper (or open Microsoft Word) and get ready to take notes. You'll be doing it a lot, so be prepared!
Start the movie and any time a comment or point of interest comes up, pause it and jot it down. It doesn't have to be perfectly worded, it can be just a brief note, but write it down. Also, write down the time it happens in the film / show. Keep going until you've finished.

Third, take these notes and turn it into a script. Here's a sample section from my still-in-progress script for Curse of the Judas Chalice, to give you a rough idea of what to go for:


You'll notice I preface each section with either an Audio or a Video number. That'll come up later.

Once you have your script, you have to record the video. Because my lighting is mostly reliant on the weather, I've learned to shoot all the live action stuff (the bits where you actually see me sitting in my comfy chair) first, and then record the voice-over stuff. You can shoot it however you like, it's just what works for me. This is why I've given the three different sections of the script - live video, voice-over and movie clips - different types of highlighting, so I can better tell them apart.

Here's where the 'Video _____' text comes in. Each time I record a section, I jot down what number it'll be. If it's the first bit of video I record, I jot down the number 01 over the line. If it's the fifth, I write down 05. And so on.

I do the voiceovers a little different. For that, I record it all in one big video section, just reading off the lines in the script and leaving pauses in between paragraphs. Then I take the video, rip the audio from it using Audacity and save each section as a different file. Audio 07, for example. And I write that down on the script as well.

I don't do much with the audio in Audacity, just remove the background noise so there's not a faint hissing sound in the background. That's one of the many problems with my review of The Crow: City of Angels. I highly recommend you do this too, if your camera picks up a similar background buzzing.

Anyway. Now you have your video sections, your audio sections and your film clips. Time to put them all together!

I use VideoPad Video Editor (I got a good deal on it, don't ask how), but any decent video editing software will do. And since you know which clips match up with what's being said in the script (you did remember to write it down on the script, right?), putting it all together should be somewhat easier.

Editing your video together takes AGES. It took me forever to put together my first review, and even my review of Solomon's Mines took me 10 + hours, all told, to put together in editing. But that's mostly because it was a long review, 25 minutes altogether. If your review is shorter, your editing time will be as well.

Once you've spliced it altogether, all that's left is to give it a quick watch to make sure it's all still synced up (mine never are, and I honestly don't know how it happens), and then you're ready to convert it into an actual video!

Once it's converted, you just need to upload it for the internet to see. I went with Blip.TV for a couple of reasons, but you can also use YouTube if your video is under 15 minutes (you'll need a mobile to unlock your YouTube account and allow you to upload longer videos. Guess who doesn't have one?).

...and once it's up, we can all enjoy it and give you feedback!

Hope that helps. (And I hope everyone else enjoyed a little taste of how I start my next video!)

Also, can anyone think of a worse actress than Paris Hilton? I couldn't think of anyone else myself, and she's just my default 'makes everything she touches worse' person, but I'm almost positive that there's a better punchline to that joke out there. Care to lend a hand finding it?

Thank you very much for the help.

Also, Britney Spears in Crossroads. Think Paris Hilton was bad? She's Elizabeth Taylor compared to Britney's performance in this awful pile of pointless.

[Darth Marsden]

Originally Posted by StrongBrush1

Also, Britney Spears in Crossroads. Think Paris Hilton was bad? She's Elizabeth Taylor compared to Britney's performance in this awful pile of pointless.

...oh, that's perfect. Thank you! I guess it's true what they say - give and ye shall receive.

[GaryCXJk]

Paris Hilton already redeemed herself in Repo: The Genetic Opera in my opinion.

[StrongBrush1]

Originally Posted by Darth Marsden

...oh, that's perfect. Thank you! I guess it's true what they say - give and ye shall receive.

You truly are the best.

[Darth Marsden]

Originally Posted by StrongBrush1

You truly are the best.

Sig'd! I love it when people say awesome stuff about me.

[Alcoremortis]

Originally Posted by GaryCXJk

Paris Hilton already redeemed herself in Repo: The Genetic Opera in my opinion.

Didn't she get a Raspberry Award for that particular performance?