Customer Reviews

Neil Gaiman's A Short Film About John Bolton

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I think that the less you know about the half-hour "A Short Film About John Bolton", the more enjoyable it is to watch, so I'll leave that for the official summary. All I'll say is, like Gaiman's written work, it has a great mix of humor and horror, and makes me confident that his feature-film directorial debut will be terrific. Also, I found I liked the film better on repeat viewing. So if you're underwhelmed by it the first time, give it another try.

Aside from the film itself, the bonus features make this a must-have for any fan. In addition to the commentary & making-of featurette, and the audio feature of Gaiman reading "Drawn In Darkness", there's the 100-minute "Live At The Aladdin" film. This is a recording of one of his benefit performances for the CBLDF, in which he reads some of his classic stories like "Chivalry" and "The Price", poems like "Locks" and "Babycakes", and rarities like "Being An Experiment" (where he hilariously demonstrates the effects of alcohol on writing ability).

Whether you're an uber-fan, or just discovering Gaiman's work, this dvd is for you.

I saw this short film, introduced in person by Gaiman, at a Comic-Con a year or two ago. As he said himself, it is a documentary "of sorts," something new for him. However, it is definitely Gaiman's work, and to dismiss it on this basis would be a grave mistake for any fan. It would fit well alongside the short stories in Smoke and Mirrors, but is far more entertaining in a video format. The film itself feels like a labor of love more than a pricey studio production and, if my memory serves me, that's exactly what it is. However, the included extras dismiss any notion that this is less than a quality release.

For newcomers to Mr. Gaiman's work, I would probably recommend one of his novels (Stardust, American Gods, or Neverwhere) or short story collections (Smoke and Mirrors, Angels and Visitations) as a better place to start. For fans, this is a must-have.

This little film of Neil Gaiman's is a pleasant surprise. I went into it expecting a quick documentary feature about one of my favorite artists (John Bolton) made by one of my favorite writers (Gaiman), something that could be provide insight into their past collaborations, if nothing else. What the film actually is becomes something quite a bit stranger. Quite...other. And also quite enjoyable.

As advertised (the title gives it away) the film itself is very short -- only about 25 minutes in length. It's a quick, satisfying little jaunt and taken by itself might be worth the price of the DVD alone. However, it's not alone -- it's got friends.

Specifically, it's got about 2 hours of extra features, tailor-made for the most rabid Neil Gaiman fan. The longest extra feature is actually three times as long as the short film, a video made of Neil Gaiman's appearance in Portland, Oregon on 'The Last Tour' for the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. In just under 90 minutes, Gaiman does several excellent readings from his work and answers questions for an eager audience. His 'scientific experiment' on the effects of alcohol on writing is especially good, far better performed than read on a page. Also included in the DVD extras are a short interview with Gaiman about the film, an audio commentary track for the film itself, some 'biographies' of people in the film, a photo gallery of John Bolton's work, and a message from Neil about the CBLDF.

All in all, the film and the extras make for a pretty full evening's entertainment...as long as you're a Neil Gaiman fan. Despite the title, the DVD is much more about Gaiman than it is about John Bolton. But for a Gaiman fan, it's all worth watching.

The "Live @ the Aladdin" extra, in which Gaiman reads a number of short stories and answers written questions from a live audience is excellent, and that's coming from somebody who has "seen it before" when caught this reading/Comic Book Legal Defense Fund on tour in LA.

Alas, I was not overly impressed by the short film, which I felt was rather thin on content and thus too long by half. It's the only time I can recall feeling dissapointed by Gaiman's usually flawless storytelling abilities! So two stars for the short, five stars for the Aladdin reading extra (and it's whopping in size: almost an HOUR).

The short "documentary" (and I will not tell why the word documentary is in quote marks...I'll leave that for the viewer to uncover) is in iteslf worth the price of the DVD. If this is any indication of what Gaiman will bring to the medium of film, then it looks as though we truly have something of a Renaissance Man on our hands (having already masterd the art of writing for the comic-book, short story, full-prose novels, as well as screenplays). One would hope that this quirky..but uniquely visionary film...would be enough to put to rest the Hollywood moguls who may be hesitant about allowing Gaiman to direct the film based on the graphic novel with his character "Death" from his SANDMAN series.

Icing on the cake are the two hours' worth of extras on this DVD. The highlight of these extras is Neil Gaiman doing an extended (and very animated) reading and Question/Answer in Portland, Oregon. If one has not had the good fortune to see Neil Gaiman live and in person, then this is the next best thing to it. Gaiman does not merely read his stories in such live appearances...instead, one is treated to the very heart and soul of Gaiman's works through such readings (a statement that can be justified since folks tend to laugh in all the right places).

Having seen Neil Gaiman over the years, one of the qualities that comes through...both on this DVD and in his live appearances...is the fine balance of genius, wit, accessibility and humility that he brings to his live appearances. All of these qualities come shining through on the "extra" feature of Gaiman's live appearance than is included on this DVD.

This DVD is pretty essential for anyone who appreciates Neil Gaiman's work...whether they came to know Gaiman through his work in comic-books (SANDMAN, BOOKS OF MAGIC) or his wonderful novels (AMERICAN GODS, ANANSI BOYS) or his adventerous screen-plays (NEVERHWERE, MIRRORMASK). I've a hunch that one day one will look back on NEIL GAIMAN'S A SHORT FILM ABOUT JOHN BOLTON much in the same way that we look upon David Lynch's ERASERHEAD (although Gaiman's film is a bit more accessible)!

The end of this review will contain a bit of a spoiler for the title film of this DVD. I liked it but, truthfully, it was the inclusion of "Live at the Aladdin" on this DVD that sold me on this DVD. Gaiman is a master storyteller in many media, and his "A Short Film about John Bolton" is impressive for a first-time director, but one area in which he excels is reading/telling his own stories to an audience. I must admit that I was enraptured by the telling of various tales in Gaiman's own voice. "Live at the Aladdin" ALONE is worth the price of the DVD, which is why I think the extras might outshine the title movie.

And now the SPOILER for those who want to know what the movie itself is like (stop reading if you don't want to know): If you can imagine the story "Pickman's Model" (by H.P. Lovecraft) combined with "The Blair Witch Project" and "This Is Spinal Tap", as envisioned by Neil Gaiman, then you will recognize almost everything in this movie. It was a bit distracting, but still done well.

Now, I am a fan of Neil Gaiman. I like his stories and his imagination. When I purchased this DVD, I was under the assumtion that this was just a short documentary about a gothic artist. I've never heard of John Bolton before but If Neil Gaiman is involved..why not?

As I was watching this film and seeing this uptight man going through his daily life, I thought to myself "This has got to be a joke". But looking at some of the vampire artwork was intruiging, so I kept watching. Then came the ending. Fantastic, true Gaiman fashion. Something you would expect out of a Twilght Zone episode or a M. Knight Shamalan picture.

To sum it up, It is kind of Neil Gaiman's own Blair Witch Project. At least that was the feel I got from it. The extras have a live reading by Gaiman from a show in Portland, a quick behind the scenes interview, a reading by Gaiman about John Bolton and a gallery of Bolton's work.

I found the whole package wonderful. Check it out. It's quite worth it.

Neil Gaiman must have an army of friends who post reviews because A Short Film about John Bolton is one of the worst things I have ever seen. The plot is similar to an old Tales of the Crypt, with goofy vampire women who pop up at the end and are about as scary as members of a Star Trek convention. As a director, Gaiman has bad instincts; draining tension, wasting time, confusing shots, weak story, derivative, wooden performances, crappy lighting, missing shots, ad nauseam... basically the full range of beginner filmmaking errors. Honestly, go to a high school film class and you'll see better and more original work. Gaiman's misogyny and immature outlook on life are in full display here. The basic question is, "Why make a film when you have nothing to say about life?" This is Gaiman's basic problem with writing and filmmaking, Gaiman has nothing worthwhile to say so he plays to the cheap seats, cultivating a small core group and casting the illusion that his audience is wider. The one thing Gaiman does put his time into is self promotion, endless self promotion without regard to the quality of his work, which is very shabby indeed.

Much hyped is the 'over two hours of extras' to make up the short-fall of a very short, slightly amusing mockumentary about graphic artist John Bolton.

Trailers of other films don't, to me, count as 'extras', and there's quite a lot of information on other films; about 40 of them (some with trailers, some with just the synopsis).

If you are hankering for this kind of 'extra', then by all means, buy this DVD