Vlarion 1 - The Elemental War

You know, even after reading the countless replies and reviews saying “this is the best 3DMM movie ever!”, I could not rid myself of the feeling that 80 minutes is far too long for any 3DMM movie. After watching it twice in less than a week, it strikes me that for once the crowd may be speaking the truth.

Vlarion 1: The Elemental War starts by introducing us to Dask, a young mercenary who has been expelled from this home region. He is heading off to Terrania, where a special ops organization has hired him to investigate the ransacking of a research lab. Together with his partner Stacey, and his old friend Jack, he soon learns that an ancient legend about the resurrection of seven powerful creatures is about to come true.

The premise may seem like any generic fantasy tale at first, but Aaron Haynes pulls it off wonderfully. Obviously the script has been changed and improved upon a lot since it was first written by Haynes in 1999. Sideline characters from the original now play a larger role than before, and the dialogue no longer feels like it was written by a 14-year old desperately in need of an outlet for his imagination. The opening sequence is a welcome addition to the original story, giving our lead hero the necessary background story. Sure, Haynes takes his time to establish the story and its characters, but he also does it better than most. In fact, in terms of storytelling and character development, The Elemental War goes far beyond what most 3DMM movies ever seem to do, gradually revealing new layers of the story and the people involved. I was immediately hooked. As I reached the film’s first action sequence, I had even forgotten that I was actually watching a 3DMM movie.

Gone are the 1000-frame scenes with text box-dialogues, gone are the battle scenes set up like a role-playing game (one of the biggest complaints I had about the original) - it is apparent that Haynes has paid a lot of attention to the pacing this time around. In the wrong hands, the story would easily have ended up in a chaotic mess, but Haynes knows his stuff. Not a single scene feels misplaced, too short or too long. The film flows exceptionally well. In fact, one may say it almost flows too well, as it kind of just fades out towards the end, instead of serving the final showdown I was expecting. I always knew this would be a continued story, but as the credits start rolling, I could not help but feel that there should have been more. Having said that, it is the first time watching the credits has given me goosebumps. And the fact that I want to see more of this is probably just a good sign.

Technically, this film is far superior to anything I have ever seen being done with this program. Haynes utilizes the possibilities of the expansion packs for all they are worth, creating a truly unique vision of his universe. From the subtle moves in Dask’s hair to the complex madness of the battle scenes, with rotating cameras going underwater and up again, at the same time keeping the handmade characters flawlessly in motion, it is hard to spot a single moment where Haynes does anything wrong. Even the lesser action-packed sequences are impressive, like how one animation fluidly connects to another during the dialogue scenes. Not to mention the scenes where Haynes has actually picked the default characters apart and animated them piece by piece, allowing for some truly astonishing character movement. Such details may be hard to spot the first time, but once you start looking for them, you will realize that they are all over the place. They really add to the experience.

Following up on the stunning visuals and well-executed (to say the least) story, Haynes has gathered one of the finest cast this community has to offer, starring himself, Eric Russoniello, Jay Cagatay, Ned Carlson and introducing Shannon Kelley as Stacey, to mention some, all delivering stellar performances. The only thing that bothered me a little, was that I sometimes had problems with hearing what Brackus (played by Adam Clough) said, but this is just nitpicking.

In the end, what matters is that Vlarion no longer feels like a fantasy film reserved only for the most deep-rooted nerds. It is arguably the greatest achievement done by any man since this community first saw daylight, and a definite milestone for years to come. Bring on the next!

10/10

Originally posted on www.3dmmspotlight.tk

[Aaron Haynes]

Thanks again for this; the last shot at the end of the credits is my favorite moment in the movie, so I'm glad it had an effect on you.

BTW, I liked the embedded screenshots in the reviews on your page, you can include them in the reviews you post here too if you like.