REDUX DVD

When I first watched Redux all those years ago, I didn’t get it. It was one of the very first movies I was introduced to, and truth be told, I didn’t understand why it was populated with a boatload of cameos, why a big ass brown demon emerged from the ground, or why the protagonist magically rose from the dead as a midget of a handmade character and killed the demon while making his way down its oesophagus. But despite being unable to make sense of the story, I still regarded it among my favourite movies. I saw it more as an animation showcase, and who could blame me? I was in awe at how fluid the character animations were, and how they—complemented by outstanding direction and a powerful soundtrack—could help tell the events of the film with some degree of emotion using close to no dialogue. You don’t have to be in the know to appreciate that. The DVD’s release on YouTube allowed me to revisit Haynes and Meckes’ classic for the first time in a couple of years. Diving into the original cut first and having never bothered to look into the symbolism or the film’s background, I found that my thoughts on Redux hadn’t changed all that much. That it has aged incredibly well says something, considering how old the original cut is.

The rest of Redux DVD changed that.

Call me stupid, but as someone who didn’t ‘get’ it, the commentary by Haynes and Meckes, the most prominent special feature, completely opened my eyes to what Redux was about. The commentary—with mouthfuls upon mouthfuls of insightful words coming naturally from the two directors—makes this the standout part of the DVD. Both guys contribute in giving the film meaning. From the smaller comments (the idea behind the guardians in the sanctuary, the only original handmade characters present) to the slightly more relevant ones (discussing Haynes’ return to the sanctuary in Act III), there rarely goes a minute wasted. And right at the end, Haynes caps off the film in almost perfect fashion by going back to the beginning and talking about what inspired Redux and the idea behind it. For years, people have been speculating about the symbolism and such. If you were one of those folks, you owe it to yourself to hear everything from the horses’ mouths. Even though Redux’s release was slightly before my initial time in the 3DMM community, the fact that it was this movie that popularised the expansion pack we see in practically every single release nowadays, and the fact that it was successful in inspiring directors to continue making movies—bearing them in mind, it’s hard to call it merely an “animation showcase” anymore.

Watching the extended version without the commentary proved that shortly afterwards. For the first time, I noticed that the expansion pack was rarely used before those fantastic couple of scenes at the end of Act II. For the first time, I understood that the demon represented boredom, and that it was banished from 3DMM by the unleashing of the expansion pack. For the first time, I thought the falling snow in the aftermath was a truly beautiful touch. It’s all those little things that really enhanced my viewing experience. But even then, the polish and the new scenes in the extended version weren’t lost on me. Most of the changes made are purely for aesthetic reasons—Gorosaurus’ new wallet; the landscape feeling less barren; the sky looking a lot better (albeit, sneakily using the expansion pack)—but some added to the film significantly that now, I can’t imagine myself going back to the original cut. You only have to look at the first shot, with the meteors being shown heading towards earth, to start to realise that. Fans of the fight between Godzilla and the demon will love the extended scenes and an extra cameo. My personal favourite, though, was seeing Haynes’ character crashing into the sanctuary. Sure, it helped clarify that part of the film, but what really won me over was the character’s disbelief at what he saw inside.

The high quality of both the extended version and the commentary makes it very easy to overlook the DVD’s more minor features. The deleted prologue and scenes are worth a look, but also included are clips from Reduce (an unfinished parody of Redux), DVD stills, and even a rather nifty animation tutorial. Though they’re welcome distractions that pass the time, you wouldn’t be missing out at all if you choose to ignore them.

But with or without them, Redux DVD still manages to achieve what it set out to do. It takes the original movie, widely lauded by pretty much the entire community back in 2003, and makes that experience even better. Whether you saw Redux as an inspiration, an animation showcase, or eighteen minutes of symbolism, there’s something for everyone who enjoyed it five years ago. And what about those who never saw the original? Well, now that it’s on YouTube and accessible to everyone with an Internet connection, there hasn’t been a better time to find out what all the fuss is about. Watch the extended version and then the commentary. Chances are, you won’t be disappointed.

[Dominator Dan]

ZAPS IS BACK

[Fredrick]

SWEET!

[Gorosaurus]

Thank you very much for the review! It is still a little embarassing to hear the commentary because neither of us had practiced or planned anything specific to say. There were so many opportunities to add insight that have now become largely forgotten. But it's great that you really got something out of what was there. I'm sure that I can speak for Aaron when I say that we didn't really intend the extended cut to be a cash-in on the original's popularity. There was just a lot more that we realized we could have done with the story and visuals that time simply did not allow for.

I think the original is still a good watch as it is a more concise and honest representation of what we could do at the time (knowledge of expansions, use of time alotted, etc), but the brand new sequences and overall impact of the extended cut should keep it the fan favorite. I remember agreeing with Aaron shortly after its release that we both personally liked the original better, but I'm not so sure that's still the case.

And 20+ watches of both later, I'm still undecided. After all, I prefer the early versions of Litterbug2, Two of a Kind, and even Bodily Functions over their finished or updated counterparts. Well, maybe not BF, but still.


Thank you again for all of the input. I hope that you found your own details and unique interpretation from the movie, and didn't create it all from what we told in our commentary. I would be really interested to know what sort of sense a new watcher would be able to make out of the movie. If any.

[Wilkins III]

Thanks for the comments.

Because Redux was one of the first movies I ever watched when I was introduced to 3DMM in 2004, I didn't really try to come up with my own interpretations. I mean, I knew there was something behind it, but because I was new and all, I didn't think too hard about it.

When I watched the original cut prior to the commentary, the movie still didn't make a lot of sense. I mean, I derived some of the little things myself (for example, I assumed the movie was taking place inside 3DMM with all the HMCs, and I assumed that the meteors were spelling a potential end for the program), but not much more. I think this was partly because Redux was released five years ago, and obviously, I wasn't around back then.

It's certainly not the most accessible movie at all, and that's why I think the commentary is the best part of the DVD--especially to outsiders.

[HMC]

Cool to see you back, Zaps!

What happened to your old account by the way?

[Aaron Haynes]

Looking back on it for the first time since 2006 or so, the area I wish we'd focused on more fundamentally in the original was Act III. I think it plods.

Act I was extremely active and rapid-fire without being too chaotic too follow, while Act II was by necessity split between conflict and quiet. Act III needed tighter pacing and the kind of background detail the first half of the movie enjoyed. Like I've said in the DVD and in the thread, this is the kind of movie you can explore a hundred nooks and crannies of, expanding the story just by wondering what this character was doing at this time. There are a hundred other stories happening just out of frame.

(Stray thought: We really should've called this "Expanded Version" instead of "Extended Version")

I'd forgotten just how much we explicitly revealed in the commentary track; hearing myself voice the ideas we'd come up with back in late 2003 was something of a shock, as they were things I didn't know I'd ever managed to pin down in words (especially said aloud, where my trademark flowery prose is not so easy to manage). I was never completely sure if that kind of explicit explanation of the movie's symbolism would help people's enjoyability, so I'm glad it gave the movie much-needed context for you.

I never did quite understand the "demo reel" accusation leveled at this movie, I have to admit -- I always thought the storyline and motivations were pretty clear, if not firmly established WHO this character is, WHAT these events are about. We very specifically left Goro and my introduction a little vague, but surrounded them with imagery from Rebirth and Showdown, and wanted to let community members put the context together themselves based on the history behind the movie's key imagery. We (or at least I) assumed that the story would stand on its own if we made character motivations and plot elements clear: The Salvador character is looking to protect his characters, the frog and fly, the meteors are wreaking havoc and some characters are protecting others, much of the survivors are holed up in a building where they ignore what's going on outside, and a demon is trying to destroy this building. Looking back now, I think we could've tightened the objective qualities of this story rather than letting the familiar imagery and community knowledge fill in the blanks. It's fair to say we were more focused on tying past and present together as far as Rebirth/Showdown/REDUX than making it stand on its own. It is a movie that is inextricable from community lore and history, and only completely understandable through that lens -- but as long as you accept that, I see no reason that it can't be "more than just an animation reel".

I think the original has an element of surprise and risk to it that makes it more historically valuable. We considered it something of a shot in the dark -- imagine if it had gone badly, and we ended up with an embarrassing failure toeing the line between embarrassing tribute and ripoff of Pikios and Redwampa's films. All of the reactions to using those characters and ideas, to making a 3DMM opera, to including the expansion pack without telling anyone, to inserting a "blockbuster" into 2003 awards consideration at the last possible minute, to me inserting myself into the mainstream from well-entrenched obscurity, I think, affect how we view that version of the movie. There was no risk to making an extended cut -- I don't think of it as a cash-in, but it was about as comfortable and "safe" to make as the original was challenging. The hard part was done, all we had to do was refine and improve on a movie that was almost universally loved, for people who already loved it. I think the extended version helps the story, presents a better world, and runs smoother and truer, but the original has more significance and daring because of when and how it came out.

There are times when it's hard to even think of it as one of my movies. It feels like someone else made it, and I was just very close to the production. The movie just kind of evolved naturally for me as we went along. It doesn't feel like any other project I've ever done.

Thanks for the review, I'm glad it connected with you.

[Bown]

You know always made me think? If Goro hadn't been on holiday at the time of the original release, and you hadn't been the one replying, would you have become such an active member of the community? Seeing how you've basically kept the community going for a good few years now, it's so strange to think that had Goro not taken his holiday when he did, 3dmm.com could be very, very different.

[Aaron Haynes]

Damn, I hadn't thought of that.

I'm a very all-or-nothing kind of contributor, though, so I probably would've found a way to get in the middle of everything just the same. Maybe I'd have finished AV4 instead of Pamela.

[Dominator Dan]

you should swallow your pride and release that unfinished

[Wilkins III]

Originally Posted by Aaron Haynes

I never did quite understand the "demo reel" accusation leveled at this movie, I have to admit -- I always thought the storyline and motivations were pretty clear, if not firmly established WHO this character is, WHAT these events are about. We very specifically left Goro and my introduction a little vague, but surrounded them with imagery from Rebirth and Showdown, and wanted to let community members put the context together themselves based on the history behind the movie's key imagery. We (or at least I) assumed that the story would stand on its own if we made character motivations and plot elements clear: The Salvador character is looking to protect his characters, the frog and fly, the meteors are wreaking havoc and some characters are protecting others, much of the survivors are holed up in a building where they ignore what's going on outside, and a demon is trying to destroy this building. Looking back now, I think we could've tightened the objective qualities of this story rather than letting the familiar imagery and community knowledge fill in the blanks. It's fair to say we were more focused on tying past and present together as far as Rebirth/Showdown/REDUX than making it stand on its own. It is a movie that is inextricable from community lore and history, and only completely understandable through that lens -- but as long as you accept that, I see no reason that it can't be "more than just an animation reel".

Thanks for the comments.

There's no denying that there's no story. You're completely right that there is one and that, for the most part, is kind of clear. I say "for the most part", because I'm not sure what an outsider is supposed to make of the Salvador character finding himself in a new world, and the way he ends up killing the demon. I'm not saying that it wasn't anything more than an "animation reel" when I first watched it, just that I appreciated the movie most for its animation. Because, like you said, it's full of stuff that only community members are likely to understand, it's hard not to let the animation overshadow the story. And that's where the "I saw it more as an animation showcase" comment comes from--I didn't try to interpret what was happening because I knew I would fail in doing so. Obviously, that changed with the commentary.

Originally Posted by HMC

Cool to see you back, Zaps!

What happened to your old account by the way?

Thanks. It's great to see familiar faces around here. I wanted to keep my new reviews separate from my old ones, hence the new account.

[Aaron Haynes]

Originally Posted by Wilkins III

I say "for the most part", because I'm not sure what an outsider is supposed to make of the Salvador character finding himself in a new world, and the way he ends up killing the demon.

This is another area I probably could've made clearer. The dream world Goro finds in the basement was supposed to be a pastiche of different climates, to show off the entire range of the expansion pack's textures, but I was having enough trouble with the spiral shot as it was. To someone who came in after the expansion gained more traction, it wouldn't be clear which textures were new (and in retrospect, the visual effects of that scene are more pronounced than the use of textures). There probably should've been a visual motif there that reappeared when HMC Goro attacks the demon at the end.

I'm not saying that it wasn't anything more than an "animation reel" when I first watched it, just that I appreciated the movie most for its animation.

We got the "animation reel" comment from a few people, usually in the "I saw it mainly as a" context. I was trying to address that view from my own perspective, since the topic was pertinent to your review.

Also, I was going to ask you about whether you wanted your old reviews added to this account, but I see you've addressed that. Any reason why you don't want them associated with this new username?

[Wilkins III]

Originally Posted by Aaron Haynes

Also, I was going to ask you about whether you wanted your old reviews added to this account, but I see you've addressed that. Any reason why you don't want them associated with this new username?

A lot of time has passed since. Last time, I went for quantity over quality, and that resulted in quite a lot of reviews which now I cringe at. That's the main reason, anyway.

[Dominator Dan]

POOF, look at all the old shit in MY movie list
BUT DID I CHANGE MY ACCOUNT??

GET OUTTA MY FACE