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johnranko
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Gold (2022)
Worst sound mix ever - pity
Cinematography is decent, Zac is decent, music is ok, sound mix is atrocious... Being a film maker I want to like this but alas... I cant find the words to implore how vain and empty this actually is.
The Rare Earth (2015)
Urban Cinefile Review by Andrew Urban
The Rare Earth, "blends a dystopian future with a bold account of the human evolution of Australian history to create a thought provoking experience on screen," according to the filmmakers.
The film, says Andrew L. Urban, "is as surrealistic as any David Lynch movie, and as slippery to grasp. I don't pretend to fully understand it, but one thing is pretty clear: Stevenson is a cinematic visionary who instinctively recognises that cinema is primarily and profoundly about images, images with music. Indeed, the film has little dialogue, and it is at its best when there isn't any.
"A fusion of science fiction, mysticism and post apocalyptic fantasy, The Rare Earth is framed as a documentary, but long stretches are straight drama. Some of those stretches remind us of The Road, others of road movies, and most of Lynch. Stevenson prefers the drama of close ups where he can turn the ordinary into something with exceptional meaning, and long shots, where he can create dramatic visual signatures, such as black figures moving across vast sand dunes against a blue sky. There are very few mid shots."
It was shot around Bendigo, Melbourne, Heathcote, Gippsland and Lake Mungo. According to the Star Cinema, "Martin Kennedy (All India Radio) produced a unique, brooding soundtrack that adds further depth to the film." And that is true, the score, as the cinematography, are exceptional.
The Rare Earth could be seen as the second chapter of a series which started with his debut feature, The Samsara Chronicles 2018 - 2049 - indeed, the time periods of the two films overlap.
(Stevenson's second feature was the documentary Welcome to Wherever You Are, celebrating the Mad Max mythology.)
Freedom Deep (1998)
Freedom Deep Directors Comment
Having read the reviews here both positive and negative I would just like to point out that Freedom Deep was a very low budget, independently financed Austrailain feature film shot on 35mm virtually stolen from the producers by 1st Miracle Pictures (Menahem Golan etc) before it was properly finished. Back in 1998 we were young, naive, without legal representation, and seduced by these 'Hollywood Producer/Distributors' who then exploited the film selling it to international DVD and Television markets. We were essentially ripped off, saw no profits or returns and had to wait for the rights to expire to complete the picture the way it was intended. This is being explored in a documentary currently in production.
FREEDOM DEEP (Final Directors Version) is completed and will be released in late 2008 on Amazon.com.
This version is 50-60% different in content and superior on every other level (aka The Samsara Chronicles). It has now been in production since 1994 and has received positive feedback, encouragement and contribution from a variety of film makers (such as Wim Wenders) that has helped shape its development.
www.freedomdeep.com Freedom Deep FDV is not intended to be taken too seriously, it is a piece of pop culture with many references to contemporary cultural icons and broader world issues such as Sept 11, the war on terror etc. The narrative includes visual imagery, music, poetry, and a sense of broad stroke unbiased prophecy to tell what is ultimately a very humanistic and uplifting tale. The audience is invited to think a little and draw their own conclusions from the clues given or they can just sit back enjoy the music and be inspired by the cinematography of Karl von Moller.
Aaron Stevenson (21st August 2008) "If a stranger should fall from the sky to the ground, tell me what would he think when he looked around?" Liam 2018.