FilmGo.net (part 1) (2/01/09) FilmGo.net is an interesting new website that bills itself as, “a 24/7 all year round film festival”. For less than the price of one adult movie ticket, you can “virtually” rent a movie for 24 hours. What that means is, you can stream the movie on your computer, and watch it as many times as you like for 24 hours (time starts when you first click play on the film). I have thus far watched 2 of the 10 independent films that are available on the site, and I’ve been very happy with the stream quality, not once did I get a buffering gap slowing down my viewing enjoyment. The picture quality was not cinema perfect, but I don’t have a cinema perfect monitor. I would say the picture quality is comparable to standard (non-HD) cable TV. As for the quality of the movies themselves, that would likely depend on your film tastes. Here’s a brief synopsis, and my thoughts on the 2 films I have watched so far (be on the lookout for further reviews as I have a chance to view them): ~ Comic Evangelists: A Divine Comedy Description from FilmGo.net: What do you get when you put a truth-deficient small group leader, an Atheist, an in-the-closet Christian, and a Bible thumping improv troupe called Comic Evangelists together in a van? This Christian improv troupe wanted to spread the Lord's word at a big city Improv Festival. But as they prepare for their big performance they get closer and closer to collapsing under their own secrets and lies. Will the groups faith be enough to get them through the experience that awaits? Produced on a shoestring budget and completely improvised by real-life improv troupe Crawlspace Eviction, this ensemble comedy takes on humor and faith with hilarious results! http://www.filmgo.net/NowPlaying/ComicEvangelistsADivineComedy/tabid/144/Default.aspx My Thoughts: I wanted to start with this film because I love a good improv comedy film. The works of Christopher Guest (“Waiting For Guffman”, “Best In Show”, etc), and improvised shows like “Reno 911”, generally entertain me. Unfortunately, this film did not shine in that same way. It did have it’s moments, but it was overly predictable, and just not funny enough to hold my attention. While I did make it through the entire film, I found myself at times thinking about other things, not being enticed by the film. I’m sure there are people out there that would enjoy this (the film currently has 3 very positive praises in it‘s comment section), I wanted to be one of them, but it just didn’t do it for me. ~ DRAKMAR: A Vassal's Journey Description from FilmGo.net: A documentary about a boy, his knight and his dad. A coming of age saga about a 14-year-old boy in San Diego whose life alternates between the medieval fantasy Kingdom of Adria and the real world trials of a challenging adolescence. An extraordinary story of a teenager's search for approval from his knight, love from his unknown father, and acceptance from a world that has labeled him an outcast. http://www.filmgo.net/NowPlaying/DrakmarAVassalsJourney/tabid/108/Default.aspx My Thoughts: This documentary was totally enticing! The story begins showing Colin, a 14 year old who is picked on at school, hasn’t seen his dad in 10 years, and basically feels out of place in the real world. The one place he seems comfortable and happy is in a medieval role playing community. The film begins being about him and that community, which includes his 17 year old brother, and the knight (a surrogate dad for him) for which he is a page. Mid-way through the film the documentary takes on a whole new aspect as the director tries to track down Colin’s father for a reunion. I’m not sure if this film would have worked so well as a scripted drama. I suspect much of it would have played off as being overdone, or like a movie of the week, but as a documentary I couldn’t help but get sucked into this story and really care about Colin and his family (both real and surrogate). This film was a real joy, and I highly recommend it. www.FilmGo.net