Two men borrow money from a loan shark in order to finance their movie, but things start to spiral out of control in the film Law of Sin. Review after the jump.
Written, directed and produced by Daniell Nelson, Law of Sin is an unusual feature film to say the least. We managed to come to this conclusion within the first few minutes of the 96 minutes runtime, having witnessed the film start with Mr Nelson himself, sat on some steps whilst rapping to the camera like we were watching a music video. This isn’t just a one-off occasion either, as Daniell pops up throughout the film with more raps. This had me confused, as it had nothing to do with the plot and didn’t help the film; it was more filler than anything else. Possibly it was just so Daniell could be onscreen more. Who knows?
The film is actually about two men who dream of making a movie. They have the screenplay but no money. They visit a loan shark and then dabble in drug dealing, but it all leads to them being in some serious trouble.
Law of Sin has some real problems in its presentation. This may be Daniell Nelson’s first attempt at movie-making, and you do have to credit him for managing to create a full feature (which is no easy feat) but some of his (and his crew’s) mistakes cannot be forgiven nor applauded.
The cinematography is simply non-existent. The camera shots are bland, no notice is taken of the “crossing the line” rule and no (or very little) attention is paid to the lighting. I’m not sure what camera the film was shot on, but the shots are all extremely shaky – making the film look like it is set during an earthquake. It is also edited in the strangest manner imaginable. The film cuts in rapid succession at times and then ridiculously slow during others. Meaning scenes with dialogue jump as if having an epileptic fit whilst scenes such as a couple hugging seem to go on forever. The audio also cuts out during scenes and transitions.
Talking about audio, I believe that the audio was recorded with the camera’s built in mic and not by a sound mixer and boom operator. This leads to the viewer barely hearing what is being said at all. Some ADR was also used but, while it may be clearer, it was out of sync with that of the actor speaking the lines.
The plot behind Law of Sin isn’t bad at all. It sort of reminds me of a harder hitting ‘Get Shorty’ and it may have worked had more time, effort and talent been used on the film. A production designer, a decent D.O.P and audio team can go a long way. Yes, Law of Sin may not have had a large budget, but I’m sure that some very talented young filmmakers could have helped should they have been asked. The end result would have been very different.
Let’s hope Daniell Nelson takes a couple of steps back and betters himself and his craft through learning and development. I would like to see what he could come up with using a fifteen minute script and using local talent, before approaching a feature again until he and his crew are ready.
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