The Loch Nest

Great acting in this film, particularly from the murderous main character. My favourite part was actually her self-centered monologue behind the credits - a brilliant summation of her character, and a hilarious end to the film. If the dialogue had leaned more into humour and less into vulgarity this film would have been much improved, and it would have become one of the better school films.

Such a fun play on reality TV, ramping up the stakes while making it incredibly silly. Really such an excellent parody with some well-crafted humour and a strong story. This was an odd choice for a monster movie, but you managed to get a monster chase in there so I think it counts.

I love that you went in a direction that came naturally to your actors. You clearly all had a blast and it was very watchable.

I was concerned at the sight of one of your characters spiking the drink of another character, but when it turned out to be fatal that somehow made it better.

lots of laughs, great comedic performances all round. Really nailed the reality show aesthetic too.

This movie is alive with strong comedic performances and sharp edits.

A lot of people go for the "game show" format, and Reel Housewives carried it well.

I enjoyed this. Like DennisChief, I thought the funniest part by far was the post-credit monologue. Food for thought for future projects.

Such a funny way to open the adults only heat, and such a fun cast!! I hope you all had the best time making this! You NAILED the love island tropes! Would love to see more from you guys!

Such a fun spin on the reality partial. These guys clearly had a lot of fun making this which is really all that matters. And the location was perfect for a Big Brother type set. R.I.P. Keith.

What got my attention:
Great location – good to see the help were given the day off. No doubt they had some clean up to do come Monday morning. I loved some of your back lighting and sight gags; especially Archie’s body being dragged away in the background. Emelie’s performance was top notch and hearing she improvised the final credit sequence was just the icing on the cake. That therapist line was inspiring – I hope people rewatch your film who were at the screening as some ill-timed, idiotic laughter drowned it out for the live audience. You easily understand the Reality TV tropes and dialed them up a lot. Never have I heard such bad language apart from in your NCEA Script assessments. You deserved Joel’s wagging finger and “No, no, no”. You also created history in being my first ever “School” team to be bumped from a school heat due to content. You crazy kids; I claim zero responsibility.

Take it or Leave it:
Look, I admit I did tell you to go for it and not feel inhibited by being a school team – which in the end you weren’t due to using “C*nt” and “The rapist” in your short. I think these two lines work but some of your other swearing felt a bit unnecessary (we’ve had words about this before). Doing a Reality Show/mocumentary/news report etc is kind of a cop-out in 48 as they’re seen as an easier, more forgiving way to go. Could you have made this as slasher-woman out for revenge flick without the reality TV aspect? Friends at dinner? On holiday? Regardless, you went with it and made it work. I think some of your shots could have been closer on characters faces to really nail the emotion, line intent, even if shoed the manual reframing on screen. The temptation can be to get more people than you need in shot – it speeds things up but getting coverage is a lifesaver and adds variety.

Final thoughts:
You got some laughs and did some fine work in the edit and with your iPhone. All the characters stole the show in different ways. Maybe you didn’t get the response you hoped for at the screening, but you were battling with the Loud Laughing Monster in the 2nd row. Great work though team – forever proud, even if I’m only a loving memory these days. Flattered you were that nice.

Ahahahahahahaha you naughty kids! The fact that a school team had the most vulgar and shocking language this year is just delightful - although, as alluded to above, perhaps overall a bit unnesecary and more of a distraction from the overall product.

We think the premise here was pretty strong — and in the first 15 seconds the setup for this thing was very promising!

The biggest drawback would be the shooting style. Outside of the interview chair, everything else doesn’t really land from a “TV show” perspective. It has more of a “student with a phone hiding behind a potted plant” vibe, which pulls you out a bit. That being said, you used your limitations well to still get the message across.

THE BEST THING: That final shot of your lead actress was the strongest part and really sold the subversion of the monster genre.
THE NEXT THING: We’d love to see you return next year and keep going hard with your style! Get a camera, grab some sharper audio gear — you’ve got the knack for telling a fun story, now you just want to sharpen up how you share it!

What an exciting story! You can really feel the hours of writing that went into it, and I think it paid off well. The acting is enticing and believable, especially the actors who play Miranda and Jono. I think Jono's arc added a layer of mystery and humour to the story which mixed well with the rest. The final monologue was just the cherry on the pudding, so well acted, so well improvised. Overall, an absolute ride of loss, grief, and comedy. Well done kids!