Fan Film- SUPERFIEND DIRECTORS CUT

Fan Film Friday everyone!

My first introduction to introduction to Adi Shankar’s BOOTLEG UNIVERSE Was POWER/RANGER three years ago in 2015. At the time I watched all his other videos, the Punisher dirty laundry, in the service of nothing, and Venom. I saw it as a neat YouTube channel which somehow turned ordinary properties into HBO series.

I didn’t see SUPERFIEND until recently as I hadn’t ever gone back to the channel to check on new projects, and boy am I glad I did, Adi Shankar’s short animated feature clocks in at just above 27 minutes (A recurring number for Dredd fan films it seems) It’s all about a Judge Sydney on a rampage is a weirdly enthralling romp.

Interestingly Adi Shankar was the executive producer on Dredd, but this short takes a completely different style. The premise, without giving to much away is about Judge Sydney, a Judge who has a penchant for murder, and a dark past, the opening scenes masterfully illustrate this in very few moments as Adi Shankar clearly defines his characters unique voices. It's a shame we never got to see Adi Shankars take on all the dark judges with a longer run-time because Superfiend really captures how bizzare of the psi stories well. Arguably the story does more with one of the established characters then the comic ever did. To say more about the plot of the short film would be a disservice to my readers and the film itself but suffice it to say the story is strong enough to warrant a watch and you might find yourself even feeling for some of the characters by the end.

Ren and Stimpy animation meets the dark Judges for mixed results

Now this film is not for everyone, unlike some fan films such as Judge Minty it does not follow the comic and then expand on the concepts presented, it straight up throws the source material to the wind and goes for it’s own version of the characters, a big minus for some, but as an American fan of comics I suppose I’ve built up an immunity to reading/watching dozens of different versions of a character which completely is contrary to other versions in many ways.

Additionally, there is some disturbing scenery throughout, it leans into the psi-division of Dredd comics, the short it grotesque and gory and I don't believe it lets up for a single moment of it's run-time. I know some fans who hate these stories because of the imagery but love the Dredd crime tales, so for those of you out there, be warned.

          The Film trades between two animation styles throughout, a distinctly hand drawn one, which exudes style and extremely over the top, it may not be many peoples cup of tea, but I loved it. The other style is a distinctly computer animated it works when it is only showing buildings and vehicles, but when it shows computer animated characters, particularly early on, it really falters as they look stiff and distracting from the sloppy over the top style of the rest of the animation. it completely pulls the viewer out of the short and is very distracting, fortunately they use less CG in the later half.

Love it or Hate it, SUPERFIEND is jaw-dropping

 

          End of the day I enjoyed this animated film more than I thought I would going into it, the crude animation somehow works, the story is an interesting re-imagining and these versions of the characters are memorable…. But it’s not for everyone.

If you'd like to check it out look below!