Movie Website Reviews for Weekend of November 30, 2007

December 2, 2007

Slow week, both in terms of the number of movies being released, and in terms of the quality of the sites. Aaja Nachle - Official Site stood out as the best site, but not good enough to win the Weekly Website Award.

Aaja Nachle - Official Site
The first site this week is also the best. All the usual features are here, mostly, (there are character bios instead of cast & crew bios). There's a high emphasis on the music, which is not surprising for a Bollywood film, especially a Bollywood film about dancing. There's also enough animation to not seem boring, but during a normal week it wouldn't stand out.

Awake - Official Site
Just the absolute basics, (synopsis, bios, image gallery, and trailer). However, there's enough style that someone might think if it was fleshed out into a full site, it would be really effective. Sadly, this is all we are going to get.

Badlands - Official Site
There are a lot of video clips on this site, include two trailers, and interview featurettes, and a few clips. There is also a background song, but it only plays while you are looking at the images. On the other hand, there is no style.

Chronicle of an Escape - Official Site
A very small site that is missing some of the basics, (there are filmographies instead of bios). But I do like the menu system; it uses the floor plan of the house, which adds some style.

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly - No Official Site
There's no official site for the North American release. Here's the original French.

He Was a Quiet Man - Official Site
Almost forgot this site. There's both the new site, and the more stylish old site. Combined they have a lot of information, including real world information on Spree Killers.

Oswald's Ghost - Official Site
There's a small press kit, and that's all the information on the site. Everything else is just links, including the trailer on YouTube and the DVD on Amazon. There is more information on the PBS site, but while there is more information, there's not a lot of style there either.

The Protagonist - Official Site
All the usual information is here, but sadly not a lot of style. I was more than a little intrigued by the trailer, on the other hand, which made the lack of style on the site more frustrating.

The Rocket - Official Site
For a smaller film with very limited appeal in the States, this is a good site. It actually has a game, which is rare for limited releases, and there is also a clip from A Tribute To Maurice Richard, although it's very short.

The Sasquatch Gang - Official Site
Better style than most sites this week, but a little light on the content. There's also an unfortunate over-reliance on sasquatch turds as a design motif. Otherwise a fine site.

The Savages - Official Site
A lot of information, including a lot of videos from interviews, trailers, clips from the movie. It's a lot to go through, but I really don't like the style. All Fox Searchlight sites feel like a mess and that distracts for the content they provide.

Sex and Breakfast - Official Site
Just the basics with nothing in terms of sound or animation.

Tony N' Tina's Wedding - Official Site
All the usual information is here, with a couple extras including character bios and a store. Also, there are a few mouse-overs to add style and a sense of interactivity.


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Filed under: Awake, The Savages, Le Scaphandre et le Papillon, Aaja Nachle, Protagonist, The Sasquatch Gang, He Was a Quiet Man, Crónica de una fuga, Badland, Oswald's Ghost, Sex and Breakfast, Maurice Richard, Tony N' Tina's Wedding