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Presenting Tom Holland's "5 Or Die"!

Published at:  Nov 07, 2008 2:04:28 PM CST

Beaks here...



When I interviewed Tom Holland back in September for that incredible FRIGHT NIGHT reunion at the Nuart, he was eager to discuss Strike.TV, an online network of sorts created during the recent writers strike. The goal was to generate ad revenue through original programming (written, directed and performed gratis) which would then be donated to the Writers Guild Foundation Industry Support Fund (which, according to the website, is now a part of the Actors Fund's Entertainment Assistance Program).

Well, now it's live. Check out the front page, and you'll find a bunch of new short films featuring folks like Bob Newhart, Kristen Wiig, Timothy Dalton, Joanne Whalley and Mindy Kaling. Some of these appear to be one-offs, but others, like Steven E. De Souza's "Unknown Sender", are intended to be actual series.

This is the case with Tom Holland's "5 or Die", a gory little piece of work that uses a RING-like gimmick to scare the crap out of teenagers. Tom freely admits that he's "feeling his way" with this series. Though he's very excited about connecting with his fans online, this is also something of a new medium for him. He's a filmmaker, first and foremost, and a damn fine one at that. But I've every confidence he can make this work.

Here's the first installment of "5 or Die":



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    Readers Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 2:09:07 PM CST

    Tom Holland is awesome

    by kayleefan

    Met him once, great guy.
    Fright Night is still one of the best vampire movies ever.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 2:28:48 PM CST

    now that...

    by mc-909

    ...was fucking dumb. "All you people out there watching this, admit, you've been enjoying it."

    No.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 2:35:56 PM CST

    Yeah.. I don't want to slag him...

    by ghostwood

    cause like Fright Night and Child's Play are fucking great, but it took a lot to get through. If I didn't know Holland did it, I would've honestly thought this was one of those really unoriginal DTV ideas that Asylum does so poorly.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 2:39:55 PM CST

    Much respect, but...

    by slothe

  • Nov 07, 2008 2:42:05 PM CST

    ... not impressed.

    by slothe

  • Nov 07, 2008 2:47:45 PM CST

    Thought this was a new Die Hard...

    by worldofwarcraft

    I'll be leaving now.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 2:49:19 PM CST

    That was crap...

    by whenin_tokyo

    I thought the guy made movies? I love his previous films but, there's no lighting, the actors suck and the whole internet thing is pretty lame. I have more mood lighting in my room at home than this thing.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 2:55:51 PM CST

    how about when

    by frankenfickle

    you think the guy is dead and then he SITS UP! never seen that before.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 3:06:25 PM CST

    actually, now that i think about it,

    by frankenfickle

    they should figure out a way to turn this into a santa claus origin story.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 3:09:30 PM CST

    frankenfickle

    by mc-909

    This is the Santa Claus origin story. What are you, a moron?

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 3:12:59 PM CST

    5 items or less or die

    by shut the fuck up donny

    That would get the grocery lines moving.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 3:30:50 PM CST

    I'm sorry but...

    by swogwarbler

    that was pretty terrible. It's like something some middle school kids would make. It would never be seen by much of an audience if aintitcool hadn't put it up.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 3:31:15 PM CST

    What the fuck?

    by m_reporter

    This looks worse than most student films I've seen.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 3:41:28 PM CST

    the gore was good

    by unkempt_sock

    but that was about it

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 3:42:48 PM CST

    @mc-909

    by frankenfickle

    look at that! my bad.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 4:05:22 PM CST

    mehh

    by jambone

  • Nov 07, 2008 4:08:23 PM CST

    I thought this was a new Die Hard thing

    by deanbarry

    For a second...5 or Die Hard. Now that would be a crappy title.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 4:22:07 PM CST

    this is definitely gonna be Tom Holland's Opus

    by badmrwonka

    sorry, couldn't resist...

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 4:25:01 PM CST

    "You've been enjoying this" Guess again fuckwad.

    by v'shael

    Honestly, that was abysmal. Terrible fucking script, lousy music. Acting was decent, given the shit material. But as a packaged whole, it was pretty fucking dire.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 6:10:43 PM CST

    Aren't we nice behind our keyboards

    by the reluctant austinite

    in the safety of our rooms? Maybe you missed the point of this no budget project. What have you guys EVER done? Why don't you put YOUR art up here on the internet and see how it feels when people like you spit at it without a care. Nah, you'll never actually do anything for anyone else to see.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 7:36:04 PM CST

    Anyone else notice

    by nick91884

    On the shelves there are like 3 or four Ecto-1 license plates.
    That guy wasnt much of a ghost buster though.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 9:38:43 PM CST

    For some reason...

    by slicer

    I feel like having a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup!

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 9:55:52 PM CST

    Unfortunately, it's not very effective

    by veritasses

    as a horror flick. The problems start with the writing. There's no reason to have three deaths in a 10-15 minute short film, especially if the intent is to continue the story in future episodes. The first few minutes should have been used to setup the characters and give them some depth. Maybe throw in some misdirection, foreshadowing or create some anticipation. He could have then used the second act to steadily build tension leading up to the killer and first murder. Focusing on character and story would've had the added benefit of saving money on special effects which could have been used to get better lighting and equipment or allowed for more takes or whatever. And having the story take place in the day time wasn't a good choice. Night time offers much better atmosphere plus there's the obvious advantage of using darkness/shadows. He could have easily made a much scarier movie without showing the killer's face or even seeing the victim get stabbed. Lastly, characters have to act reasonably like real people. You don't stay in the same room as the crazy boogeyman you just shot so you can chat on the computer with your friend. Neither do you stay in the same room as the guy who's skull didn't crack with repeated blows with a hammer and who you just witnessed didn't die from a shot to the head. Obvious flaws in character behavior take us out of the moment and vastly reduce the impact of a scene.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 07, 2008 10:59:39 PM CST

    I just didn't care about any of this.

    by jumpinjehosaphat

    That's it, really. Nothing to invest in here.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 08, 2008 1:25:29 AM CST

    Tom Holland is a republican?

    by jimmyjoe redsky

    that sucked on so many levels - i think a big reason the kids get killed is the fact that theyre alone in their rooms (in their pajamas no less) in the middle of the afternoon - and appear to be tethered to their laptops - and too dumb to leave the house in a panic - this is lame creatively lazy junk for self absorbed american teens - is tom sending a message? - get a real life kids, or youll die while wasting it - stupid looking monster/killer too - nice "jesus and mary chain" plug though - are they still around?

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 08, 2008 1:31:14 AM CST

    The Reluctant Austinite

    by jimmyjoe redsky

    hey dumb ass - you dont have to be an artist to critique someone else's art - its online for the world to see and open to responses - that was garbage - it was a tech demo for who ever supplied the gore fx - which were the only highlight - this is gore porn - here is a challenge, scare teens while showing less gore - if you thought that was "good", you are an idiot

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 08, 2008 1:34:28 AM CST

    veritasses

    by jimmyjoe redsky

    jesus, you nailed it - no set up or real story telling - just witless kids in their rooms waiting to get hacked - im still trembling

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 08, 2008 1:40:47 AM CST

    to who ever is in charge here

    by jimmyjoe redsky

    there has got to be many more short films out there - by people we havent heard of - and much better than this one - post them - make part of this site a venue for shorts of all genres

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 08, 2008 1:51:52 AM CST

    ohh that was poor

    by kingoflight

  • Nov 08, 2008 7:14:58 AM CST

    oh I misread that

    by kizeesh

    I thought it was Tom Hollander's Live or Die.
    Interest lost...

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 08, 2008 10:13:41 AM CST

    JimmyJoe Redsky

    by the reluctant austinite

    That's just the type of response I'm talking about that drags down AICN talkback. It's okay not to like something, but it is possible to be more tactful about it. At least Veritasses is specific in his criticism without just insulting the filmmakers with profanity. You, in fact, called me a dumbass and an idiot without knowing anything about me except for the fact that I was angry about the lowbrow responses to Mr. Holland's project. I doubt you'd call me a dumbass or idiot if we were having this conversation together in a room. The internet is like liquid bravery for Eddie Hasskel types who would get their butts kicked in the real world if they ever voiced their "I'm right, you're an idiot" attitudes out loud.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 08, 2008 2:36:45 PM CST

    Whether they gave reasons for saying it's crap, or not

    by v'shael

    the fact remains that it is crap. I for one, question why it even appears on this site. Cool, it is not.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 08, 2008 7:57:34 PM CST

    The Reluctant Austinite

    by jimmyjoe redsky

    i apologize - mr sensitive - youre right, the internet is liquid bravery for eddie haskels - im more of a lumpy or larry mondello with balls - but the internet is also a place where you will get honest from the gut reactions to art in the form of a short film - something so awful and with such "blah - in your face violence" doesnt warrant a kind and measured response - its critics should be allowed the same visceral attitude the piece itself adopts - lingering shots of stabbings and a head getting crushed, wow thats art

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 08, 2008 8:55:57 PM CST

    The Reluctant Austinite Defends Hitler.

    by whinynegativebitch

    Hey internet heroes behind your keyboards, how many times have you run the third reich? None. And you'll never be chancellor of Germany, so how about you stop giving Hitler shit and try and run your own dictatorship. Thats right, your'll all losers in your parents basement, so that will never happen.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 08, 2008 9:04:59 PM CST

    Well now that Mr. Holland's entered the talkback...

    by tokyo_drifter

    What were you thinking when you made this?

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 09, 2008 3:39:25 AM CST

    Has he? Where? I want to aim my vitriol.

    by v'shael

    Not really. I couldn't give a flying toss if he's present reading this TB or not. I've said my piece, I see many agree with me (for sometimes different reasons, or unstated reasons) and I draw little to no comfort from that. It simply is what it is.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 09, 2008 7:06:11 PM CST

    This wasn't terrible....

    by brattyben

    I thought it was okay. I liked the Back to the Future and Ghostbuster nods.

    Reply to Talkback

  • Nov 16, 2008 12:13:15 PM CST

    Wasn't That Guy In The Wire??

    by pr1c3y

    I'm pretty sure he was.

    Reply to Talkback

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