Synopsis
A hilarious collection of animated television commercials that were rejected because of their creator's failing grip on sanity. 2001 Academy Award nominee for Best Animated Short Film.
2000 Directed by Don Hertzfeldt
A hilarious collection of animated television commercials that were rejected because of their creator's failing grip on sanity. 2001 Academy Award nominee for Best Animated Short Film.
I noticed that basically everyone on this site was watching this and I decided to check it out for myself and see what all the hoopla was about. Now, I have this to say...
What the fuck...
Just...
What in the fuck...
Why did you people make me watch this?
Why is that thing's anus bleeding?
What's up with the banana?
Is that baby gonna be okay (I don't care)?
Why is that spoon so big?
Where can I get Johnson and Mills Fish Sticks?
What the fuck is going on?
Why did I love this so much?
Why did I find this so hilarious?
I don't know, but discovering weird shit like this is one of the many reasons why I just adore this site.
This is one of the greatest shorts that I have ever seen, probably THE best. I am a huge fan of Don Hertzfeldt, and this is easily his greatest short film. Adding surrealism, dark humor, social commentary and existentialism into the mix, Rejected is the perfect representation of a shattered psyche.
The Awesome: Every minute of this masterpiece. The gut-busting humor, which made me laugh harder than any film that I have ever seen. The jaw-dropping ending, that brings the skits together with stunning focus and clarity.
The Terrible: Nothing, Rejected is the definition of perfect.
Overall, I have nothing left to say about Rejected. Just see it. Like now.
I will probably watch this film literally a couple thousand times before I die, and it will never stop putting my jaw on the floor. It's hilarious and astonishingly creative and, as I put it in a piece that I wrote for a friend, "The last image in the film is so potent an expression of desperate frustration in the face of helplessness that I got it tattooed on my right shoulder blade." 190-proof brilliance, this.
Also: I showed this to the woman who would eventually become my wife the first night we met, sandwiched in between DEAD ALIVE and VIDEODROME. Somehow, she still ended up being the woman who would eventually become my wife.
I really love these trends that occasionally pop up on Letterboxd where so many people suddenly end up watching the same thing, as has happened with Rejected in the last 24 hours. I particularly like it when said trend surrounds a short film as I'd love to see more short films get a lot more support in general.
Rejected is superb and exactly in the vein of completely loopy humour that I do love from time to time. It doesn't all work but no gag is overdone and Don Hertzfeldt's animation, especially during the last couple of minutes, is genuinely amazing.
Watch this on YouTube and enjoy - it's only 9 minutes long:-
MY ANUS IS BLEEDING!
So this is where Stick Figures on Crack got its inspiration.
In all honesty, this is a messed-up contortion of random sketches in a hilarious skewer of consumerism, censorship, and mass marketing. It's a deliriously hilarious delve into the mind of an animator slowly slipping into the void of insanity. With each and every "commercial," the short gets more and more insane, until it all implodes on itself in a black hole, destroying the very world that Don created. A symphony of chaos, and neverending hilarity from the innocent first sketch to the skewering and unexpected finale.
oh what i would give to be back watching don hertzfeldt films with the person i love :(
Ever since watching It’s Such A Beautiful Day I’ve been wanting to watch more of Don Hertzfeld’s works but I wish I hadn’t chosen this one before seeing his newer ones. I’m guessing he’s improved a lot since making this because I found it quite disappointing.
The comedy wasn’t that great for me even though I loved the humour in ISABD. I enjoyed the surrealist aspects but there were times where I felt I should’ve laughed but thought that the film was being kind of childish. The animation was cool however and it was rather nice to see how Don started out but I just didn’t like the whole thing very much.
Thanks for reading :)