Ensofter Overrated and overhyped

ScoobyWell Great visuals, story delivers no surprises

Solidrariol Am I Missing Something?

Brendon Jones It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

peefyn Much of Don Hertzfield's work embodies the term "experimental". Even though this is one of his first major works, it's already experimenting with the limits of hand drawn animation (on paper), and exploring boundaries of the format. He is probably not the first animator to use the crumpling of the paper and tearing as a part of the animation, or even letting it affect the characters within - but the way he does it is as fun as it is creative.The plot of the cartoon works alright as a gimmick. It's almost like a series of skits, where the punchline usually is a non sequitur - some times something very gross. The contrast between the the cute drawings and the things they say and do was more fresh when this was released than it is now - though it is probably still very enjoyable for many. His style is that of a notebook doodle, and it lends itself great for experimentation, as he can probably do more stuff on the fly. In interviews he has stated that he usually does not storyboard before he starts animating, which makes sense after watching shorts like this.This short is not just good on its own, but it's also great to compare to his later works, as you can see how his style develops, without and how his works explore deeper subjects than "just" the format itself.

Steve Pulaski Don Hertzfeldt has managed to make some of the most innovative and hilarious animated shorts by using the most primitive style of doodling and stick-figures, which, in my opinion, only helps accentuate the charm of his work. Hertzfeldt is a commendable artist with a plethora of ideas, frequently finding a way to make his random ideas flourish through the limitless realm of animation, and Rejected shows the kind of activity that I'm sure floods his head on a daily basis. The connective tissue of the short, as its a collection of miniature shorts within nine minutes, is that Hertzfeldt was hired to create some animated spots and advertisements for The Family Channel but, in the mix of himself going absolutely crazy with sketching and writing, almost losing control, all his proposed segments were rejected. Rejected shows all the spots/advertisements, with the last couple minutes of the short showing Hertzfeldt's complete spiral into insanity as all the animated figures are thrown into chaos by crumpling paper and the entire destruction of their world.Rejected is a zealous little gem, colorful and vibrant despite being so minimalist, and its traditionally-animated style proves that one can still captivate even when they resort to the bare basics. Hertzfeldt's craft is the kind that, even when stripped back many layers and nowhere near as expensive and detailed as larger, more mainstream projects.Directed by: Don Hertzfeldt.

Raul pilev (agen006) Like i said in the forums: Please tell me that it's all a joke, because this was really stupid and there was absolutely nothing funny about it. I mean, I kind of understood it and deep down inside, I assumed I was going to laugh, but I did not, not at all. I was just staring at this thing with my eyes wide open and asking myself, why am I watching this. I was going through the reviews and almost got a tear in my eye, praying to God: "PLEASE tell me that this is a joke". Maybe it's meant for below 14 year olds, then I can understand, but if not, then it is a total mystery to me. Now don't get me wrong, I have a good sense of humor. I love films like "Top Secret!", "The Naked gun", "Hot Shots", but this, this thing is not worthy of even a zero or the 9 minutes it stole from my life.

tedg Deserved revenge in the film business must come rarely. I don't for a minute believe that Hertzfeldt is blameless in how he dealt with "the suits," but I've had enough dealings with them to serve them any insult possible.I first encountered Hertzfeldt's work in "A L'amour" done before this. It has him approaching different women and saying innocuous things "Betty, those are nice shoes" and having her chainsaw out his heart and eat it.This stuff is along the same lines, a little less powerful and more uneven. But what makes this something you'll remember for a long time is the stuff done after the initial rejected bits and the faux ads. Its the stuff where the cartoon itself begins to disintegrate.It is a literal example of self-referential folding: the paper crinkles and destroys the world.This is probably the second best of his stuff. See "Genre" if you can.Ted's Evaluation -- 3 of 3: Worth watching.