Reviewed by Aaron Haynes

Most 3dmm short movies fall into one of two categories: a bizarre scribbling of a general idea (or sometimes the lack of one), or a dark, depressing drama, often with a twist ending. Hangman subscribes to the latter almost completely, but this isn't a detriment. It's well made, interesting, and employs a voiceover technique I wish more 3DMM directors would try; it uses the onscreen visuals to enhance the narration, unfolding the plot in two different storytelling methods simultaneously.

So what, you say. It's a simple monotone narrative overlapping mediocre animation and basic directing techniques. That may be the case, but rarely is it this engrossing or pulled off this well. It's best to go into the movie not knowing what to expect for this reason -- when certain things about the title become clear, you're watching a specific something slowly unfold before your eyes as the narration gives you all the details you need to know. It's a really cool technique and manages to give the viewer different aspects of a major plot point in all the right ways at the same time.

It begins and ends with a poem by Emily Dickenson. A man has lost his wife and spends his days wishing he could be with her, no matter what he has to do. A shady character shows up at his door, claiming he can give him what he wants. As the plot unfolds, I began to wonder just where the story was going, especially when the man's wish looks like it's finally being granted....but is it really? The wordplay on "Elysium" made me smile, and the ending was suitably creepy and a neat idea, if not exactly airtight, plotwise. It's not a great movie, but it's a neat short and I was pleasantly surprised.

The reviews I read on other sites gave Hangman a backseat to the Unleash the Dragon preview attached to the beginning. I hate to think of this as just a hype vehicle for an ultra-ambitious project that ended up being released in an extremely neutered form, but the length of the preview and the fact that it's given front billing make me wonder if that was Frogman's intent. The presentation makes this cool little short seem almost like an afterthought, which I think is kind of depressing.

Critical Score: 78/100.
Personal Score: 80/100.