Greatest cow levitation scene ever in the history of motion pictures. New uses for little bits and pieces of your household appliances, including your cat clock. How to crack an egg. Further proof that the $200,000,000 spent on Titanic was $199,995,000 more than it takes to make an outstanding movie. Herd has got it all!!
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larcher-226 April 2000
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planktonrules18 January 2017The only reason I am giving HERD a score of 8 is because the film is ultra cheesy, the special effects are often pure crap and the film a bit disjoint. But this is because filmmaker Mike Mitchell obviously couldn't afford more and he was rather young when he made it. Based on the budget, it's hard to believe that he's now a big-time director making huge Hollywood animated and non-animated films! Obviously this film impressed the right people!
The film begins with a terribly made scene with cows spinning up into space on a crappy fake diorama. But, it's also oddly hypnotic and fun seeing these plastic cows...which turn out to have not much to do with the story. Then the scene changes to the real world and a poor schmo has to deal with some super-annoying and super- aggressive Mormons who won't take no for an answer! Soon after ridding his home of this infestation, the unnamed hero in our story notices an alien (a puppet) running about the house. It begins smashing his appliances...all in order to build something. Where does all this go and what about the strange men in black?! Well, see it....because if I describe it you will just assume I am insane!
There is so much to love about this film. It's strange, it's funny and it's just something you have to see. I really don't want to say more because it would spoil it...just watch HERD! -
JaneDoe322 September 1999My roommate's an assistant on "Deuce", the new Rob Schneider vehicle over at Touchstone. He was telling me that the film's director is just a few years older than we are. So when he brought home the guy's short film, "Herd", I had high expectations.
I haven't laughed that hard in a long time. This film is a work of genius. Instead of being restrained by budget limitations, Mitchell utilizes them for humorous effect. The result is hilarious. The bookmark sequences are beautifully crafted as well, leaving the viewer with a calm sense of awe. All in all, a wonderfully spectacular effort.
I now see why he got the job. -
aeon_nephesh10 January 2002everything in this movie is hilarious, witty, and terrifying. i don't know which image is more unnerving: the jehova's witnesses with helmets or the plastic pig dressed like a gay cowboy, or the scene of dorman and the alien during "the morning after".
i have never seen any student film quite like this one, where the direction is so "well, i'm here. look at me or don't," yet still so brutal. i don't want to spoil the ending, but if you've seen it, you'll know what i mean. mike mitchell is a freaking genius, i can't wait to see more from him. H.E.R.D makes the kind of sense that's pretty much inexplicable in terms of verbosity... you really just have to see it. -
pdayca8 February 2003I was only introduced to this film because a buddy of mine had worked with one of the guys who worked on it. It is, hands down, one of the funniest short films I have EVER seen. If you get the chance, Do not miss the opportunity to view this movie. It is genius!
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BrooklynBum20 November 2000When I saw this at a short film fest in NYC, I laughed so hard tears were running down my face. You have GOT to see this movie, especially if you've seen ET, 2001 and a fair share of paranoid sci-fi movies. Vegetarians, check it out, too.
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JTrimm8 May 1999Last night, I attended the opening ceremonies for my own, and my city's first film festival (The Birmingham Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival). I made sure to get there an hour early, and get a great seat. Two hours later, I had drunk a dr. pepper, changed seats three times, and not yet seen a movie. Nonetheless, it didn't take too long to get things rolling, and as part of the movie festival feeling, they showed a short film to get things rolling. I don't remember seeing anything quite this funny in a long time. Oh, jeez, it kills me just to think about it. Rarely in this country do you get to see short films. I wish they would show more, especially if they're more like Herd. I recommend this film to anyone. Period.
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mistress_o27 April 2000This is a gem of a short! Primarily, one would think, Herd is a short about a guy who works a dead end job at a fast food joint. His life is presumably redundant until an alien begins stalking him. However, Herd is really about the decimation of planet earth by aliens, to appease the cow populous. A few scenes stick in my memory:
When the man returns home from his burger joint job, he finds soul solicitors on his doorstep. They let themselves into his home, where he promptly sprays them down with a fire extinguisher.
Also the alien is a cutie. He looks like a p***ed off kermit the frog. -
Ben Rock6 July 1999I saw this film at the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival, where my film "The Meeting" was screening. Of all the shorts at the festival, it was the one that most stuck with me, mostly because of its twisted sense of humor and cinematic inventiveness.
My film played again at the Florida Film Festival in June, and so did "Herd." I made a point of catching it again, and with a totally fresh audience. It received (easily) the best response of all the films in that particular shorts program.
If you have a local film festival, keep an eye open for this low-tech classic. Often filmmakers (myself included) dwell too long on trying to get Hollywood-like production values. Mike Mitchell eschews all that, knowing the low-tech shortcuts to communicate the same ideas in much funnier ways.