Astartes

This is how movies should and can be made, every fine detail, camera angle and visual effects are on point. There is absolutely nothing wrong with any of the episodes besides how short they are. If this man hasn't already been hired by a big visual effects company they're all losing. I don't even like warhammer but man was this cool. It tells a story without even saying words. Mind blown.

There is a story here; a story about how awesome (yes, awesome) and ruthless the space marines are. It functions great in the last part as cosmic (Lovecraftian) horror. The rest of the parts are just a thrill ride of incredible directing, animation, cinematography, sound design, action, and style. The only problem is that the first parts are slightly worse when comparing to the last one as they are really short and their art/animation quality is a bit less detailed. There are a lot of dark shots where, when you are watching for the first time, you might not know what is exactly happening. Also, this is clearly for the fans of the 40k universe, thus someone who is going into this completely blind probably won't understand a thing, but they will enjoy it nonetheless.

I will probably do myself no favours saying this but...I know very little about 40K. Yes I know about GW and the board games and miniatures, I've even played a Warhammer game over on the Xbox 360, it was pretty good, but I have no insight into any lore or the universe that the franchise occupies.

What I do know is that this showed up in my YouTube recommended and I preceded to watch. Wow. So glad I did because this was something else. It grabbed me from the off, there is something more going on here other than just great visuals. I'm not savvy in film/cinema speak but I'll say this then end my review, it gave me a vibe I very rarely get from films these days, short or no, and that vibe is mystery. It dripped with it. A touch of the Space Jockey if you will.

I'm off to read up on Warhammer things. To the creative behind this, don't pull a Prometheus.

An excellent example of visual storytelling, not a single word as none are needed.

Actions are clear and tell all that is needed to be told here.

Excellent CGI, believable animation and heaps of atmosphere.

I think the only thing left is hopefully some studio or financier will support the full length film so we can get the rest of the story.

This is a masterclass in cinematography, sound design and story telling. Without dialogue the mood is still clear and the fast cuts aren't there to hide shoddy choreography but to cram information into a tightly constructed scene.

Just spectacular.