Vid: Hallelujah (Angel the Series; Wes-focus)

[butterfly]

So, a while back, when I first saw Boni's Mal vid to Hallelujah (Rufus Wainwright), I thought -- this is almost a Wesley song.

But it wasn't, not quite, so I put it out of my mind. Then, I heard Jeff Buckley's version of the song and I blinked and said -- wow, that's Wesley. This song is about Wes. Then I had to wait about a year before I started actually vidding. This is also the vid that I've made using half of my month free try-out of Adobe Premiere, which is a very interesting program.

Hallelujah

Summary:
Wesley. Love. Damage.
(mpg file; 56.5 MB; zipped
also available here; right-click and save
available as a smaller wmv file on request)

It goes like this:
the fourth, the fifth,
the minor fall, and the major lift.

Comments

wow

[amalthia]

I loved the vid, great job. :) I never heard this song but it really did seem to fit the theme of the vid. This is definately something I'm going to have to re-watch a couple of times. :)

Re: wow

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

Thank you.

I totally fell in love with the idea of the song -- I actually thought of it before Not Fade Away, before I knew how accurate making a 'tribute' vid would be (I think I thought of it first around when Lineage aired and was thinking of ending on the phonecall, since I had no clue).

I just love Wes. And this vid shows a few of the reasons why.

[darkmoon711.livejournal.com]

It was beautiful. I cried through it. That song seems to have that affect on me. Mostly because people keep making amazing vids of characters' deaths. First Trigun's Nicholas Wolfwood, now you with Wesley. It was extremely good. Thank you for sharing!

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

Thank you. I'm very pleased that you liked it!

[arclevel.livejournal.com]

Lovely. Just, lovely. Excellent job.

(resisting urge to ask what you're going to make us with the *other* half of the free trial. Clearly failing.)

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

And my next vid? It's another Angel vid, focusing on a season two story arc. I have about twenty ideas that I wrote out long before I started vidding and I'm finally getting a chance to do some of them.

[electrcspacegrl.livejournal.com]

But it wasn't, not quite, so I put it out of my mind. Then, I heard Jeff Buckley's version of the song and I blinked and said -- wow, that's Wesley.

I thought the same exact thing. I once made a Wesley icon using lyrics from this song. I'm going to download this...while I'm sleeping since it's such a big file and I'm on dialup.

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

The song really does fit him. I had a Fred/Wes icon for a while with "It's a cold and it's a broken hallelujah" on it.

Let me know how you like the vid!

[beledibabe.livejournal.com]

Ah, excellent! Beautiful use of the lyric imagery. I'm so familiar with the cragginess of Cohen's and Wainwright's versions that the smooth sweetness in this one was unexpectedly affecting.

You did a great job. ::sniffling::

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

Beautiful use of the lyric imagery. I'm so familiar with the cragginess of Cohen's and Wainwright's versions that the smooth sweetness in this one was unexpectedly affecting.

The other versions really don't fit Wes at all, so it was such a great surprise when this one did, because I really do think that the lyrics fit him very well.

Again, thank you.

[trepkos.livejournal.com]

I heard this song and thought "Spuffy"!
But I'm looking forward to watching it, when I'm all caught up.

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

Let me know what you think!

[kunzite1.livejournal.com]

so far, this month, i've used 25.78MB/15GB.
the file is here (http://mike.mm1swebcreations.com/lj/butterfly/Hallelujah.mpg). enjoy. :)

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

Well, I am not quite stubborn and self-sufficient enough to turn down a fait accompli, so I will say 'thank you' and kindly accept your offer.

Thanks.

[malnpudl.livejournal.com]

That's beautiful. It's music to break your heart by, and Wes is a pretty heartbreaking/heartbroken character. Lovely job.

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

Thank you.

And yeah, Wes breaks my heart a whole lot.

[roguewords.livejournal.com]

Am downloading to watch later!

yay for combining one of my favorite songs with one of my favorite characters!

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

Very cool. Let me know how you liked it!

[boniblithe.livejournal.com]

Excellent :)

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

Oh, wow, thank you.

[snoopypez.livejournal.com]

This was SO gorgeous. Love. Total and complete love.

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I'm so thrilled that it works for you.

[ros-fod.livejournal.com]

ohmygod

Did you mean to break my heart? Because you did.

Beautifully done.

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

Beautifully done.

Oh, thank you (it feels so odd to thank people for telling you that you broke their hearts...).

[whisp.livejournal.com]

One of my favourite songs combined with my favourite character.

You. Rock.

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

Thank you.

I was so surprised when Wesley became one of my favorite characters -- I was one of the people who took ages to get over losing Doyle. But by the end, I really adore Wes so much.

[cosmic.livejournal.com]

This is *beautiful*.

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

[kivrin.livejournal.com]

Oh, man. This broke me in the best way. Still more amazing, it broke my roommate, who doesn't know Wesley. She's well and truly hooked now, though. Beautiful, beautiful work. Thank you so much.

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

Thank you. It feels odd to say that I'm glad that it affected you so much, but the vid did exactly what it was supposed to do.

[kiki-miserychic.livejournal.com]

The timeline you used works amazing. The back and forth along it, coming back to things, circling around: it comes together wonderfully. The vid makes me sad yet uplifted, if that's possible. It's Wesley and everything put together to flow and ebb and it's perfect. Even the POV changes work seamlessly. The odd pacing is great too.

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

The timeline you used works amazing. The back and forth along it, coming back to things, circling around: it comes together wonderfully.

That's wonderful to read. I'm very fond of circles, of beginning at the ending and then working my way back to the ending again.

The vid makes me sad yet uplifted, if that's possible. It's Wesley and everything put together to flow and ebb and it's perfect. Even the POV changes work seamlessly. The odd pacing is great too.

Again, thank you so much. I'm thrilled that you like the vid -- I really do feel that the song speaks so much of who Wesley loves and I adored him.

[elgrey.livejournal.com]

What a stunning vid. Wesley is such a complex character that in songvids only one aspect of who he is seems to get dealt with, as if all he ever did was be angsty over Fred and then die (and even more so, as if all poor Fred ever did was contribute to Wesley's angst by dying, poor girl, and had no other life but him). Whereas you have made a video as complex and tragic and beautiful as he is. This one really did give me chills. I loved the way you cut backwards and forwards between the different times in his life, showing the depth of connection he had to Gunn, to Angel, and to Fred. I don't think I've actually seen another vid that showed so clearly what he was giving up - and knew he would be giving up, all the love and friendship he had earned from these people - when he walked out of that hotel with Connor. I loved the cutting between that final scene throughout the video, too. I'm going to be watching it over and over. You made me cry and smile at the same time, and I wouldn't have thought it was possible to use that last scene and still make a video that was both tragic and uplifting. Just *thank you* so much for making this and making it available for download.

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

Wesley is such a complex character that in songvids only one aspect of who he is seems to get dealt with, as if all he ever did was be angsty over Fred and then die (and even more so, as if all poor Fred ever did was contribute to Wesley's angst by dying, poor girl, and had no other life but him).

It is frustrating when either of those characters is reduced to their relationship. I adored the Fred/Wes relationship, but there so many other, equally important factors involved in making them who they were by the end of everything.

Whereas you have made a video as complex and tragic and beautiful as he is. This one really did give me chills. I loved the way you cut backwards and forwards between the different times in his life, showing the depth of connection he had to Gunn, to Angel, and to Fred. I don't think I've actually seen another vid that showed so clearly what he was giving up - and knew he would be giving up, all the love and friendship he had earned from these people - when he walked out of that hotel with Connor.

Thank you! I adored the complexity of Wesley's relationship with the people that he cares about -- and the complexity of Wesley himself. Because he loved the three of them, dearly, but felt he had to make choices that he knew they would disagree with and that he would lose them over, whichever way things fell out.

I loved the cutting between that final scene throughout the video, too. I'm going to be watching it over and over. You made me cry and smile at the same time, and I wouldn't have thought it was possible to use that last scene and still make a video that was both tragic and uplifting.

Oh, that's really lovely to read. I have to admit that I have an absolute love of the way the Angel ended that stands in glaring contrast to the way I hate why it had to end that way, and so the end of the show (and Wesley) are both just the way they should be and also horribly wrong.

Just *thank you* so much for making this and making it available for download.

You're welcome. Thank you so much for the feedback!