Spin (2005) User Reviews

Great short

[Enchorde · 9/10 · 25 May 2006]

Recap: An unknown DJ sees the consequences after a recent accident. But just as with his records, this DJ has the power to rewind, and change what has happened. He sees that a dropped ball is the cause of the accident, and alters its path. So, the accident never happens. Mission accomplished. He packs his gear, turns to leave, but what happened to the ball...?

Comments: A great short with nice humor about cause and effect in life. A really good story, a nice concept and in my opinion really well done. An inspiration.

9/10

Cause and effect

[Polaris_DiB · 8/10 · 21 May 2007]

A mysterious man walks up to a public square and sees that a tragic accident has occurred. He gets out some turn tables, and with expert hands reverses the motion until he can see what happened, then proceeds to direct the action a different way with use of his sound-mixing skills. But in butterfly-effect ways, the results aren't always what he intended, and he has to mix and remix until he is satisfied with how everything works out.

This movie is pretty good, mostly due to its choreography. Several people are made to move in very specific and repetitive ways, with variations to create different outcomes. As a work of directing, this work really shines, and the story is really humorous.

I kind of like it because the spinner is a unique type of guardian angel... one who cares, but isn't omnipotent, and who eventually starts to get frustrated as he figures out how difficult it is to really work out all of these various causes-and-effects.

--PolarisDiB

Exceptionally smart and clever

[planktonrules · 9/10 · 21 May 2009]

This is a very smart and clever short film that is included in a DVD set entitled "Toofy Shorts: Volume 1"--a very nice collection of short films shown at Colorado's Toofy Film Festival. It's going to be a bit hard to describe the film, but I was really impressed by the film because of its style and because it was so darn original.

A hip-hop guy with a portable turntable and mixer is shown setting up his equipment on the sidewalk. In front of him is a tragedy--some poor guy got hit by a car and is either dead or severely injured. Oddly, however, when the hip-hop guy turns on his equipment, it's a time machine of sorts. As he moves the turntable backwards, time reverses and when it goes forward, time goes forth. Using this equipment, he is actually able to reverse the accident AND even change the outcome. However, in a clever twist, repeatedly the outcome was also a tragedy and it took him quite a while to set things right.

How all this is told without words and so effectively is beyond me. Very good job.

DJ walks into a mess and bites off more then he wants to chew.

[Gianopulos · 10/10 · 12 December 2007]

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie from the opening shot of the protagonist falling into frame, all the way to the end credits. This story is shot incredibly and told perfectly without one line being uttered from any of the actors. The direction proves to be very well done as the lead character is cast perfectly as a philanthropic DJ who is stuck with the ability to fix every mishap in the world with a spin of a record. He does so, but not without consequences that he also has to fix. The supporting players do a fine job as well. I think Winans shows his true genius in being able to write, direct and edit this entire project beautifully, not to mention the fact that he scored the film with his own music which is also fantastic! Great Job!

One of the best shorts I've seen

[Winter_Storm · 10/10 · 30 October 2006]

I saw this excellent short film at the Newport Beach Film Festival last spring. It concerns a DJ who has the ability to control time, but every time he makes an adjustment to prevent a tragedy, some bigger catastrophe occurs. The guy who plays the DJ is super-cool and has some great one-takes. The audience really got into it. Although there is no dialog, it has some great sound design. Unlike other short films, this one is actually SHORT and does not wear out its welcome. The acting, production values, special effects, and editing are all first rate -- and it's very, very funny. Highly recommended. (It is available on the web, but much better experienced in a theater.

fate, free will, and providence

[mois-2 · 10/10 · 31 May 2009]

The film portrays a supernatural DJ who "falls" to earth and tries to bring harmony to a complex city scene by modifying nature in modest ways through manipulations of his turntables and mixer.

The identity of the DJ is only hinted at through various symbols which can be interpreted to indicate that he is none other than one of the fallen angels mentioned in various mystical texts.

However, though the film revolves around the DJ and is seen through his eyes, the film is not about the DJ but rather about man and his world. It is about the nature of creation and man's interactions within creation. It is about the interplay between providence an free will.

The film depicts three attempts by the "DJ" to achieve harmonious accord. In the DJ's first attempt, he displays smug confidence that the world functions according to hard-determinism. This approach is found wanting and the "DJ" is forced to refine his approach to account for various human factors, demonstrating the philosophical view that perhaps the world works according to soft-determinism. However, once again, the "DJ" finds that the human condition does not accord with such simplistic definition.

He thus realizes that he must take into a great many factors, including what amounts to all of human history; and even still he must invest himself completely, in what can only be termed "divine providence", to insure the harmonious solution to the city scene.

A complete analysis of this deep film can be found at: www.divreinavon.com/spin.htm

Smart, professional and funny

[bob the moo · 14 October 2007]

A mysterious DJ is sent back in time with his decks to prevent a car accident in which a cyclist is killed. Using his decks to freeze and replay time, the DJ identifies the root cause and goes about changing it. However by doing this he sets another chain of events in motion, which he then has to rectify but the more he tries to put things right, the worse they get.

Terminator (minus the nudity and killing) and Primer are run together here to produce an amusing and clever short film featuring a DJ trying to change the future for a group of people hanging around on a bust street. The concept is (relatively) simple with someone trying to change events to prevent a future calamity, however it is imaginative and amusing throughout. The DJ is a great character who plays out the scene in front of him and I liked the way he played out his frustration at how things were going. As writer and director Winans deserves the credit for coming up with the concept but also delivering it so clearly and entertainingly.

Visually the film is impressive. Really clear images with good colour but also structured in such a way that all the shots work whether being played backwards or forwards. I'm not totally sold on the way the film depicts the DJ working overtime but other than that it was spot on. Overall an amusing and cleverly delivered short film that is well worth a look for being funny, smart, professional and punchy.

Just today I had said to myself that I hate shorts.

[altersaege · 7/10 · 14 November 2015]

I do not even remember which short it was, that made me think "man, I do not understand why bothering us with shorts". Apparently Life thinks I am not allowed to be so categoric. I have browsed a bit IMDb in search of something interesting I had not seen yet, I have found Ink, Frame and Spin from Jamin Winans, and watched the trailers. Coming to Spin I thought "8min is a bit too much for a trailer". I suspected it could be a short. I liked it. I still do not like shorts much. Apart for those of Pixar. But this one made me see that if a short is REALLY well done, it is a very enjoyable art. So, maybe I find more like this, and I start liking shorts :)

World's a stage

[Horst_In_Translation · 4/10 · 11 September 2015]

"Spin" is an 8-minute movie written and directed by Jamin Winans 10 years ago. The protagonist here is a dis jockey, who has the most extraordinary set of turntables. Not only is he able to turn back time with these, that's why the name "turntables", but he can also change the directions and speed with which people and objects are moving. Now, it's a pretty nice idea and okay execution, but still I felt something was missing to make this a truly entertaining watch. Maybe Winans thought the same and that is why he focused on the people in the second half of the film and the DJ really did not have that much screen time anymore. Looking at the film's high rating here, I must say this was a disappointing watch. I only recommend this to disc jockey or people with an interest in hip-hop or street culture. Everybody else is not missing much. Not too surprised Winans is not enjoying a really successful career as I can see a decent creative idea here, but not much talent in terms of execution. Thumbs down.

Makes no sense

[itsnikopiko · 1/10 · 5 February 2020]

How does a turntable control time? Watched this with my church movie group and they shared the same thoughts. How come those gangsters were doing weird spins similar to spins I've seen my child do on Club Penguin? This movie was surely made by a Satan lover convincing our dear children to commit arson and do drugs. Rated 18+, overall really enjoyed it.