"Bad Burns" is a film less characteristic of what filmmaker Paul Sharits was known for: flicker films. Many of these, including his infamous "T,O,U,C,H,I,N,G" were the main essence of his work, creating mesmerizing and hypnotic effects by using color frames and other images to make stroboscopic, seizure-inducing films. This one from his later works is more artistic and self-reflective than previous shorts. Maybe not exactly a brilliant work like those earlier movies, but nonetheless an interesting piece - in a different kind of sense.
At first glance, "Bad Burns" reminds one of another Sharits film that is quite similar: "Tails" (1976). The similarity between the two is inevitable - both are self-reflective of film as a medium in their reminder to the viewer that they are watching an artificiality. Both depict a filmstrip running through a projector, with sprocket holes at the edge of the screen, showing us we are viewing a film of a film and bringing this awareness of film being a medium. In terms of effects, this film in its movement of the strip running is more hypnotic than I recall from "Tails" in how the film moves quickly enough to practically evoke the strobe flickering characteristic of the filmmaker. Even better than the effect is the strip melting when it stops moving, further demonstrating the concept of film being an illusion, only images printed on celluloid, and that it is every bit as material as everything else. A more conceptual Sharits piece, and even more fascinating than the earlier 1976 film in this regard - not to mention visually artistic.