He just failed to sand in some "nooks and crannies" and of course the new paint flaked off the areas that were not sanded.

I have seen that car "in the flesh" and I can tell you that it isn't cleaver camera angles or lighting that make it look good. It really does look good. I had to hunt to find any brush marks. There are a few but they're hard to find. And, remember that's without any final sanding and polishing. If he wanted to go to the additional effort of sanding and polishing, the finish could be near show quality.