• Indie Short Mag TV
Indie Shorts Mag
  • Home
  • Interviews
  • News
    • Film Festival News
    • Short Film News
  • Reviews
    • Short Film
    • Documentary
    • Web Series
  • Hall of Fame
  • Short Film Festival – 2025Accepting Films
  • Tutorials
    • Pre-Production
    • Post-Production
  • Submit Short Film
    • Submit Short Film for Review
    • Submit Web Series for Review
    • Interview Submission Form
No Result
View All Result
Indie Shorts Mag
  • Home
  • Interviews
  • News
    • Film Festival News
    • Short Film News
  • Reviews
    • Short Film
    • Documentary
    • Web Series
  • Hall of Fame
  • Short Film Festival – 2025Accepting Films
  • Tutorials
    • Pre-Production
    • Post-Production
  • Submit Short Film
    • Submit Short Film for Review
    • Submit Web Series for Review
    • Interview Submission Form
No Result
View All Result
Indie Shorts Mag
No Result
View All Result

Mr. E, P.I. – Children of the Night: An Ode To Counterculture With Vampirism And Mental Health

Indie Shorts Mag Team by Indie Shorts Mag Team
11 Oct 2021
in Reviews
0
Children of the Night - Short Film Review - Indie Shorts Mag

Done right and taken seriously, the vampire genre has much to offer. With the figure of the undead predator, artists have long delved into the nooks and crannies of humanity, exploring countercultures, and all that is frowned upon, or considered taboo. Writer-director George A. Velez now borrows the vampire to explore another frowned upon subject: mental health.

Played by Velez, JJ’s life has been difficult because of mental health issues. He is a paranormal investigator. These two facts have nothing to do with each other. But it makes it easy for his friends and family to belittle or dismiss him off or as crazy. We meet him as he tries in vain to warn his brother, Nicky (Antonello Velez), about the author that the latter is about to interview. Side note: JJ and Nicky are a duo in Velez’s body of work whose relationship the filmmaker explores through the filters of various stories. Nicky walks away from JJ here, and the story follows him.

Children of the Night - Short Film Review - Indie Shorts Mag

His interviewee, Cassandra Navarro (Leslie Castañeda) is surprisingly young. She appears barely more than 30, and yet it has been a decade between her last two books. Castañeda impressively pulls off the gravitas of a character much older than her. Oblivious to the acid green, antique aesthetic, Nicky cheerfully gets started with the interview. Soon, Cassandra begins to change roles, asking small questions about Nicky, leading to other, potentially more personal questions. We learn JJ has been living with him to get back on his feet. It is important to note that their relationship and history is comprehensible and sympathizable here as a standalone story without the benefit of prior familiarity.

JJ barges in, not long after, with evidence that points to the obvious. As he finds an opportunity to snoop around Cassandra’s house, disaster strikes. The climax is bitter, bringing the focus back to JJ and Nicky’s relationship, and to JJ himself. JJ’s character is written with excellent care, making it easy for audiences to empathise with him.

Children of the Night - Short Film Review - Indie Shorts Mag

A life of having ‘crazy’ thrown around with careless disregard by anyone within his earshot, JJ’s worst fear is not a life of immortality which, as Cassandra puts it, would have him outlive every last of his loved ones. The film closes on an open ending, the air heavy with the implications of all that has been said and more importantly, left unsaid.

Watch Children of the Night Short Film

https://vimeo.com/367396802
Mr. E, P.I. - Children of the Night: An Ode To Counterculture With Vampirism And Mental Health
  • Direction
  • Cinematography
  • Screenplay
  • Editing
  • Music
4
Tags: MysteryMystery Short Film ReviewReviewShort Film Reviews
Previous Post

Adel: A Tale Of Disillusionment And How To Cope With It

Next Post

Livin After Midnight: A Hilarious Short That Promises A Laugh-Riot!

Indie Shorts Mag Team

Indie Shorts Mag Team

Related Posts

Viaticum - Short Film Review - Indie Shorts Mag
Reviews

Viaticum: A Comedy on the Things We Take (Down) With Us on the Way Out

5th October 2024
A Good Day Will Come - Short Film Review - Indie Shorts Mag
Reviews

A Good Day Will Come: Relentless Optimism in the Face of the Tyrannical State

2nd October 2024
Next Post
Livin After Midnight - Short Film Review - Indie Shorts Mag

Livin After Midnight: A Hilarious Short That Promises A Laugh-Riot!

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


Sponsored

Advertise Here

Featured Post

Announcing Short Of The Year Awards 2023

Announcing Short Of The Year Awards 2023

Latest Podcast

  • Recent Reviews

About Indie Shorts Mag

Indie Shorts Mag is a publishing agency that works within the ‘short film circuit’. We review short films, documentaries, music videos and web series, amongst others. We stand out amongst the short film review sites for being multi-diverse & global in our platform and reach.
Our team works tirelessly to help promote, publicize and market your short films that deserve the shout-out! Besides reviews, we host film festival news as it’s a known fact that the film festival buzz is unmissable and we ensure you aren’t left behind!
We aspire to form a niche for ourselves as the ‘short film magazine’ that remains the hub for filmmakers & their audience.

Popular Topics

  • Announcements
  • Articles
  • Crowdfunding
  • Editorial
  • Film Festival News
  • Film Festivals
  • India Edition
  • Interviews
  • Marketing
  • Marketing
  • News
  • Online Premiere
  • Post-Production
  • Pre-Production
  • Reviews
  • Short Film
  • Short Film Competition
  • Short Film News
  • Tutorials
  • Web Series

Indie Shorts Mag on Instagram

Follow Us On Instagram

  • #ShortFilmReview: Viaticum: God probably understands, he’s an understanding sort.

Read our review. Link in bio.

#ShortFilm #Review #IndieFilmReview #FilmReview #SupportIndieFilm
  • #ShortFilmReview: A Good Day Will Come: Horrors are nurtured with silence.

Read our review. Link in bio.

#ShortFilm #Review #IndieFilmReview #FilmReview #SupportIndieFilm
  • #ShortFilmTrailer: Our Home Here: Paying The Cost Of Having A Dream. 

Read our review & watch the short, link in bio. 

#ShortFilm #ShortFilmReview #SupportindieFilm #Trailer #FilmTrailer  #shortfilms
  • #ShortFilmReview: Enough for you: Love and fear amidst the march of time.

Read our review. Link in bio.

#ShortFilm #Review #IndieFilmReview #FilmReview #SupportIndieFilm
  • #ShortFilmTrailer: Reparations: On Empathy And The Legitimacy Of Being. 

Read our review & watch the short, link in bio.

#ShortFilm #ShortFilmReview #SupportindieFilm #Trailer #FilmTrailer #ShortFilms
  • #ShortFilmTrailer: How I’ve Met God: A Coming Into Form. 

Read our review & watch the short, link in bio. 

#ShortFilm #ShortFilmReview #SupportindieFilm #Trailer #FilmTrailer #ShortFilms
  • #ShortFilmReview: Lemon: Nobody is getting away.

Read our review. Link in bio.

#ShortFilm #Review #IndieFilmReview #FilmReview #SupportIndieFilm
  • #ShortFilmReview: Kotsuage: Grains of rice and drops of blood change little children forever.

Read our review. Link in bio.

#ShortFilm #Review #IndieFilmReview #FilmReview #SupportIndieFilm
  • #ShortFilmTrailer: Grace: Examining A Loss Of Faith. 

Read our review & watch the short, link in bio.

#ShortFilm #ShortFilmReview #SupportindieFilm #Trailer #FilmTrailer #ShortFilms
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Advertise With Us
  • Contact Us
  • Submit Article
  • Write for Us
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy

© 2015-2024 Indie Shorts Mag.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Interviews
  • News
    • Film Festival News
    • Short Film News
  • Reviews
    • Short Film
    • Documentary
    • Web Series
  • Hall of Fame
  • Short Film Festival – 2025
  • Tutorials
    • Pre-Production
    • Post-Production
  • Submit Short Film
    • Submit Short Film for Review
    • Submit Web Series for Review
    • Interview Submission Form

© 2015-2024 Indie Shorts Mag.