Matt Macedo’s examination of how the effect of absent parents shaped two siblings in Our Oceans rings true to life, especially against the backdrop of loss of a parental figure. Over the course of eleven minutes, Macedo unfurls the tensions between brothers Chris and Sean, intercut with memories of a day at the beach, a… Continue reading Our Oceans: The Loneliness Of Years Long Estrangement
Category: Reviews
I N T E R S T I C E: Intricately Crafted Brutal Drama
CW: Pedophilia, underage prostitution Nothing feels out of place when a teenage boy looks less than delighted upon receiving a VR kit from his father. Really, what could be more natural than a disappointed teenager? But writer-director Oskar Willers steadily unsettles his audience as the 12-minute Interstice, or Mellanrum progresses from its innocuous opening seconds. … Continue reading I N T E R S T I C E: Intricately Crafted Brutal Drama
Black Orchid Challenge: Livestream, Horror And The Sad Flavours Of 2020
Kevin Capiello’s Black Orchid Challenge, co-written by Stephen Bell, is about as zeitgeisty of 2020 as it can get. A four-minute horror film about a livestreamer, through a livestream? Not only is it an internet-era wet dream, it also resonates with the new normal of COVID-19. As a bonus, it might even remind you of… Continue reading Black Orchid Challenge: Livestream, Horror And The Sad Flavours Of 2020
White Feather: Reverse Symbol Of Hateful Fervour
Daniel Arbon’s White Feather expresses now the empathy that the subject of his film did not receive in his own time. Set in post-WWI Britain, the film in slow, long takes, follows George E. Arbon in his present-day and pained flashbacks of the three years past. The scenery is gorgeously green, evincing the absence of… Continue reading White Feather: Reverse Symbol Of Hateful Fervour
Trapped Inside: Claustrophobia And Many, Many Questions
If jump scares, and a lot of jump scares, are your thing, then hop on to the ride that is Usher Morgan’s Trapped Inside. To enforce the starts and screams, Trapped Inside is a bottle film, taking place in the cramped confines of a bathroom — with a lot of malicious entities. Arguably the only… Continue reading Trapped Inside: Claustrophobia And Many, Many Questions
High On Heels: Informative Documentary That Walks You Into The World Of Heels
For a master cobbler, it is his craft; for a shoe designer it is his work of art; for a model, it is an accessory; for a podiatrist, it is their number one source of patients’ woes. But for a woman — it is a measure of her self-esteem; or is it? Writers Lola Kayode… Continue reading High On Heels: Informative Documentary That Walks You Into The World Of Heels
Mical: Biopic On One Of Britain’s Early Dyslexia Experts
A boy who can’t spell his own name right. A student who is brilliant with a 147 to boast of for his IQ. A child who has the unconditional love and fierce determination of his mother to help him overcome his problems. And a school that can’t seem to understand its own pupil. These are… Continue reading Mical: Biopic On One Of Britain’s Early Dyslexia Experts
Day Zero: For Anyone Who Has Loved & Lost
Evan Bergman’s Day Zero touches upon crucial topics that plague society — mental illness and substance abuse. But wrapped in a star-crossed love story of a teacher and an investor, Bergman attempts to push the envelope with questions that are often left out. Questions that leave one squirming, questions that render one guilty, questions that… Continue reading Day Zero: For Anyone Who Has Loved & Lost
Alive: Gentle Exploring Of Female Desires, Intimacy And Friendships
What sets Jimmy Olsson’s Alive apart from its category is the gender dynamics and the rarely explored phenomenon of female desire, and perceptions of it. A 23-minute Swedish short on a differently-abled, wheelchair-bound woman and her part-time, live-in assistant, Alive is breathtakingly affecting. Writer-director Olsson doesn’t waste time introducing his characters. Within the first few… Continue reading Alive: Gentle Exploring Of Female Desires, Intimacy And Friendships
Before Sunrise: Hope For A Happy Post-COVID World
Unlike its titular cousin, 12-minute short Before Sunrise steers away from romance, but more crucially, it stays well clear of the walk-and-talk method. Because Rogerio Takashi’s Before Sunrise is a product of its time; in the era of COVID-19, walking together and talking is out of the question. Takashi’s film is instead shot entirely on… Continue reading Before Sunrise: Hope For A Happy Post-COVID World