Farhaz Husain Rahman’s A Momentary Yearning is wistful and nostalgic, the premise dwelling on years gone by, and all that was lost with it. By including the element of war into the plot (Francis, the protagonist, is a weary war correspondent), it takes on added expectations of depth, which it does not ultimately deliver on.… Continue reading A Momentary Yearning: Chasing Lost Time In Lieu Of Living The Present
Tag: Short Film Reviews
Boris in the Forest: When A Fan Met His Hero
A second viewing of Robert Hackett’s horror-comedy Boris in the Forest brings not only a fuller understanding of the plot, but a complete understanding of just how many jokes were slid into seemingly innocuous lines (screenplay by Mike Goldfarb), impossible to distinguish in a single watch. Its performances complement the writing. Mac McDonald as the… Continue reading Boris in the Forest: When A Fan Met His Hero
A Little Place Off The Edgware Road: Re-vising One Of Graham Greene’s Forgotten Stories
Produced by Alison Herrington, Tim Hewitt’s A Little Place Off The Edgware Road (ALPOTER) is a crime thriller based on a classic from the Graham Greene universe. Based on a short story written by him in 1939, ALPOTER delves deeper into the mystery behind its lead as in the parallel literary world one wonders about… Continue reading A Little Place Off The Edgware Road: Re-vising One Of Graham Greene’s Forgotten Stories
Campfire Alpha: A Lesson On Toxic Masculinity
Alex Breaux’s wrathful stare as Case, one of four friends out on a trip with his childhood friends, is terrifying. It is a character we are all familiar with: the male character swinging between passive-aggressive joking and outright, brutal violence, the latter coming just as easily as the former. Campfire Alpha, also written and directed… Continue reading Campfire Alpha: A Lesson On Toxic Masculinity
Last Dance: The Horror Of Suspense
Based on an urban legend, Danny Gibbons and Alex Scott’s Last Dance relies heavily on its audience’s experience with horror films and the expectations that spring from that. Subverting expectations, although it lives in a certain infamy now, works for Last Dance because of its intelligent writing and intuitive grasp on what evokes fear for… Continue reading Last Dance: The Horror Of Suspense
Department 666: Hell Has Been Updated
Adam York’s Department 666 is a black comedy that gives traditional ideas of horror a whole new spin, employing ideas that have been around for some time, but managing to be surprisingly fresh. Hell is a soul-sucking, nay, soulless, desk job. Of course. Why are we even surprised? Perhaps the surprise is that the film… Continue reading Department 666: Hell Has Been Updated
Out Of Place: Sublime Depiction Of Migrant Struggle
Hui (Sarah Lynn Furman) and Chamo (Victor Boneva) are poles apart. Besides being neighbours, they share nothing in common, or so one would think. Peier Tracy Shen’s Out Of Place is elusive and yet guttural in its characters and their storyline. A dual narrative that runs along the themes of loneliness, societal pressure and forgiveness,… Continue reading Out Of Place: Sublime Depiction Of Migrant Struggle
Back of the Night: We Are Well Past Needing Words
It is not possible to make a film like Back of the Night, written and directed by Valentyn Korotkevych, without being aware that this is an experience for a specialised audience or mood only. It is deliberate. Excruciatingly slow in its first few minutes and alive with existential anguish, the film speaks to a niche… Continue reading Back of the Night: We Are Well Past Needing Words
Eclipse: Understanding Personal, Social And Environmental Rehabilitation
Led by Yao Dapre Nicol aka Olouy, The Gasser brothers’ 8-minute experimental short, Eclipse evokes metamorphosis to explore the idea of choice, through parable-like dialogue, electronic music, and hypnotic dance. On the technical front, the film relies heavily on its editing to drive the film forward – an essential responsibility given the lack of a… Continue reading Eclipse: Understanding Personal, Social And Environmental Rehabilitation
Canceled: A Melodramatic Comedy Most Of Us Can Relate To
In a jacked up way, the protagonist of Canceled embodies the sentimentalities of every heartbroken series fan ever. On the other hand, writer-director Jimmy Caputo makes no effort to make its protagonist at all likeable. Instead, we see the unhealthiness through the melodrama of it all. Not that the film has any intentions of taking… Continue reading Canceled: A Melodramatic Comedy Most Of Us Can Relate To