SHORT FILM REVIEWS ’05
On this page:
FUTURE IMPERFECT |
PREY ALONE
LLGFF '05 shorts:
THE HOMOLULU SHOW |
INDELIBLE |
LIQUID LUNCH |
NO ORDINARY JOE
LFF '05 shorts:
CREEP |
GREEN BUSH |
GRAND LUNCHEONETTE
Prey Alonedir-scr Stephen St Leger, James Mather • with Ger Carey, Andy Moore, Kurt Savage, Eric Gill, Alex Bravo, Elias Escobedo, Jun Li, Colin Tannen, Daniel Katz, Michael Rooney, Brian Halford, Franklin Egbe
04/Ire 15m
Shot, edited and scored like an action blockbuster, this Irish short grabs hold immediately with its astonishing, lush visual style and a pounding, urgent narrative. It's all extremely mysterious, as an NSA agent (Garey) grills a prisoner (Moore) about the identity of an unknown gunman who wages a one-man war on soldiers, planes, helicopters and anything else in his path. The car chase is outrageous - climaxing when two jets follow him right into a New York Subway tunnel. As it progresses you get the feeling that it must all be special effects, but low lighting and the sharp production values keep us hooked. The final revelation is a little corny, but still capable of bringing a smile. It's also worth catching both the full-force trailer and a making-of doc that explains exactly how it was done on a low budget with green screens - and not a single set, car or plane in sight. Inventive good fun. (28.Apr.05)
Future Imperfect dir-scr Marshall Lewy • with Kathy Searle, Bill Tangradi, Matthew Rauch
05/US 13m
There's a clever, serious twist to this time-travel comedy, about Alice and Bradley (Searle and Tangradi), young lovers out bicycling when Bradley suddenly vanishes. Years later, Alice is married with a child and Bradley comes back into her life thinking only a moment has passed. He's passed through some sort of time portal, and just assumes their relationship will continue. And of course, Alice has doubts. It's mostly played for laughs at the absurdity of the situation, but there's a resonance that makes it catch in the back of the throat. It's an inventive way to look at relationships and second chances - and Lewy shows considerable skill as a writer and director. (2.Oct.05)
L L G F F ’ 0 5 S H O R T SREVIEWS BY RICH CLINE
No Ordinary Joe dir-scr Jules Nurrish • with Alexis Gregory, Will Irvine, Matt Warman, Harry Capehorn, Jackie Howe, Michael O'Flaherty, Rebecca Probyn, Dean Holley, Alastair Thomson Mills
05/UK 13m
With extremely high production values and a strong sense of narrative and character, this astute short film pulls us in more effectively than some features. The cast is superb, Nurrish's directoral flair is strong and energetic, and even the rather silly device of overlaying the film with plummy-voiced Joe Orton excerpts works nicely to take us into the central character Matt's (Gregory) troubled thoughts. Parallels with Orton's writing aren't overdone, but rather bring out their timely relevance - grit mixed with hopefulness. Although when Orton (Warman) actually appears to Matt in a public loo, it's a bit corny. Nurrish generates an unusually robust authenticity throughout the film - from scenes with the family into the lockerroom and crusing in the park. Sexy and edgy, believable and provocative. (12.Apr.05)
The Homolulu Show dir-scr Frank Mosvold • with Bjørn Sundquist, Per Christian Ellefsen
04/Norway 1m
This film is so short that it feels like a trailer for a lurid soap opera. It consists of a brief but intense conversation between a middle-aged gay couple, discussing a scandalous new law that legalises marriage between a man and a woman. "It's wrong," one says. "I just don't like the idea." Completely absurd, and filmed in English (even though it's a Norwegian short) just so we get the point. And the joke. (11.Apr.05)
Liquid Lunchdir Jaimz Barton • scr Jaimz Barton, Karen Dunham • with David Zellis, Karen Dunham, Sheldon Tara, Kyle Lemke, Edgar Ozolins, Dan Walechuk
04/US 4m
This extremely cheesy little film goes for a more classy look through scratchy black and white effects. But it's clearly been shot cheaply and then just put through an intense degrading process. And deafening punk music on the soundtrack doesn't help. At least the premise is rather funny - about a group of businessmen who visit a dominatrix (Dunham) for a bit of rude action over their lunch break. It's silly, corny and not particularly well-made, with actors who look like they'll burst out laughing at any moment. (11.Apr.05)
Indelible dir Charles M Lum • with Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie, Amy Irving, William Katt, Nancy Allen, John Travolta
04/US 8m
This utterly gonzo short features footage from 1970s gore and porn movies, edited together into an orgy of sex and violence that at first seems utterly pointless and gratuitous, but builds to a gruesome symphonic climax of bodily fluids and teen angst. Basically, it's the prom night sequence from Carrie (plus the explosive finale from DePalma's The Fury) overlayed and cross-cut with explicit Joe Gage porn. It's absolutely outrageous, and probably only watchable in a packed-out cinema full of people willing to cheer on just about anything. Hilariously deranged. (13.Apr.05)
L F F ’ 0 5 S H O R T SREVIEWS BY RICH CLINE
Creepdir-scr Jane Linfoot • with Ashley Matthews, Kelli Hollis, Nicky Bell, Gordon Alcock, Karl Haynes
04/UK 15m
Shot in an extremely naturalistic style, this disturbing short centres on a Yorkshire family: hardworking and cranky mum, absent criminal dad, always-in-trouble teen son and little brother Christopher, who always seems to be lurking in the corner of the room, quietly watching everything. Life is a struggle for these people, so they're naturally jumpy, which isn't helped as Christopher creeps up on everyone. After an elderly neighbour falls down the stairs, Christopher takes care of his cat, then confides in him about some of the chilling things he's seen. It's a simple idea, very well filmed and acted, but it drags badly in the middle, like filmmaker Linfoot just couldn't bear to trim it down to the essentials. And this fatally weakens the gut-punch finale. (24.Oct.05)
Green Bush dir-scr Warwick Thornton • with David Page, Ted Egan, Audrey Martin, Leo Wayne
05/Australia 27m
Winner: Panorama Best Short Film at 2005 Berlinale.
There's a nice, gentle story combined with a fiercely strong subject matter in this half-hour short set in an isolated Alice Springs radio station, where the deejay Kenny (Page) has his nightly 'Green Bush' request-line show. As his programme airs, the station is invaded by Aboriginal buddies looking for a place to have tea, food and solace from the rough world outside. As Kenny gets increasingly frustrated by the technical creakiness of the low-budget station, he explodes in a torrent of anger that's actually aimed at a political and social system that has been so unjust for too long, leaving his people as outsiders who are afraid to walk the streets. The sharp, carefully chosen music he plays actually does most of the talking. And the film is all the more powerful for being witty and subtle about it. (25.Oct.05)
Grand Luncheonette dir Peter Sillen • with Fred Hakim
05/US 5m
Filmed in grainy 16mm, this understated film chronicles the final days of Hakim's chillidog and cheeseburger cafe on Times Square, closed to make way for yet more Disney Stores and McDonald's. Visually, it's a series of astute shots capturing the setting and faces with charming detail, while the audiotrack features a bed of ambient sound over which we hear various people talking about the cafe, including Hakim and the family members who have helped him run the shop for 58 years. They talk about the changes in the city, how these anonymous new stores can never match the character of a hot dog stand -- or even a strip club. Without being preachy, the film is incredibly moving. And it's also a vital document of a time and place that don't exist anymore. As Hakim observes, "If all we have here are McDonald's and Disney, why travel to New York?" (27.Oct.05)
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© 2005 by Rich Cline, Shadows
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