Most of the time we get such a backlog of short films and feature length indie films that we work hard to take them all on and review them before the year is up. In what we hope will become a new feature, “Shorts Round Up of the Week” is a column where we’ll be reviewing a round up of short films of varying quality. If you’d like to submit your short film for review consideration, submissions are always opened.
Hurricane (2017)
Christiano Diaz’s “Hurricane” is a great pitch black comedy about the cold war and the communist hysteria that also doubles as a metaphor for the terrorist hysteria of the aughts. Set during the fifties, a married couple listens to their radio over a tense dinner and begins discussing their neighbor being a potential communist spy. After their radio goes out, they’re visited by a young man selling newspapers. “Hurricane” is beautifully directed with Diaz picturing the “normal” nuclear American couple, sitting down for a steak dinner and martinis that are consumed by their own paranoia and xenophobia. Diaz stages the film like a veritable nightmare where no matter what, these two will justify any kind of actions to help them sleep a bit easier at night.
Foet (2018)
Ian Fischer’s “Foet” reminded me a lot of “Dumplings” from “Three… Extremes,” in where our short film examines the lengths people will go to for the sake of beauty and or vanity. “Foet” is a darkly comic and demented horror film about a woman’s vanity that outweighs her own twisted sense of morality. After moving to the city, religious pro-lifer Denise is jealous of her friend who is sporting the latest in fashion accessories: A purse with a particularly smooth material. When she learns the material is made out of fetal skin, she begins to explore the darker world of fashion and becomes obsessed with owning it. “Foet” is a sick and weird movie, but a satisfying bit of body horror. It doesn’t aim for gore or grue, but is disturbing enough in the way Ian Fischer presents sharp bits of symbolism here and there. I dug the short, even if it lacks an ironic twist or satisfying conclusion.
Simon’s Quest (2018)
Marley Jaeger’s “Simon’s Quest” is admittedly a clunky allegory for homosexuality and the trouble of being gay in a society that demonizes the LGBT community. Simon is a gay werewolf prone to self hate who is supported by a pair of friends also chronicling his struggle. Not only does Simon hate that he is a werewolf, but also has yet to come to terms with being Gay. Every week he meets a support group for monsters living in society, and tries to find that right man who can understand him. “Simon’s Quest” has an okay sense of humor, but the metaphor and symbolism just kind of gets pounded in to our heads, losing sight of character and conflict. I never felt a ton of empathy for Simon, because I never knew him too much, in spite of the large moments of exposition the film sets aside.
Trapped in Amber (2018)
Daniel Brown’s “Trapped in Amber” is a brilliant exploration of the idea of guilt and how childhood trauma can affect us even in adulthood. Jeffrey Turboff is a lonely barber who visits a young captive girl he has in his room every night. When an enthusiastic teen girl comes to his shop anxious to befriend him, he begins to experience the repercussions of his small town’s paranoia involving her insistence on befriending him. Hell, even the audience may get uncomfortable with the level their bond takes. With that incident comes a revelation that makes “Trapped in Amber” a gripping and heartbreaking short tale with a powerful performance by Turboff. Check it out if you pass it during a festival.