It’s been a little while since I’ve watched any short films but I had a few
link sent to me last week so I thought I’d cast my ever-beady eye over them to
see what treasures might be unearthed. As ever, click on the 'film' tag to see more short films.
Babysitting
First up was Babysitting (trailer above, full film watchable here), written by Luchan Toh and Sam Hoare and also directed
by the latter, but most attractive for its cast including Romola Garai, Dan
Stevens and Imogen Stubbs. And from its opening shots of a bedraggled Garai and
a super-glam Stubbs, it is rather a bundle of subversive fun. There’s a bit of
a twist to the title that I won’t reveal here but it is one that sends Garai’s
Maggie on a bit of a journey, where she bumps into arrogant ex Spencer, Stevens
in fine West London toff mode and her priorities are pulled skewiff as old
feelings rise to the surface. The pair are well-matched and amusingly styled
and if the film as a whole comes across as a little slight, it is highly
entertaining.
Sue Dunderdale’s Mine was undoubtedly a grim affair – an urban tale of racial
and sexual disharmony set in Kentish Town which probably reflects a lot of what
life feels like for the youth of the area but made for sometimes hard viewing.
The bond between Milly and Thomson is tested first by the difficulties that her
mother has with their interracial relationship but then further stretched to
horrific near breaking point by the actions of his friends. It is bleak and
obdurate in its portrayal of the cheerlessness of inner-city life and the
everyday image with which Dunderdale frames both the beginning and the end has
a powerful recognition which grows to become highly ominous.
Best is a short but sweet film which was originally penned by Adam Brace for
the Royal Court’s 100 words season where people were invited to submit plays
that were 100 words in length. Consequently it is only a couple of minutes long
but packs in some highly sexy romance in the few moments before a wedding will
considerably change the relationship between these two people. There’s some
properly fizzing chemistry between Terry Doe and Jotham Annan and director
William Oldroyd is unafraid of getting right in the middle of their business
with some uncompromising up-close camera-work. Perhaps not one to watch with
your mother.
Hiding in the Shadows
Written, directed and produced by Leon Lopez, Hiding in the Shadows is an
emotionally raw two hander between an
(allegedly) ex-junkie and his former partner as he makes tentative steps to
recovery by confronting the anguish of the shared past between them, which was
blighted by his addiction and failure to kick it. Craig Stein is all
therapy-speak and apologetic mumbling in the face of Francesca Jackson’s
world-weary executive who’s heard it all before yet sees the signs that maybe
something is different this time. Lopez’s hand-held approach has a great
immediacy which works well with the film though I found the score a little
insistent and indeed oppressive during some moments – I’m not sure it needed
such accompaniment as it is a strong little piece of drama in its own right.
Steve
As last up, recommended by a kind commenter and Tom Mison fan, was Steve.
Rupert Friend certainly used the top end of his little black book to cast this film,
Now-ex-girlfriend Keira Knightley (doing
an accent, one that sounds a lot like Kelly McDonald) and Tom Mison are a
yuppie couple, squabbling but essentially loved up in their cushy flat but
plagued with visits from their increasingly obnoxious neighbour, an
impressively sociopathic Colin Firth. Friend employs some lovely touches
throughout, in the inventive way the credits are done, the counterpointing of
the sounds in the kitchen and with actors like this, it is luxuriously good
fun.