The best cultural experiences, no matter the medium, is the way that it can
make one feel. So where classic Broadway-inspired choreography makes my soul
soar, musical comedies make me laugh helplessly and my painstakingly curated iTunes collection can
fit any mood I want, this group of shorts contains two films that made me weep
for days, I’m welling up just thinking about one of them now, and so I am
pleased to be able to them with you. The first and the last are the weepies,
with a smattering of less sad films mixed in the middle.
Lullaby
Haydn Gwynne is one of those actresses whom I love and I know I love, but I’d
be hard-pressed to name too much that I’ve seen her in as I have seen her often
enough for my liking. Fortunately, I recently caught her in the searingly
powerful touring version of
Duet for One so her immense talent was still fresh
in my mind as I turned to this short film Lullaby. (Interestingly, she has done
quite a few shorts so I’ve been able to see a bit more of her since I started
watching them.)
It may be kind of beside the point, but I’m not going to say too much at all
about it, aside from urging you to watch it. Written and directed by Kevin
Markwick, Gwynne is simply sensational in what is essentially a monologue of
most moving poignancy which builds cleverly across the 12 minutes of its
running time. Shot beautifully by Ole Bratt Birkeland on a Kent hilltop and
scored attractively with Stephen Barton’s swelling music, it is an absolutely
gorgeous little piece of film that I’d highly recommend.
Oscar and
Jim
He thinks they’re on a romantic city break, she reckons it is a dirty weekend;
he wants to see Jim Morrison’s grave, she wants to see tomb of Oscar Wilde; she
considers herself a traveller where he is avowedly a tourist. Split across 13
short vignettes, Oscar and Jim is full of loads of wry dialogue and banter as an
ill-matched couple fill the last few hours of their trip to Paris by getting
lost in a cemetery. They argue about whether a madeleine is a cake or a biscuit,
his lack of sex drive, who is the best at map-reading and challenge each other
on their knowledge of the person who they want to visit, it’s all spiky,
charming stuff and huge amounts of fun to watch.
Iain Weatherby’s script sparkles with sharp humour as Charlie Covell’s prickly
Emma tries to exude a knowing nonchalance in the face of Harry Lloyd’s
romantic-minded Jerry and there’s a genuine pull in their bickering, characterised
by an entirely recognisable dynamic that so frequently occurs when
relationships are tested on a holiday. The film is perhaps a little long altogether
as it stretches its point a tad too much, but it’s another one to add to the
list, especially to see Lloyd acting so adorably dorkily.
Curiosity
(The clip above is the trailer for this short, I watched the full film from
iTunes.) Curiosity is a short horror film featuring Emily Blunt and Tom Riley
as a young couple who get swept up in a gruesome turn of events when they
witness a shadowy neighbour disposing of what looks like a body in the garden
next door. I found it an effective film rather than spectacular, the scares are
neatly done but never really chill the bone until the final moments and though
it is undoubtedly well acted – it’s Emily Blunt, how could it not be – the
whole film never really comes to life in the way one feels it ought.
New Year’s
Eve
Written and directed by Colin Spector, New Year’s Eve is a 2002 short film, probably
most notable for starring a young Keira Knightley. Stephen Mangan’s David is on
his way to a highbrow New Year’s Eve party with a friend Matt and ends up
inviting their working-class cab driver into the affair to ruffle the feathers
of his host. When there, David gets chatting and a bit too close to Knightley’s
Leah, Paul makes small talk and little headway with the various women of the
party and the cab driver causes minor havoc as he punctures the air of
superiority he finds around him.
It’s all a bit too shiny and glib to have any real impact though. The
characters are shallow and have little of interest to impart, no real insight
comes from their interactions, the short just trundles on and then peters out
with an underwhelming ending. This YouTube clip loses sound just before it
finishes but sadly, I didn’t even mind. I made a cursory attempt to lipread but
I can say you ain’t missing too much if you do decide to watch this.
Wish 143
(832, 580)
Wish 143 is an achingly sad yet powerfully uplifting story of David, a teenage
boy with terminal cancer who given the opportunity for a final wish from a
benevolent charity, eschews the traditional trip to Disneyland to state his
desire to lose his virginity before he dies. He’s not joking either and what
follows is one of the most beautiful pieces of story-telling you will have the
privilege to watch for quite some time. The short follows the relationship
between David, played with a bruising frankness by Sam Holland and Jim Carter’s
kindly priest who is a regular visitor to the hospital and who helps the
youngster in more ways than one might have imagined.
Written by Tom Bidwell who suffered from cancer in his own youth, David’s
journey is charted with a burning honesty, his burgeoning teenage feelings
straitjacketed by his experiences as his cancer ravages his body. What emerges
is such a moving portrayal of a boy’s emotional longing, him learning to
separate sex from love even as he has so little time to fall in love himself,
the cruel realities of daring to dream for things because you know they will
never come true. By the time Jodie Whittaker’s compassionate Maggie appears,
your heart will be so touched that I defy anyone to stay dry-eyed during this
section of the film, it is just excellent. I couldn’t recommend this more and
if you don’t believe me, how about the fact that this was actually nominated
for an Oscar in 2009. Watch it!
Labels: Ace Bhatti, Annette Badland, Charlie Covell, Emily Blunt, Film, Harry Lloyd, Haydn Gwynne, Jodie Whittaker, Keira Knightley, Lizzie Roper, Rory Kinnear, Sam Holland, Stephen Mangan, Tom Bidwell, Tom Riley