MERKUR

Short Film Movie Review: MERKUR

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MERKUR
by Amanda Lomonaco

Review of the short film.
Played at the September 2015 WILDsound FEEDBACK Film Festival.
http://www.wildsoundfestival.com/september_2015_film_festival.html

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I’ve never liked the saying “a picture is worth 1,000 words.” I’ve often believed pictures can lie just as well, and just as often as words can. After watching this film I’m not so sure anymore that conviction.

Merkur is quite a simple animation, with simple, humanoid characters, basic chunky background structures, and an intricate play on light to enhance the composition. With these very basic structures, two minutes, and no dialogue, the makers of Merkur create a beautiful short film, that expresses and emphasizes the importance of curiosity, and exploration.

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The film itself does not parade a grand act of defiance, nor does it go through great lengths to explain the characters’ internal though process, or even the initial storyline. In fact the film seems to propel your focus almost entirely to the end result of the main character’s unique act. By simply turning and running in the opposite direction of the crowd, the humanoid is able to create something of great beauty, and seemingly release themselves from constraints that neither audience nor character seemed previously aware of.

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As it seems to be a theme for this month, and is in fact a general characteristic of short films, this one also has some room for interpretation. Despite the beauty of the ending, it could also be argued that the defiant humanoid’s actions led to its own destruction, as well as that of the rest of the group. But that’s what makes short films so wonderful; they’re not tied to the conventions of traditional cinema, they don’t need to give us a beautifully wrapped conclusion, they let us take from them what we will.

Watch the Audience FEEDBACK Video of MERKUR:

Deadline TODAY to Submit your Short Film, Screenplay, Novel, Story, or Poem to the festival: http://www.wildsound.ca

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