Following a global humanitarian disaster, mankind seeks survival in the midst’s of more dominant predators on the earth.
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Directed by Paul Parker Parker, Nigel Woodley, Dom Reece Roberts
Review by Victoria Olson:
The short film, THE DIVIDE, is a brilliant dystopian landscape that perfectly molds contemporary themes in a way that should cause this narrative to win awards. The film captures the attention right away with the nightmarish setting of a woman running through a city with war-torn buildings and a car graveyard. It’s clear time has passed from the grass that has grown around the shells of the vehicles. Rarely is such cinematic detail seen in a short film.
The character development is phenomenal. Two individuals that are from enemy clans are forced together to escape a predator that is never seen on screen. The themes that we deal with in the modern world are brought out as the man and woman spend the night together in a cave. They have misconceptions & beliefs about each other’s clans, something that we still do as we are stuck in our ways. This film shows that if forced to communicate that we might have more in common than we think. These characters proved it as they hid from the unseen monster, deciding at the end it would be better to work together to cause a distraction in order for the woman to return home.
The choice to never show the predator is intriguing, leaving mystery as we hear the breathing and view the characters through a point-of-view lens. The post production turns the view of the creature black and white, while the characters see in color. It makes the predators even more ominous.
The strongest portion of this film is towards the end, making it a great message to end with as the characters lament on their divided world as they long for a world of peace and harmony. The phrase a “Garden of Eden” is familiar, suggesting that the characters believe that paradise could be possible, which leaves a message of hope for this dystopian world.
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