Film Review: PROVERBIAL LUCK (Austria) Comedy

Played at the November 2016 Best of Under 5 Minute FEEDBACK Film Festival.

  MOVIE POSTERPROVERBIAL LUCK, 5min, Austria, Romance/Comedy
Directed by Dave Lojek

Idioms garnish our language, but are often hard to translate. This comedy helps to illustrate them and tells the story of two neighbours, who become enamoured. The “foam-beater” (boaster) Hanspeter throws an eye after an addleheaded Annemarie, but she just “shows him the bird” (indicates that he is chuckoo). So he has to “jump over his shadow” (take the plunge) and get a foot in her door. Amusement for all proverb fans who love to make whoopee, gaze into the pale blue yonder, or get to the point.

REVIEW by Kierston Drier: 

This five minute Austrian comedy has a bright, light, whimsical feel,  much like the well-loved French film Amelie. Full of colour, innocence and delight, PROVERBIAL LUCK tells an offbeat love story littered with the follies of language.

 

Taking a literal spin on pun, idioms and other figures-of-speech, the audience gets the feeling that our unlikely lovers are trapped in a world they never made- one where our casual turns of phrase have literal meanings.

 

Had this film not has superb subtitling (Hats off to the human being who expertly translated comparable figures of speech for the English-speaking audience) this film could have been much more confusing- although no less enjoyable.

 

PROVERBIAL LUCK is a wacky little gem of a comedy, that has mastery at making us laugh at the unfortunate characters while also laughing at ourselves.

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO of the SHORT FILM:

WATCH PAST FILM FESTIVAL EVENTS and the FEEDBACK VIDEOS of EACH SELECTED FILM

ACTOROCTOBER HORROR/THRILLER 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from October event
ACTOROCTOBER ACTION/CRIME 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from October event
ACTORSEPTEMBER DOC/COMEDY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from September event
ACTORAUGUST FAMILY/ANIMATION 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from August 25th event
ACTORAUGUST HORROR/THRILLER 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from August 18th event
ACTORJULY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from July 28th event
ACTORJUNE 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from June 30th event
ACTORMAY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from May 26th event
ACTORAPRIL 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from April 28th event

Film Review: MIDNIGHT WALK (Australia) Thriller

Played at the November 2016 Best of Under 5 Minute FEEDBACK Film Festival.

MIDNIGHT WALK, 4min., Australia, Thriller
Directed by Mathilde Nocquet

Midnight, hidden by sunglasses and a badass vinyl disguise, a mysterious brunette is looking for her victim. Plunged into darkness, a car park is the stage of her next murder.

REVIEW by Kierston Drier: 

A highly stylized, hyper-glam look at fashion at any cost, MIDNIGHT WALK is genre-splicing experiments in theatrics. Part comedy, part thriller, part How-To video, our hero, the gorgeous, fashion savvy Midnight, armored in outfit that could be found on any high-end sensationalized fashion-art show prowls and underground garage, following an unsuspecting victim.

 

Despite large look-at-me visuals, this film has a simple and unstated backdrop, no doubt to accentuate the dramatic and fantastical heroine.

 

MIDNIGHT WALK has some exceptional scenographic and visual design. It’s genre is completely unto itself, being an exceptionally unique piece with a utterly intoxicating and original voice, it straddles several cinematic areas.

 

The twist at the end- the goal our murderous fashionesta has for stalking her victim is worth every minute of this bright escape-ist cinematic romp.

 

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO of the SHORT FILM:

WATCH PAST FILM FESTIVAL EVENTS and the FEEDBACK VIDEOS of EACH SELECTED FILM

ACTOROCTOBER HORROR/THRILLER 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from October event
ACTOROCTOBER ACTION/CRIME 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from October event
ACTORSEPTEMBER DOC/COMEDY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from September event
ACTORAUGUST FAMILY/ANIMATION 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from August 25th event
ACTORAUGUST HORROR/THRILLER 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from August 18th event
ACTORJULY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from July 28th event
ACTORJUNE 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from June 30th event
ACTORMAY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from May 26th event
ACTORAPRIL 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from April 28th event

Film Review: DEADLY VIEW (Ireland) Mystery Thriller

Played at the November 2016 Best of Under 5 Minute FEEDBACK Film Festival.

  MOVIE POSTERDEADLY VIEW, 3min., Ireland, Thriller/Mystery
Directed by Malcolm Willis

Just before dawn, a dark suspicious man drives to a desolate location where he carries a large black bag containing an unknown object, together with a spade, from the boot.

REVIEW by Kierston Drier: 

DEADLY VIEW will trap you instantly with its’ dark, ominous pathetic fallacy. Set against ominous clouds, a mysterious brooding hero drives high up into a secluded mountain. Once at the top of a high peak he pulls something large and bulky out of his trunk- something covered in a thick black garbage bag. Worried? Me too. The beautiful Irish landscape, from which our film comes from, carries some specific weight in this piece, as our hero takes out tools and begins to dig, clank and hack his way in the earth.

 

So the surprise at the end of this punchy three minute piece is truly delightful, when the man finishes his work and takes a seat in the mountain top at his new, recently installed swivel chair. He spins on the mountains, utterly free, with the joy of a child at Christmas. The world he belongs to instantly brightens.

 

A special nod must be made to the beauty of the landscape and to the well chosen actor who can play both dark and sinister, and joyfully child-like. Also the smooth execution of a the classic bait-and-switch which issues delight from any audience. This lovely, humor-fixed short definitely speaks to anyone familiar with the Irish landscape- certainly a view to die for.

 

 

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO of the Short Film:

WATCH PAST FILM FESTIVAL EVENTS and the FEEDBACK VIDEOS of EACH SELECTED FILM

ACTOROCTOBER HORROR/THRILLER 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from October event
ACTOROCTOBER ACTION/CRIME 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from October event
ACTORSEPTEMBER DOC/COMEDY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from September event
ACTORAUGUST FAMILY/ANIMATION 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from August 25th event
ACTORAUGUST HORROR/THRILLER 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from August 18th event
ACTORJULY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from July 28th event
ACTORJUNE 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from June 30th event
ACTORMAY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from May 26th event
ACTORAPRIL 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from April 28th event

Film Review: HORSE PARADE (Puerto Rico)

Played at the November 2016 Best of Under 5 Minute FEEDBACK Film Festival.

  MOVIE POSTERHORSE PARADE, 1min., Puerto Rico, Romance/Experimental
Directed by Otavio Pacheco

In a chess game the black horse and the white queen fall in love, and then the white horse starts a dispute for her love.

REVIEW by Kierston Drier: 

HORSE PARADE is a delightful stop-action experimental romance with a twist. It shows a chessboard where the White Queen and Black Horse have fallen in love in a sort of musical, a-typical dance.

 

Full of rich symbology, HORSE PARADE shows two characters that throw aside the rules of regulations of their universe and step beyond the bounds of their reality, to join each other in dance. Their dance soon entrances the other chess pieces, who cease their game to stand on the sides of the board to watch them. Shades and piece mingle, lines are crossed and sides are discredited, all for the sake of the dance between the Horse and the Queen.

 

This could be a piece about love without boundaries, as the Queen and Horse have a variety of obstacles- they are from opposing sides, they are of different values (Queen being greater than Horse in value), they have different roles within the society which is their world. This story, totally wordlessly and with only music and motion, shows how love can end the fighting. A beautiful metaphor for anyone watching.

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO of the SHORT FILM:

WATCH PAST FILM FESTIVAL EVENTS and the FEEDBACK VIDEOS of EACH SELECTED FILM

ACTOROCTOBER HORROR/THRILLER 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from October event
ACTOROCTOBER ACTION/CRIME 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from October event
ACTORSEPTEMBER DOC/COMEDY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from September event
ACTORAUGUST FAMILY/ANIMATION 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from August 25th event
ACTORAUGUST HORROR/THRILLER 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from August 18th event
ACTORJULY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from July 28th event
ACTORJUNE 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from June 30th event
ACTORMAY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from May 26th event
ACTORAPRIL 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from April 28th event

Film Review: LUNCH (UK) Experimental/Music Video

Played at the November 2016 Best of Under 5 minute FEEDBACK Film Festival.

  MOVIE POSTERLUNCH, 2min, UK, Experimental/Music Video
Directed by Matthew Fletcher

From the dawn of Homo Sapiens we’ve been eating it, and we will continue to eat it… until it’s redundant. Take a journey through space-time and be aware of the 3D spatially dynamic soundtrack.

REVIEW by Kierston Drier: 

This vivid, fast-paced glance at our relationship with food, is all at once social and economic commentary and a delightful visual romp at the very bread of life. The beauty of this piece, is its incredible visual simplicity- as it revolves around a plate and the various dishes that people (and animals) eat. From extravagant to simple, healthy to horrible, the dishes, and the lives attached to them are distilled in just a few seconds.

 

And yet, this film, like a chameleon, is able to be almost anything to the viewer wants it to be. It is a political and economic nod to the distribution of our resources, it is social and philosophical commentary of humanity’s’ relationship with nourishment. It has an effortless depth in its’ simple approach, but it is nevertheless a meaningful and impactful piece.

 

LUNCH has a wonderful composition: quick, impactful and effective it is not without unexpected comedy. It is fantastic piece of emotional and captivating cinema. Regardless of the impression it leaves you with- it will certainly make you hungry!

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO of the short film:

WATCH PAST FILM FESTIVAL EVENTS and the FEEDBACK VIDEOS of EACH SELECTED FILM

ACTOROCTOBER HORROR/THRILLER 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from October event
ACTOROCTOBER ACTION/CRIME 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from October event
ACTORSEPTEMBER DOC/COMEDY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from September event
ACTORAUGUST FAMILY/ANIMATION 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from August 25th event
ACTORAUGUST HORROR/THRILLER 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from August 18th event
ACTORJULY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from July 28th event
ACTORJUNE 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from June 30th event
ACTORMAY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from May 26th event
ACTORAPRIL 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from April 28th event

Film Review: NO SIGNAL (Spain) Experimental Documentary

Played at the November 2016 Best of Short Documentary FEEDBACK Film Festival.

  MOVIE POSTERNO SIGNAL, 1min., Spain, Documentary
Directed by Alaa Chnana

From all the acts of the present, the one can affect the past as well as the future is the war.

REVIEW by Kierston Drier: 

No Signal  a riveting, stylized look at the crisis of war in Syria, is a study in interpretation. It it s a film that highlights the very raw, very gritty ravages of war against, and the highlight reel of pain engraved upon the memories of the people it affects.

 

The open, expressionless faces of Syrian refugees of young, old, large and small are superimposed on lightning-fast intercuts of media images of war and destruction. The effect of this stylized work is powerful and thought-provoking, begging the audience to question if we are looking at a human beings’ memories, or if we are looking at the war through the media that is used to describe their lives.

 

Ultimately, No Signal expresses the idea that we are really only ever scratching the surface of what is affected by war and political conflict. So often the rapid fire images we are bombarded with through the media dehumanize the suffering faced by real people every day.

No Signal brings us back to this humanity, by showing us these media images against the backdrop of human beings we do not know- yet we certainly recognize.

Technically speaking, the editing of No Signal must be highly commended. The sheer volume of media images that are used are superbly intercut and seamlessly tailored together. No Signal has a simple approach to storytelling that is effective and powerful, and for that, it is a film worth seeing.

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO of the Short Film:

WATCH PAST FILM FESTIVAL EVENTS and the FEEDBACK VIDEOS of EACH SELECTED FILM

ACTOROCTOBER HORROR/THRILLER 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from October event
ACTOROCTOBER ACTION/CRIME 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from October event
ACTORSEPTEMBER DOC/COMEDY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from September event
ACTORAUGUST FAMILY/ANIMATION 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from August 25th event
ACTORAUGUST HORROR/THRILLER 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from August 18th event
ACTORJULY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from July 28th event
ACTORJUNE 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from June 30th event
ACTORMAY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from May 26th event
ACTORAPRIL 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from April 28th event

Film Review: GAYROUTH (France/Lebanon) Documentary

Played at the November 2016 Best of Short Documentary FEEDBACK Film Festival.

GAYROUTH 31min., France/Lebanon, Documentary
Directed by Charbel Raad

To be gay in Beirut, one of the most open minded capitals in the Middle East, which is sinking in the era of repressions, is not as easy as it looks. This documentary tells an exceptional and an uncommon story of two lives.

REVIEW by Kierston Drier: 

Sharp, poignant, heartbreaking and unexpectedly funny, Gayruth follows the raw, gritty stories to two homosexual men and their separate lives while living Lebanon, where homosexuality is still widely frowned upon. Hiding their lifestyles and identities from their families (and to some degree the film crew) it reminds us what a very grave risk our subjects take exposing themselves to film.

 

Gayrouth takes a journey through the uneasy realities of a homosexual lifestyle in Beirut, focusing on the struggles to carve out peace for ones’ self in a sea of disapproval from both the personal and public spectrum. Gayrouth must be commended on all the areas it covers in the short time it has to make its’ statements. It touches on the disconnect and even breakdown of family ties for those who are hiding their sexuality.  It explores the ostracisation of one from their community. Most tragically, it showcases the personal story of one man’s emotional and psychological breakdown after his isolation turns him to a life a anonymous sex, and his struggle to pull himself out of the abusive cycle.  

 

And yet, lingering in all these deep, intense and heavy emotional moments- are islands of laughter, beats of humor, images of happiness- the moments when one of our heros’ is with his partner. We see, through the closed doors of a life lived hidden away- the love that makes the sacrifice.

 

Gayrouth is an emotionally hard-hitting film, which takes a real look at the struggles and risks of what it means to be “out” in an unwelcoming place. However it also shows hope and happiness. It shows love that preserves. It shows lives worthy of loving without fear. For these reason, watch Gayrouth.

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO of the FILM:

WATCH PAST FILM FESTIVAL EVENTS and the FEEDBACK VIDEOS of EACH SELECTED FILM

ACTOROCTOBER HORROR/THRILLER 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from October event
ACTOROCTOBER ACTION/CRIME 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from October event
ACTORSEPTEMBER DOC/COMEDY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from September event
ACTORAUGUST FAMILY/ANIMATION 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from August 25th event
ACTORAUGUST HORROR/THRILLER 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from August 18th event
ACTORJULY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from July 28th event
ACTORJUNE 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from June 30th event
ACTORMAY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from May 26th event
ACTORAPRIL 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from April 28th event

Film Review: THE NINTH OVEN (Mexico). Documentary

Played at the November 2016 Best of Short Documentary FEEDBACK Film Festival.

  MOVIE POSTERTHE NINTH OVEN, 10min., Mexico, Documentary
Directed by Erika Oregel

A boy of 14 years is living his last years childhood before having 15 years; years in which is legal to work in Mexico. He has been working illegaly since 9 years old to work and get a living with his grandmother.

REVIEW by Kierston Drier: 

The Ninth Oven, a short, stunning piece hailing from Mexico, follows a young boy and his journey through the illegal work he does to help support his family. Our hero, a spirited teenager, has juggled school, studying and working as a brick maker since the age of nine. Illegal though it is to be employed so young, our protagonists approaches his situation with admirable maturity.

The Ninth Oven has an unassuming charm about it. It’s approach to the realities of life in the rural area are looked at through the eyes of our young male lead. As such, the larger political and economic issues connected to child labour are subtle- a microscopic view of a larger social issue. Through the lense of the hero nothing seems abnormal. His bright and effervescent optimism is a constant source of pride to his family and loved ones. His dedication to his family, his work and his future easily tug the heartstrings of any audience. The Ninth Oven takes a look at child labor from the perspective of the laborer who does not see their work as a cross to bear- but a challenge they must rise to. It is impossible not to like our hero, as he explains he does not desire a life of wealth or affluence- he only wants to have enough to be happy. A nobel and astute goal for someone so young.

 

Brightly shot, The Ninth Oven is a beautifully woven story that makes us imagine what it is like to live in other parts of the world and that adulthood is rarely a matter of chronological age.

 

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO of the SHORT FILM:

WATCH PAST FILM FESTIVAL EVENTS and the FEEDBACK VIDEOS of EACH SELECTED FILM 

ACTOROCTOBER HORROR/THRILLER 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from October event
ACTOROCTOBER ACTION/CRIME 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from October event
ACTORSEPTEMBER DOC/COMEDY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from September event
ACTORAUGUST FAMILY/ANIMATION 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from August 25th event
ACTORAUGUST HORROR/THRILLER 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from August 18th event
ACTORJULY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from July 28th event
ACTORJUNE 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from June 30th event
ACTORMAY 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from May 26th event
ACTORAPRIL 2016 Film Festival
Watch Audience Feedback Videos from April 28th event

Movie Review: TENGU: BIRDMAN OF THE MOUNTAINS (2016)

  MOVIE POSTERTENGU: BIRDMAN OF THE MOUNTAINS, 8min., UK, Action/Fantasy
Directed by Samuel Smith

A father struggles to protect his family against the terror of the Tengu, bird-men of the mountains.

Played at the October 2016 ACTION/CRIME Short Film Festival

Review by Kierston Drier

This poetic fantasy action film, hailing from the United Kingdom and coming to us from director Samuel Smith, is a study in genre splicing. Tengu: Birdman of the Mountains has the poetic elements of a romance, the luxurious visuals of a fantasy, the tension and suspense of a thriller, and the fight scenes of a high-concept action film. Told through the eyes of a child, our hero watches as his highly skilled father, endowed with supernatural natural strength from his Chi, fights off terrifying bird-like villains from this family’s mountain home. Packed with stunning fight sequences that highlight the filmmakers’ excellent technical skills, this piece is a must-see for anyone who enjoys action.

There is some disconnect in the story, although it is justifiable. Despite the glamourous make up and extravagant clothing the Hero’s family wears, the shelter they dwell in appears to be little more than sticks tied to together into a ramshackle hovel. However, when it is considered that this film is taken through the eyes of a child, and also straddles of the line of fantasy and action- this distension of disbelief is well worth it the pay off. And pay off? A glowing story of intrigue, passion, and danger with a dark and sinister twist.

Tengu: Birdman of the Mountains,  is a film that will delight you with its symbology, its imagery and it’s excellent fight sequences, but it goes far beyond that. This film represents of genre-hybrid that should be welcomed into cinema with open arms. It is highly commendable thing to be able to successfully blend genres together, and this film is able to do that. With effortless ease a viewer can watch this film and find something in it to enjoy even if they are not conventionally a viewer of action.

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO:

Movie Review: BARROW (2016)

  MOVIE POSTERBARROW, 15min., Australia, Crime/Mystery
Directed by Wade K Savage

A young woman training to be a forensic entomologist is forced to confront her family’s dark past.

Played at the October 2016 ACTION/CRIME Short Film Festival

Review by Kierston Drier

The crime mystery science-fiction short Barrow, coming to us from Australia courtesy director Wade Savage, is a powerful, efficient, masterful piece of cinema. It makes nods to a wide variety of genre motifs including mystery, crime, science fiction and horror, among others, and integrates them seamlessly. The story is rich and engaging, following the story of a young forensic scientist on her quest to understand the mystery forces that saved her life during a brutal and horrifying attack on her family years before.

This film is wonderfully balanced cinematographically, beautifully rendering scenes of dazzling brilliance without having the darker scenes feel out of place. The story is clean, precise and engaging, with thoughtful attention to detail. The character development is logical, well designed and tempered with flawed heroes, tragic backstories and strong performances.

What sets this piece apart however- what makes it a razor sharp cut above the rest, is its efficiency. Every scene is necessary, every detail crucial to the whole. There is no slack moment, no superfluous action. Every line and every visual leads to the betterment of the films’ conclusion. Barrow is a strong cinematic film, short, simple, stunning, and boasting a killer super natural twist.

AUDIENCE FEEDBACK VIDEO: