GFF09: Scottish Short Film Showcase
THE PROBLEM WITH PETS (Catriona Craig) is a funny little tale about a little girl who loves animals but begins to suspect that her mother's new boyfriend is deliberately killing them all. Good performances, a funny script and the contrast of a bright colourful setting with some very dark humour make this one a minor triumph.
FOUR FUR A FIVER (Silje Eirin Aure) is a documentary about the plight of Paddy's Market, a Glasgow working class institution which has been around since the 1800s but now faces closure as the lease expires and Glasgow councillors brand it a "crime ridden midden" home to drugs, prostitution etc. The film might work slightly better expanded with the full story but as the full story isn't yet known you can't really hold that against the film. What has been delivered is an nice little film with an interesting insight into the kind of Glasgow that the tourist board don't sell you.
SAMANTHA (Siri Rodnes) was the only one of the films I didn't really get. After the death of her grandmother, a young girl cuts loose and spends her time partying and getting wasted. And that's about it. Fair play to the filmmakers though, there are some really good performances and the film has some striking visuals and boasts some very good editing. Alas it's the story which has left me cold though.
FLASHED (Julian Krubasik) is a terrific little gem of a film with a simple (but odd) concept - a man stumbles across a photo-me booth which photographs the future. The story is clever but simple at the same time and deliveres a wonderful twist and some very nice effects. Excellent.
IRENE (Lindsay Goodall) is an acclaimed documentary short about three generations of women in the same family (the filmmaker, her mother and her ailing grandmother) and how they cope with the eldest suffering the onset of Alzheimer's. It's a wonderful film that is both devastatingly sad and also very touching. The only thing I'd say in terms of detraction is that while a lot of the humour is genuinely funny material, there was the odd moment where I found myself laughing at something funny that Irene said only for it to suddenly dawn on me that she'd only said it because of the failing faculties that have stricken her. Moments like this made me a little uncomfortable as I'm not sure whether I should be laughing or not, but that's a minor quibble with what is otherwise a terrific film.
I'M IN AWAY FROM HERE (Catriona MacInnes) is a tale of two men with disabilities and the adventure they have as they wander off from their youth club and take a stroll round Edinburgh. The story drags a little in places but strong central performances, good location work (the film was shot around Leith and Portobello) and an effective in-your-face shooting style compensate for it.
FOUR FUR A FIVER (Silje Eirin Aure) is a documentary about the plight of Paddy's Market, a Glasgow working class institution which has been around since the 1800s but now faces closure as the lease expires and Glasgow councillors brand it a "crime ridden midden" home to drugs, prostitution etc. The film might work slightly better expanded with the full story but as the full story isn't yet known you can't really hold that against the film. What has been delivered is an nice little film with an interesting insight into the kind of Glasgow that the tourist board don't sell you.
SAMANTHA (Siri Rodnes) was the only one of the films I didn't really get. After the death of her grandmother, a young girl cuts loose and spends her time partying and getting wasted. And that's about it. Fair play to the filmmakers though, there are some really good performances and the film has some striking visuals and boasts some very good editing. Alas it's the story which has left me cold though.
FLASHED (Julian Krubasik) is a terrific little gem of a film with a simple (but odd) concept - a man stumbles across a photo-me booth which photographs the future. The story is clever but simple at the same time and deliveres a wonderful twist and some very nice effects. Excellent.
IRENE (Lindsay Goodall) is an acclaimed documentary short about three generations of women in the same family (the filmmaker, her mother and her ailing grandmother) and how they cope with the eldest suffering the onset of Alzheimer's. It's a wonderful film that is both devastatingly sad and also very touching. The only thing I'd say in terms of detraction is that while a lot of the humour is genuinely funny material, there was the odd moment where I found myself laughing at something funny that Irene said only for it to suddenly dawn on me that she'd only said it because of the failing faculties that have stricken her. Moments like this made me a little uncomfortable as I'm not sure whether I should be laughing or not, but that's a minor quibble with what is otherwise a terrific film.
I'M IN AWAY FROM HERE (Catriona MacInnes) is a tale of two men with disabilities and the adventure they have as they wander off from their youth club and take a stroll round Edinburgh. The story drags a little in places but strong central performances, good location work (the film was shot around Leith and Portobello) and an effective in-your-face shooting style compensate for it.
Labels: glasgow film festival, scottish film, short films
posted by Alan at 11:56 am
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