Three more short films from UK production companies showcased at the all online Bolton Film Festival.
1. Martha - UK 2019 - Dir: Christopher Haydn
What would you do, how would you react, if suddenly you appear to be the only person left on earth with everyone else having suddenly and inexplicably having vanished.
A teenage girl goes out to but ice-cream, and realises just that. She plays her mother's last voicemail message endlessly hoping for some kind of response, but the answer she receives is not the one that either she or the viewer expected. She befriends another 'survivor' Angie; but then the realisation dawns on her more or less at the same time that it dawns on the viewer just exactly what has happened.
It's not a unique take on this subject by any means but it is an interesting and very watchable variant.
The two young ladies are Anastasia Hille and Leah Harvey.
2. Control - UK 2019 - Dir: Tom Tennant
Fade Film have provided us with a short film which tells the story of a London family who have hired a French au pair to look after their two young children. She was contracted for 12 months and so far has stayed with the family for the last four years. The husband has had enough, and thinks that she is no longer required, as the children are now a little older and he doesn't want her around the house any more. His wife, however, has other ideas and we guess very early on, only to have our suspicions confirmed, that the reason she doesn't want her to go is that they are lovers.
In the end they agree to keep her for another six months and talk again then. Ultimately then the film is unsatisfying since there is no conclusion and the status quo remains. There is no drama and no temsion, and no narrative drive.
3. DCSS - UK 2019 - Dir: Neil Bushnall
DCSS is a very short (3 minutes) sketch which should have worked and been far funnier than it actually was.
This is The Department of Class and Social Standing, and a working class man is being interviewed by one of the department's staff. He shops at Waitrose occasionally and eats avocado, therefore he has been rebranded as 'Middle Class'.
It is a great premise but it isn't quite there yet. With a little reworking this sketch could become a classic in the wake of Monty Python et al. I love the idea of making a parody out of the class system (that's very Pythonesque in the first place!), but doesn't quite pack the punch it needs to in order to deliver.
Reviewer - Matthew Dougall
on - 18/10/20
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