From the LA FEMME FILM FEST
Short Film Reviews By: Kim Jindra
TOMBOY
Directed By: Barb Taylor
TOMBOY is a delightful animated short aimed at early elementary aged girls but with a message equally suitable for boys. Alex, short for Alexandra, likes to whistle, play sports and hang with the boys. Her girl classmates don't understand her and one boy, in particular, questions her motives and gender. But Alex is self confident. She defends herself both in the classroom and on the playground. It is only at home, safe in her mother's arms, where she lets down her guard. This is a good conversation starter for parents and children.
SPEED DATING
Directed By: Crystal Liu
Still bummed a year after breaking up with her boyfriend, Kate accidentally hits upon the perfect plan to meet a new guy. SPEED DATING is clever and funny. It is easy to identify with Kate. I will admit to flinching more than once which tells me this is a good black comedy. The twist at the end was both expected and a pleasant surprise.
TRANQUILA, MI AMOR
Directed By: Carla Tamma
TRANQUILA, MI AMOR is a story of friendship in 1960s Mexico. I didn't really understand the point of the short but I appreciated the presentation of the film. I specifically liked the rich colors, the photography with the candles and the music.
I also thought that "salting the roses" was an interesting way to make them die.
LUNCH
Directed By: Beth Burns
Jan is the typical working suburban mom sleepwalking through life untilan unexpected phone call causes her to play hooky from work and go to LUNCH with a former lover. After the call, Jan seems more alive. The flashbacks fill in the gaps but there are too many. We get the point. The lunch meeting is predictably a bit stiff but loosens up all the way to the inevitable hotel room. A few surprises for Jan along the way make her return to the reality of her own life with a bit more enthusiasm. It did not really grab me but a nice effort.
CLAIRE
Directed By: Jenny Lee
CLAIRE is a poignant look at growing older. Our heroine is a 72 year old widow who physically leaves her house but closes herself off emotionally. A persistent gentleman causes her to re-examine the shell she has built around herself. I admit to being touched by the film because of my own widowed mother. But, the film was a bit long and predictable. The chemistry between the leads was good but the dialog felt written. Still, I cheered Claire's transformation.
CU@ED's
Directed By: Casey Stangl
CU@ED's is a tale of internet dating. I liked this quirky little romance. It did a good job of heightening the anticipation of the leads meeting for the first time. There were good supporting performances from the coffee shop customer and the florist. One thing I objected to was making the engineer such a dork. I know that is standard operating procedure but it is trite and untrue. I did like the way he broke out of the mold a little bit. And I also like the way the characters expressed themselves in the end.
A PIG'S EAR
Directed By: Grant Barbeito
A PIG'S EAR has the look and feel of the 70s but the story was not very inspired. It almost started like a horror flick with two health workers trekking through the back woods of Appalachia to visit an elderly woman and her pig butchering son. But nothing really happens. The woman objects to needing a doctor as the health workers cajole her into in to an examination. If the point of the movie was for the health care workers to make points by learning to 'saucer' or in this case 'bowl' coffee then no wonder I was disappointed. I grew up with a grandfather who saucer his coffee everyday. I don't think this is a particularly southern tradition but one of a different generation.
CUBEd
Directed By: Lisa Virtue
Watching CUBEd reminded me of how bad WKRP in Cincinnati's Les Nessman wanted walls. If he had seen poor Waters (last names only please) addiction to coffee and pills he might have rethought his desire for his own cubicle. Our heroine is bored and depressed. Her outlets are doodling and coffee both of which are banned by her supervisors. Waters is about to slip into oblivion when a feisty temporary worker challenges her to think outside the cube. The increased tension once the temp arrives saves the film. There is a lesson about not 'settling' but the ending is open to interpretation.
NAMING PLUTO
Directed By: Ginita Jimenez
NAMING PLUTO is a little gem of history. It is the story of how Venetia Burney, a preteen in 1930, suggested to her grandfather the name of the newly discovered planet should be called PLUTO and he made it happen. We should all have such a grandfather! The cast of 'characters' who tell the story are delightful. And it culminates with Venetia getting to view Pluto 77 years after she first learned of the planet. Along the way we learn that school children in the United Kingdom not only know her story but have adopted her as a role model. They take it personally when Pluto's status changes. Who says history and/or science can't be fun.
FALLING FROM MARS
Directed By: Tracie Laymon
I liked the feel of the music video FALLING FROM MARS but unfortunately I wasn't moved by the singer's voice. She was cute and the art/set decoration was well crafted and the action went with the lyrics but the music wasn't for me. I felt every one of the four minutes.