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Short Film Reviews: "The" Movies

9 reviews of short films that share one thing in common: a title beginning with the word "The."

By Trevor WellsPublished 3 years ago 21 min read
7

The Springfield Three:

Starting off the list, we have a horror short inspired by a real-life unsolved mystery. On the night of June 7th, 1992, three women from Springfield, Missouri disappeared without a trace: recent high school graduates Suzanne Streeter and Stacy McCall (Ashlynn Yennie and Gigi Gustin) and Suzanne's mother Sherrill Levitt (Natalija Nogulich). To this day, authorities and the public are still unsure about what happened to them. Given the enigmatic nature of this case, it makes sense that Samuel Gonzalez Jr. takes such a surreal approach to his dramatization of the Springfield Three's final hours before vanishing. Befitting such a perplexing mystery, Gonzalez Jr.'s interpretation of what might've happened to the women has a morbid dreamlike atmosphere and plays around with time and reality.

On the other hand, I can't help but draw comparisons between this film and the much-maligned The Haunting of Sharon Tate--released the same year as The Springfield Three. Both could be categorized as crime biopic/horror movie hybrids and both feature one of the victims having premonition-esque dreams and visions of their impending fate. If it had gotten a more publicized release, I could easily imagine this film getting the same treatment as The Haunting of Sharon Tate: being dubbed a tasteless horror movie that exploits a real-life tragedy. There's even some evidence in the first half to support such a claim. The first 14-so minutes don't paint the most flattering pictures of Streeter and McCall; the former is needlessly harsh and nasty and the latter is moderately obnoxious and insensitive. When things take a turn for the horrifying, there's a point where it goes from being scary to being laughably over-the-top. And John Kassir's lifeless ending narration doesn't cap the movie off on a high note.

But elsewhere, The Springfield Three avoids feeling like a tactless money grab. The first few minutes use the 90's slasher movie aesthetic well, with Kassir moodily introducing the viewer to the real-life story. Plenty of details can be found that show that Gonzalez Jr. did his research on the case. And while some of the horror beats might not land, the primary actors definitely sell it. Ashlynn Yennie and Gigi Gustin throw themselves into their characters and their terrified reactions to what befalls them, with Natalija Nogulich giving an equally effective performance as concerned mother Sherrill Levitt. Though when it comes to the more emotive scenes, Nogulich falls short of her younger co-stars. The final minutes where we see Streeter read the poignant message McCall wrote in her yearbook is the film's high point. In this well-delivered scene, Gonzalez Jr. argues that their disappearances didn't just steal Streeter and McCall's futures; it also robbed them of the chance to reconcile their friendship.

While it's not the best blend of crime biopic and horror flick, I'd say The Springfield Three does a better job of mixing the two genres than The Haunting of Sharon Tate. There's plenty of chilling moments to be found and Gonzalez Jr. knows when to cut the theatrics and remind the audience of the brutal reality behind them. The Springfield Three's surrealism nicely parallels how, with so many unanswered questions and after so many years have passed, we may never know the truth behind what happened on that fateful night in 1992. Plus, if you like Yennie and/or Gustin's work on Lifetime like me, you're sure to enjoy seeing them star together here.

Score: 6.5 out of 10 MTV T-shirts.

The Most Girl Part of You:

Based on author Amy Hempel's short story of the same name, The Most Girl Part of You tells the tale of childhood best friends Amy (Lili Reinhart) and Jack "Big Guy" Fitch (Ryan Munzert). In the days since Jack lost his mother to suicide, Amy has noticed a drastic change in her friend. Once moderately conventional, Jack has become a completely different person. With puberty bringing on changes in Amy as well, what will all of this mean for Amy and Jack's friendship? From beginning to end, The Most Girl Part of You plays out like an indie coming-of-age dramedy. The title sequence is reminiscent of a vintage sex ed video and the script is filled to the brim with quirky quips and equally quirky characters. Even the relatively ordinary Amy indulges Jack in his new bizarre behaviors.

Before I get into the downside of all this, here's the positives. Six years away from getting her star-making role on Riverdale, Lili Reinhart gives an authentic performance as Amy. Despite the idiosyncrasy surrounding her, Amy is mostly your average teenage girl--with all the awkwardness that comes with it. Reinhart (who, if my math is right, was a teenager herself while filming this movie) plays Amy with a natural flow as she goes about her life with Jack and his peculiarities. Ryan Munzert throws himself into Jack's eccentricities and joins Reinhart in bringing sincerity to his character's soft side. The party scene is the best instance of this, with the aspect ratio changing to feel more cinematic and symbolize the brief moment of idyllic calm Amy and Jack share.

It also turns out to be the calm before the storm. The bloated final act of The Most Girl Part of You is where a lot of troubling things about the film are solidified. The way Jack's trauma and poor mental health are treated as mere oddities (with Amy only occasionally appearing truly worried about him) is problematic enough without the final minutes making things doubly unsettling. SPOILER ALERT Jack was already giving off some creepy vibes with that whole "sewing Amy's name into his hand" thing. But when he upgraded to cutting her with a razor blade and kissing one of the cuts, that's when the film took a dive for me. Aiding the plummet is what Jack and Amy say/think right before their presumed offscreen tryst. Jack has a few lines that don't even try not to sound threatening: "I always give a woman what she wants, whether she likes it or not" and "If you have to get up...don't." Amy, meanwhile, muses that while she isn't ready to lose her virginity to Jack, she'll do it on the basis of Jack being in mourning. So we end the movie with a teenage girl deciding to have sex with her unstable best friend solely for his benefit, with Amy's final line indicating we're supposed to see this as an inspirational and life-changing experience. Even for 2011, this is all pretty messed up. Spoilers Over

With how great Reinhart and Munzert's performances are, it's a shame that the script crashes as hard as it does. With better writing and a longer runtime, The Most Girl Part of You could be a touching and thought-provoking teen movie with a dark edge to underscore its story about love, friendship, and dealing with loss and mental health issues. Here's hoping someone gives this film the full-length reboot treatment and invites Reinhart and Munzert to join the crew because there's too much potential in this story for it to end up going to waste.

Score: 4 out of 10 melted cheese sandwiches.

The Residue of a Relationship:

A motivational piece and a reflective look at a past relationship, director Brett Chapman takes the viewer on an intimate journey as he reads the seven letters left for him by his ex-girlfriend Ebba Sund. Told through creative visual filmmaking and crisp narration from Chapman, The Residue of a Relationship is a touching documentary that serves as a thoughtful tribute to a powerful love. Through her wholesome letters of motivation to her ex-boyfriend, we get a beautiful glimpse into Ebba Sund's personality. Though her relationship with Chapman may've ended, she still holds a great deal of love and care for him, as evidenced by her letters and the words of wisdom within them. The most heartfelt of them has to be the letter containing SPOILER ALERT an encouraging note from Chapman's parents, affirming that he can always come to them for support. Spoilers Over

For his own part, Chapman shows a refreshingly healthy attitude towards Sund as the letters allow him to look back on their shared past. It's here that The Residue of a Relationship acts as a mini-treatise against the Dogged Nice Guy trope propagated by the media. While initially set to try and "win Ebba back" after reading her letters, Chapman comes to realize thanks to those letters and his re-encounter with Sund that she doesn't feel the same way about him anymore and that fighting to keep a dead romance alive would be pointless and unfair to the girl he loved. It all culminates in a moment of self-discovery for Chapman as he addresses the true residue left behind by a relationship: who you are after it's over. Anyone with experience in intense love or heartache is guaranteed to relate. If you haven't, there's bound to be at least one nugget of advice here that will speak to you.

The one noteworthy typo in this otherwise perfectly-written love letter is the scene of the "When you want to reminisce" letter. Not the scene itself, but rather the overwhelming background music that almost drowns out Chapman's voice. Otherwise, The Residue of a Relationship is a moving documentary examining how even if a romance comes to an end, the people involved can still maintain a healthy relationship afterward and allow each other to change them for the better. Looking for a heartwarming short film with a helping of realism? Give this documentary a watch.

Score: 10 out of 10 drunk girls from Birmingham.

The Case of the Missing Cuddle Tart:

Now for a pair of goofier short films. First, there's this short comedic mystery that follows Detective Wes (Marc Herrmann) as he works to solve a tough case: a Cuddle Tart theft. Not sure what that is, but from hearing its owner Kevin (played by Jason Kekich) and Detective Wes talk about it, I imagine it being the most delicious dessert the universe will ever know. Produced in only two days for the 2019 48 Hour Film Project contest, The Case of the Missing Cuddle Tart is a fairly decent comedy sketch. Not all of the jokes work and the outlandish premise is sure to turn some away. But from what it gets right, the film is worth a good laugh. SPOILER ALERT Plus, between the jocular hairdryer-related take on police brutality and the ending where a man is falsely arrested because of prejudice, The Case of the Missing Cuddle Tart can almost be seen (especially now) as a stealth parody of our heavily flawed justice system. Spoilers Over

The three-person cast has a lot to do with the successful comedy, with Marc Herrmann making the biggest impression of the bunch. Even during the lesser bits, Herrmann pulls off the comically serious hard-boiled detective schtick with hilarious charm. Each playing two of the four men Detective Wes encounters during his investigation, Stephen Schlager and Jason Kekich both do a fine job making their broadly-humored characters (tough guy Vinny, stoner hippie Sage, and rap star wannabe "Cray-Shawn") funny. Only Kekich's performance as Kevin falls flat. Kevin is more of a prop than a character--he doesn't even really get to be the movie's Only Sane Man--and there's a noticeable line flub (Kekich saying "Cuddle Cart" instead of "Cuddle Tart") that for some reason didn't get edited out or reshot. Though I'll be generous and assume it had something to do with time constraints or contest rules. At least they make up for it by ending on a strong punchline. With good humor and a good cast, The Case of the Missing Cuddle Tart would make for a fun watch over a snack. If you can't find a Cuddle Tart for the occasion, I'm sure a Pop-Tart would be just as satisfying.

Score: 6.5 out of 10 middle finger mugs.

The Amazing Anti-Fart Formula:

Average Joe office employee John (Ryan Littmann) has two standout qualities about him: his origami fixation and his chronic flatulence. Wanting to take a chance on getting with gorgeous co-worker Ashley (Tamara Morton), John orders a bottle of the Amazing Anti-Fart Formula to put an end to his embarrassing condition. But in the end, will it be worth it? If the title of this one has toilet-humor-opposed readers checking out, don't panic yet. While John's condition is inevitably the subject of a few scenes, the fart jokes don't escalate to the point of becoming needlessly crass. In fact, John's more extreme gas blasts are done without sound effects, being replaced with a hysterically dramatic underscore. Most of the film's runtime is instead spent on John and the character arc he goes through after taking the titular drug.

From the get-go, Ryan Littmann makes for an excellent lead as awkward origami nerd John. This being mostly a silent film, Littmann does a great job of showing us who John is with body language and facial expressions. He does just as well at selling the physical comedy of John's condition, and while their characters aren't nearly as developed, Tamara Morton and Erin Ownbey (who plays John and Ashley's colleague Jane) take after Littmann in terms of expressive acting. John's character arc is admittedly predictable, but nonetheless heartwarming thanks to the performers delivering it. SPOILER ALERT Littmann lets you feel for John as his newfound confidence after taking the formula turns to dissatisfaction as he realizes how much he's changed himself to please Ashley--and how shallow and superficial she and their relationship are. I doubt it's a coincidence that the title medication has the word "repress" in its slogan. Seeing John flush the formula pills and begin working on embracing who he is--with Jane letting her feelings for John be known and comforting him--makes for an unconventionally sweet conclusion. Spoilers Over

While some may still want to dismiss the movie as juvenile, The Amazing Anti-Fart Formula might surprise them if they give it a chance. The comedy works well without going too far into gross-out territory and the cast brings the non-comedic plotlines to life without a single word of dialogue. Littmann memorably makes John an effortlessly adorkable and sympathetic guy struggling to accept himself as he is--gastrointestinal issues and all. A lighthearted comedy with upbeat music and warmly shot sets to backdrop a creatively funny take on the "Just Be Yourself" message, The Amazing Anti-Fart Formula is a silent (but deadly) success.

Score: 7 out of 10 anal offenders.

The Dresser:

With its writer and director in the lead role, The Dresser follows a relatively uncomplicated storyline. After running back into David (Zach Hatch), a guy she almost hooked up with once, Sofia (Mary Neely) comes up with a plan to finally share a night of passion with David before he moves to New York City. Seeing as how David is selling his furniture in preparation for the move, Sofia claims to be in need of a dresser. But she'll soon learn that not all plans go exactly as intended. Last seen on my short film review plate with 2017's Pink Trailer (which was featured on my Women's History Month review list earlier this year), Mary Neely's 2014 comedy inches ahead of the film that it predates by three years. Most significantly, the dialogue for The Dresser feels much more natural and relaxed than Pink Trailer's forced attempts at wacky quips.

That's not to say the comedy here is top-notch. It's mostly mild cringe comedy as we watch Sofia's inherently insane plan predictably fall apart on her. The problem is that it never feels like the comedy goes far enough to be as funny as it could've been. It's not awful enough to make you stop watching, but don't go into The Dresser expecting side-splitting laughter to ensue. Despite this, Mary Neely's lead performance as awkward aspiring actress Sofia is likable and amusing. Even with the half-baked humor, Neely makes it fun to watch as Sofia's plan to hook up with David starts going awry. Cala Murry is similarly likable as Sofia's beleaguered friend Deb, who delivers some chuckle-worthy scenes as she struggles with both a complex culinary creation and the exasperation of getting dragged into her horny bestie's nutty plan to get laid. Lastly is Zach Hatch, who plays David with such an easygoing attitude that it's easy to like him--and easy to laugh as he unknowingly shuts down Sofia's attempts to make her move.

(And I have to say, I am super relieved Neely didn't take her story down the path I'd imagined as a possible direction for The Dresser. As Sofia kept hitting dead ends in her quest to get David into bed, I was half expecting it to take a "Female-on-Male Sexual Assault Played for Laughs" route that would've immediately doomed this movie's rating)

For what was her first time in the director's and screenwriter's chair, Neely did a decent enough job with The Dresser. The script could've used some fine-tuning in the comedic department and the story gets off to a bumpy start before finding a groove. But with a solid cast and some nuggets of hilarity that includes a finale that ends the movie with a nice dose of Hypocritical Humor, there's enough here to make The Dresser a good downtime watch if you're not busy packing for a move of your own.

Score: 5 out of 10 Celine Dion ringtones.

The Man at the Counter:

Another straightforwardly-plotted film, though this time, the story is much more emotionally packed. With Modern Family's Sarah Hyland as an associate producer, The Man at the Counter stars her brother Ian Donovan Hyland as a 16-year-old boy working at the local coffeehouse. As his future self (played by Tom Everett Scott) narrates, we watch as the teenage barista has a series of encounters with a friendly customer (Bill McHugh) who has the peculiar habit of taking several sugar packets with him whenever he leaves the shop. A simple story about a man waxing nostalgic about his adolescence, The Man at the Counter won't win any awards for originality. The secret behind coffee shop regular Robert Grimes's sugar packet "theft" is a familiar and somewhat cloying revelation and the twist at the end is excessively saccharine. While ironic for a movie where sugar is a key plot element, it's enough to send a diabetic viewer into cardiac arrest.

To act as The Man at the Counter's insulin is the film's small but dedicated cast. As the silent young protagonist, Ian Donovan Hyland gives an emotive performance as the boy's fond interactions with Grimes lead to a mournful conclusion. The same can be said about Bill McHugh's depiction of a cordial man whose warm smile hides a painful truth. SPOILER ALERT While the whole "bringing his wife something sweet every day" thing is a bit on the syrupy side, the fact that Grimes got confronted about his "sugar stealing" on the same day his wife died is heartbreaking. On the lesser side of things is the reveal that the boy is recounting this memory as part of a marriage proposal. While the story is tangentially related to love, it's still an odd story to tell while proposing and it ends with a stiffly delivered rhyme that really ups the schmaltziness. Spoilers Over

Apart from the stiff line delivery mentioned in the above Spoiler section and despite some instances of purple prose, Tom Everett Scott gives a fine narration as a man looking back at a beautifully tragic memory from his upbringing. With a different context, the ending could've been more impactful and less mawkish. As is, though, The Man at the Counter isn't a bad movie to enjoy with the morning coffee and is a stellar talent showcase for Sarah Hyland's lesser-known sibling.

Score: 6 out of 10 $1 tips.

The Love You're Looking For:

Fun fact: this short film was originally going to be a part of my Valentine's Day short film review list earlier this year. But after watching it and realizing the title and synopsis ("A short film about unexpected love") wasn't referring to the kind of love I was expecting, it got cut. But for obvious reasons, it does qualify for this list. The film follows a young single mother (Jeanine Amapola) as she goes through life with her son at her side. But throughout their journey together, the woman can't help but feel like danger is lurking in the shadows. In the aforementioned Valentine's Day list, I said the short film Booklovers reminded me of that Haley Reinhart commercial for Extra gum. I bring that up because The Love You're Looking For does the same to a greater degree. A nearly dialogue-free movie about the love between a mother and her son set to the wistful song Three by Sleeping at Last, the film definitely aims to tug at the heartstrings.

And despite their run-of-the-mill way of going about it, The Love You're Looking For is fairly sweet to watch unfold. It has a lovely soundtrack and Jeanine Amapola is touching in the role of a loving and devoted mother, sharing strong maternal chemistry with the three actors that play her character's son through the years. Props to the casting department for finding such a convincing actor to play the older version of the son; Ocean Vigil could easily pass himself off as the older brother of Emerson and Noah Yanke (who play the 3-year-old and 5-year-old versions of the son respectively.) Finishing off the main cast is Devin Bowman as the mother's love interest, with his most charming scenes being the ones his character shares with the son.

WARNING: Spoilers Below

But all this heart and charm takes a hit when the plot twist lands. Being a pro-choice man, I acknowledge that I'm not a part of this film's target audience. But even taking into consideration the crew's intentions, The Love You're Looking For doesn't sit right because of one detail: the mother being revealed as the hooded figure attacking the son. For a company aiming to help console women who have regretted having an abortion, a movie where a woman contemplating the procedure is depicted as a black-clad murderer seems detrimental to that goal. It doesn't help that the whole hooded figure angle (seemingly used to personify the decision to abort) and the concluding message from Alec and Lisa Bevere demonstrate the film's concerning view on abortion. The film's pro-life stance isn't troubling in and of itself. What is troubling is how the creators appear to view the decision to terminate a pregnancy as a black-and-white binary choice that most (if not all) people will come to regret and view as an "unpardonable sin." Such a mindset paints an often complex decision motivated by a plethora of circumstances in overly simplistic colors.

(Though if I may say something about the film's website, I applaud it for including resources to help pregnant women before and after their child's birth. Far too many pro-lifers stop their fight to "save innocent lives" the moment the fetus is outside the womb.)

Spoilers Over

Much like The Most Girl Part of You, The Love You're Looking For is a well-directed and excellently cast film that implodes in its final act. If it had been written from a more objective perspective, the movie could've been a moving piece with a strong message about a controversial topic. As is, the problematic ending outshines the strong acting and heartfelt pre-twist story and is sure to alienate any viewer that doesn't agree with the Beveres' view on that topic.

Score: 4 out of 10 vocal auditions.

The Kissing Booth:

With the final installment of Netflix's The Kissing Booth saga coming out soon, I thought it would be fitting to end this list with a short film of the same name. Keeping with the unintended trend of this list, it's another mostly silent movie following a simple premise. Two girls (Valerie Lalonde and Abigail Lieff) are stationed at a kissing booth, and one is receiving plenty of kissers while the other is receiving none. But is one boy (Seamus Patterson) about to change that? With chipper music to match its bubbly plot, The Kissing Booth is an adorable exercise in cutesy romantic gestures and subverting expectations.

SPOILER ALERT This barely-a-minute-long movie's highlight move is its last-second twist. You would think the kiss between the kind boy and the "homely" girl had led to them falling in love when the older couple (played by Louise Villeneuve and Adam Bramble) appears. But as it turns out, the boy actually ended up with the popular girl. It's a neat twist that makes The Kissing Booth memorable despite its brisk pace, both for how it surprises the viewer and how it doesn't demonize femininity like similar films with "Pretty Popular Girl vs. Frumpy Unpopular Girl" conflicts. Aside from her referring to the other kissing booth girl as "homely" in adulthood (in a way that leaves it ambiguous whether or not she meant it as a true insult), neither the teenage nor the adult version of the popular girl is depicted as a stereotypically nasty person. In fact, it was her future husband's kind gesture to the unpopular girl that attracted the popular girl to him in the first place. Spoilers Over Already a cute little mini-flick with a serviceable cast, The Kissing Booth has a surprise twist ending to raise it up a level on my rating scale.

Score: 8 out of 10 compact mirrors.

Overall:

It's a mostly decent pack of movies that we have here. Even the lesser pieces like The Most Girl Part of You and The Love You're Looking For don't stray below a 4. Quite a unique bunch of movies that I brought together into this list because their titles all start with the same word. The list opens with a horror film before moving on to eight films that are either lightweight comedies or character-driven dramas. I was also surprised that of these nine films, three of them were of the dialogue-light/dialogue-devoid variety. In that film trio's case, the word "the" isn't the only thing they share in common. Anyway, be sure to check out this collection of similarly-titled short features and see for yourself if any of them are up your alley!

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About the Creator

Trevor Wells

Aspiring writer and film lover: Lifetime, Hallmark, indie, and anything else that strikes my interest. He/him.

Link to Facebook

Twitter: @TrevorWells98

Instagram: @trevorwells_16

Email: [email protected]

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