Another Day at the Movies
Today I saw a collection of shorts in addition to one feature film, How to Cheat.
However I don’t have time at the moment to review all of the shorts. But if you like the unexpected and sometimes creepy/horror genre then the Shorts 5 collection has enough good stuff to be worth your time. They weren’t kidding when they called this series the Mindbenders. However the last film in the collection really tested my patience. I noticed many audience members checking their phones for the time during Mask (Maska) – dir. Quay Brothers, and the most positive feedback came from some composers in the audience who liked the music. But regarding story, pacing and visuals it left something to be desired.
How to Cheat was not what I expected. The genre was defined as a comedy, and while it had funny moments it was much more serious than expected. If I hadn’t been expecting the laughs, the subtle and low key humor with quirky moments would have probably had a greater impact. The story follows the frustrations of a man and his wife who’re trying unsuccessfully to have a baby until driven to just feel something more, he decides he should have an affair because guilt would be better than feeling nothing. The characters were believable as were the many scenes showcasing LA traffic and the boredom of a limo driver who’s life is not what he’d hoped for. A good film but nowhere near the top of my favorites from this year’s programming at Cinequest.
theurv 