Bruno
Directed by Sam Goetz
With Sam Goetz, Mike Goetz, Timothy Gannon, Carla Tassara
Bruno is the story of Derek Brown, an asthmatic youth who has one love: bicycling. He is nihilistic and angry at the world. He loves nobody and nobody loves him. He is a knife salesman, he hates women, and despises his cousin Bruno. Bruno cries while watching sitcoms, and quits basketball in favor of his true passion, classical piano. He passes out at the sight of blood and doesn’t understand how animals have sex. Together they co-exist, looking out for each other while navigating young-adulthood. (from the filmfest-guide)
Hahaha… I think that does say it all, doesn’t it? I haven’t laughed like that in a very long time. This definitely was one of my favorite short films this year. Very well done, and incredibly funny!
Cactus
Directed by Albert Birney
With Sam Goetz, Mike Goetz, Timothy Gannon, Carla Tassara
A man goes looking for love and finds nothing but strawberries. (from the filmfest-guide)
This was quite a hefty little psychedelic trip into the land of odd. To be honest, I had some difficulties in getting something out of Cactus. I personally didn’t like it very much, but I did recognize an artistic value I don’t want to give it a bad review. There were some things I did like about it, others I didn’t care about at all.
Chronicles of Impeccable Sportsmanship
Directed by Erika Tasini
With Julie Alexander, Alessandra Daniele, Jonathan Newhall
A little girl, her parents, a ball. The endless contentions between two competitive parents — seen through the curious eyes of a perceptive and enterprising little girl. (from the filmfest-guide)
It was a good little, simple, lightweight and amusing film. It does not only work in the given set of a girl and her parents, but also symbolically for so many other situations related to questions of sportsmanship, fairness, consideration or egoism you may confront at one point or another in life or relationships. It was good and I thought above average, but maybe not good enough.
Semper Jack
Directed by Jesse Rose-Smith
The next step in human evolution is discovered among a band of survivors in a post-apocalyptic outpost. Not for the timid. (from the filmfest-guide)
This one was well done and I enjoyed watching it. At first glance the idea may not appear very original, but it does have a twist you wouldn’t have expected.
The Wake
Directed by Matthew Byrne
In this Southern Gothic suspenseful drama, an old lady mysteriously starves a young boy. Her bizarre method is seemingly without cause — but all becomes clear in one stunner of a climax. (from the filmfest-guide)
I really liked this film. It was extremely well done, captivating and very scary. In the end it all came together. I remember that I once read about this bizarre method before, so I shouldn’t have been surprised… but this film managed to leave me absolutely clueless until the very surprising end. Great work!
