Sunday, September 10 5:45 PM CUMBERLAND 3
Once again, the short I was looking forward to wasn't the one I enjoyed the most. This collection of shorts is probably the best one I've seen so far, since most of them were really good. There wasn't a serious stunner in the set, but there wasn't anything horribly bad either. Well, except the French one. But you have to expect that. 8 )
And now for a closer look at each one...
The Broken Hearted: A nifty little tale about a place where you can go and they can fix a broken heart. Great story idea, and well executed.
La Tête Haute: The breakup of a relationship, she has to go, he doesn't want her to. So what? The most interesting character here is the woman, and the piece focusses on the guy. Not interesting.
Ninth Street Chronicles: A great half-hour movie. The adorable little girl is the only person in her family with any capability at all (a common theme this year, I've seen) and even though her parents are around most of the time, she's always got a babysitter since they're only physically there and not really of much use. This piece follows the little girl for a week or so through her adventures that lead to all the other children her age not being allowed to play with her anymore. So she ends up becoming more aquainted with the "older kids" (teenagers) that she seems to have a lot more in common with than anyone her own age. Captivating!
The Tragic Story of Nling: A drunk and his best friend Donkey (an actual donkey who used to be a professor at the university before they passed a law) escape their prison of the walled city of Nling when the surrounding city is destroyed by irony. Done in paper-cutout style, too! This movie sounds a lot better than it actually is. It's an imaginative romp, no doubt, but is essentially pointless. Enjoyable, but I was hoping for something a little more.
Love Seat: A hilarious little tale of perversion and office work. Highly entertaining!
Patterns 2 & Patterns 3: These two shorts are sequels to the short Patterns that I saw in last years fest. These two and that one create what is now being called The Patterns Trilogy. Suddenly, the first one I saw (put into perspective) makes some sense. Overall, an intersting little story. The 1st part and 2nd part are the same story, just from his and her perspective. The 3rd part is the best as it ties the previous two together by filling in the before and after of 1 & 2. Individually nothing much, they come together very nicely as a set.