Rated is about a woman named Maggie (Christie Lynn Smith) who is alerted of 2½ stars hovering above her head by her daughter Hannah (Abby Ryder Fortson) during breakfast. After becoming aware of the stars that loom above her, she awakes her husband (John Fortson), and realizes that he too has stars that loom above his head. The problem though, is that he has 5 out of 5, significantly higher than her. As the story progresses Maggie leaves her home, only to come to the realization that the 5 star system looms over the head of every adult. The prominent issue is that most of the adults have 4 out of 5 or 5 out of 5 stars and the ratings are based off of behavior. The reason for her low rating is due to her poor rating and treatment of others. She also finds out that lower rated adults are restricted from certain areas. These discriminations she faces make her a social outlier and begin to cause her stress and irritation. Maggie knows the reason she's rated lower than most of the other adults and she is well aware how it can be changed, but whether she is willing to make an improvement in her attitude is up to her. How will the discrimination Maggie will face affect her life? Is Maggie willing to make the changes necessary to improve her rating?
I highly recommend seeing this short as soon as possible. Rated will completely exceed any prejudgements. It is incredibly funny, the story contains a narrative that explores themes relevant to modern society through clever and comedic deliverance. From beginning to end it demands your attention by drawing the viewer's curiosity through the peculiarity of the rating system and how speculation on how it influences the characters. Rated satirizes the way we allow rating based systems, especially those found on social networks, to influence our reputation and emotional well-being. Despite Rated's comedic deliverance, at certain points it forces the viewer to think about situations that create separation and have occurred or are currently occurring. Christie Lynn Smith, the actress who plays Maggie and John Fortson, the actor who plays Brian, display a wonderful chemistry on the screen together. Both of them display performances that are realistic and feel relatable, which is why this short film is so enjoyable. If you get the chance, definitely go see Rated.
