Procter

It isn't often you see a short film that is a pure masterpiece. I myself can think of only two. "La Jetée" by Chris Marker, and "Procter" by Joachim Trier. I happened upon "Procter" during the Edinburgh Film festival (where it - quite deservedly - won all the prizes) thinking I was going to fall victim to another clumsy British kitchen sink drama, but what I found instead was no less than a revelation. The young Trier has made a near-perfect film, the spectator is at the edge of his seat enthralled by the directors masterful Hitchcock-like use of suspense, but at the same time the film gives us a philosophical depth that I have only seen in some films by Bresson or Tarkovsky. The film's precise framings and use of space made me think of Antonioni and the colors and lighting of "Le Samurai" by Melville. But forgive all these comparisons with 60s classics by an old film critic, and let them not obscure the fact that "Procter" is an utterly modern, compelling and entertaining thriller --- A MUST SEE!!

A businessman goes home during the working day to find change his trousers having spilled coffee on himself. When he arrives in the underground garage below his apartment block he finds a car on fire with a dead man inside. He also finds himself being filmed. He takes the video upstairs to his home and watches a man do ordinary things like shave etc before covering himself in petrol and setting himself and his car alight. Procter becomes a driven man as he tries to unearth what drove this person to kill himself in such an unusual manner.

I suspect this film needs several viewings to totally get it. It appears to have meaning hidden within it but it isn't easy to get at other than on a superficial level with only one watch. The plot is enticing - Proctor himself is drawn into this video taped mystery and so are we. The feeling that something is behind all this action is overwhelming - there must be a sinister motive, there must be! However the plot never builds to a dramatic ending - it builds to a sobering conclusion that is subtly done.

This short felt like a disappointment to me because I expected a dramatic ending that was not forth coming. However this is my problem and not the film's. Indeed this does get better with several watchings as there are minor things which come out the more you look at them and the more you see them - just like the video itself that Procter cannot turn off.

Overall this will take a bit of work but is worth several viewings and some thought.