Curve

At the first sigh, an Existentialist short film, illustrating concepts, theories, perspectives. At the second, the simplicity becomes the main virtue. Not the last, the admirable acting. A cold, thrilling short thriller, builded in most miimalistic manner, proposing balls of questions, suppositions and omparations. Result - just a good short film.

I loved this. It was tense and impactful, which is hard to achieve in 9 minutes.

I interpreted this movie as showing how life will beat you and ware you down but humans will still try and beat it and rise above. Some times we can beat it but even if we try our hardest, life will sometimes win.

That was just my viewing, I like that this movie has so many ways to look at it.

The opening shots of waves and noise I could have done without, but from that first slide and hit of anxiety, this one delivers very simply and effectively. Essentially we have a single character, dropped onto a dangerously curved smooth piece of concrete, just about clinging to it with some small friction preventing her dropping into an abyss below. Perhaps there is some meaning to be taken from it about the nature of life or something like this, but if you are thinking about this while watching it, then the film has probably failed you because for me it was a very gut level film which rode that sense of fear and dread very well.

Credit to the actress, because she sells it, while the simplicity of the concept makes it easy to go with – there is not enough here to make you ask big questions or poke the logic of the situation; like the character herself, all you can do is try to survive the moment. In this way it is visually effective, and has strong sound work to add to the feeling. Like I said, the opening shots I could do without, but after this it is as simple as it is unsettlingly effective.

Honestly at this point, all these horror movies are all good, (because of CGI of course). Back then, there were movies such as Nightmare on Elm Street lll or Friday the 13th that don't have good graphics, even though we thought they were good. Anyway, this movie really stood out. I watched this for a scary horror night. I remember my friend saying only one horror movie, so I picked this, I was truly impressed. It thrilled me from start to finish. Despite its 12 minutes, it was a very good film and should definitely be showed in cinemas. 10/10!

Well, this is a curveball.

I love the visual design. The sound design is outstanding. The makeup and blood effects are swell. I think Laura Jane Turner gives a pretty great performance, portraying the fright, alarm, desperation, and determination of the single unnamed character. Writer-director Tim Egan's camerawork zeroes in on every meticulously coordinated, deliberate movement of Turner as the character grapples with her plight, and especially in the final moments especially, his editing serves that same purpose. From a technical standpoint, this short is very well-rounded. I appreciate this unique, somewhat fantastical take on the film genre of "lone person, trapped and in peril." As viewers we can readily identify with the character in the instinctual urge for survival, and the heightened emotional and physiological state that accompanies it.

Yet I can't help but feel that something's missing, that some greater truth has bowed out from the finished product.

It's easy and natural to theorize about the nature of the scenario, though without anything in the short beyond what we see, this is a fruitless pursuit. It's also easy and natural to try to read some meaning into the abridged arc on hand, and one could readily say this is a metaphor for Life, Struggle, or any grand overarching idea. That could be true - substance is in the eye of the beholder - but that pursuit also feels superfluous here.

The result is a short that's simple in concept, finely realized, handily (if not wholly) engaging, and peculiarly intriguing. What's it all for? I honestly don't know. But that doesn't mean we can't appreciate 'Curve' for what we plainly get on the face of it.