Natives is a short scene when a lesbian couple (Rachel and Anita) living in New York City return to visit Anita's Native American parents for the weekend. They are not "out" to her family and, although Rachel wants that to change, it isn't going to on this trip. Rachel tries to overcompensate for Anita's apathy towards her parents, expressing endless respect for the culture and the people, despite alcoholism, crappy cars and dead-end jobs at Wal-Mart being the modern traits of the family. As Anita's discomfort grows, Rachel becomes increasingly frustrated at her distance from her family and her lack of effort to have a relationship with them.
I will be the first to admit that I have been having an OCD run of short film watching recently and that my usual habits of TV shows and the odd movie has sort of gone to the side as I keep finding shorts to check out. Part of the appeal is that they are short so even if they don't work, then they only don't work for a few minutes and then you're out; but part of the addictive nature of them is that if you have a decent filter or site (as opposed to just Googling "short film") then they tend to be good and good short films can be great. So it is with this nice mix of comic awkwardness and painful truths, which is really well written, directed, shot and performed.
The plot is simple – a gay couple going home to meet one set of parents and one assumes the drama will be the "big confrontation" about the nature of the relationship but actually the drama is more subtle and folded in than that. The good thing about the film is that it doesn't help us pick a side in the family/couple or even within the couple; everyone is who and what they are for better or worse and it plays out very nicely and naturally. The questions it asks about attraction and the nature of Rachel's relationship with Anita are tough but also mercifully unanswered. The film does end in a rather open way but I liked this and appreciated it for not coming to a tidy end.
Hersh's direction is really good through and the film is crisply filmed and feels natural and real while looking good. His writing is very fresh and is done justice by the cast. Mylnechuk and Young are convincing as individuals and as a couple – Young has the more interesting character and she walks the line well to have a character we like and dislike at the same time for changing reasons. The two of them are the film and they are very natural and engaging. The parents are not listed on IMDb in the cast, but their silent performances are effective – particularly the mother.
Natives has a nicely comic awkwardness which brings us along a realistic path and makes us care about the characters before challenging us with questions which it doesn't feel the need to answer. It is very well directed, written, filmed and acted and I was surprised by how into it I was.
