Cash for Gold

A woman visits a pawn shop to try to get money in a hurry, and the man behind the counter finds reason to connect with her situation.

Delivered in a very short time, this film throws us into the scene, asks us to go with a connection made in an instant, and believe the outcome. It is a tough ask without a lot of work behind it for the viewer, but it just about works and makes for a nicely affecting film. The writing doesn't totally do this though; there are weaker lines and I'm not sure that the film puts the material there to justify it. It does give that information to the cast though, because Negahban and Puette both sell their characters, even if some of the dialogue could have been better. As a two-hander it works well, and the camera stays close to them both, selling it further as a very immediate and intimate connection that you may not have seen from a few steps away.