Um Pequeno Favor

10 out of 10 for the acting, the cinematography, music, and directing. This stunning short thriller grabs you by the throat and won't let go.

Benedict Cumberbatch is superb - nuanced and physically adept - as the vulnerable yet powerfully skilled ex-soldier (appears to be special forces from his formidable combat skills) and yet his life is a wreck; he gets a nasty text from a date and lives in a hell hole. The character is intriguing and begs for further development.

The action and suspense are handled beautifully by all. Where this film could use some help, however, is in the writing. Neither the characters nor the storyline are developed (at least to this viewer's satisfaction) and while I was riveted throughout, the ending left me with the kinds of questions that suggest less an artistic choice than an omission.

With the addition of a writer in the same league as everyone else in this film, this production company will know no bounds. I look forward to the next offering from Sunny March. Meanwhile, LITTLE FAVOUR is definitely worth watching. An excellent debut.

the presence of Benedict Cumberbatch is only good point. but it is far to be enough. the story is confuse and when it seems clear it is silly. the tension, the fight scenes, the dialogs, the ambiguous end , each must conquer different sort of public. and that purpose remains unrealistic. than, it is a slice from a story not a story itself. a kind of salad with too many ingredients, without of credible taste. and the great error remains the generous possibilities of story. the idea is not bad , the cast and a more inspired script could be ingredients of a decent movie. but a Prometheus is more important than story. and art of confusion , so large...

I understand that the short films are a bit limited to describe the whole story, so, it rarely has the whole story in it. As it says in this review's title, this short film doesn't have any prologue and so, while I was watching, I didn't have any idea what I was watching at, such as why those people are looking for James and also what this short film is all about. And then I came here to rate the film and found out the storyline and I read it. Then I know what this is about.

If it has some explanation about the story in the short film, it'd be better.

I watched this not knowing anything about it and i absolutely love it! The story is brilliant and i was not expecting the direction it was taking.

It's specially good the acting. Every actor does an amazing performance. The girl does a transformation that i was not expecting. Benedict does an amazing job acting and producing.

I wish it was longer and the characters were more developed. But in the end it was an amazing experience, 20 minutes that i shall repeat a lot times to come.

recommend it to everybody!

The summary of this film listed on IMDb sure says a lot more about the plot than you'll see when you watch "Little Favour"--a lot more. All this back story is absent in the short and so it's not exactly what you might expect.

As to the story, it's very, very simple. Two men meet (one is Benedict Cumberbatch) and the other asks Wallace to do him a little favor--watch his kid. The kid is a girl who appears to be about 11 years-old. Soon after the pair arrive at his place, however, a ninja(?) and some other baddies invade the apartment. After putting up a good fight, Wallace is taken prisoner and horribly beaten. Then, surprising things happen--but I really cannot say more.

The film is a pretty bloody mess--and folks may squirm at seeing all the blood. I didn't enjoy all the killing and gore, though the story was extremely well produced and directed. Patrick Viktor Monroe is a relative newcomer and did a nice job--though I do wonder HOW he got Cumberbatch for the film, as this actor's career has been super-mega hot lately and a new filmmaker could never afford someone of his stature. Worth seeing but very, very dark and gruesome.