Aquarium

I recently stumbled on Aquarium, a short that was playing on IFC and thought it was wonderful. The performances were fantastic all around, especially the young actors. It's rare to see kids who perform so naturally on screen and for smart, introverted kids to be portrayed with nuance. Aquarium a bittersweet tale of a boy who submerges himself in the world of aquarium fish breeding to escape a difficult situation at home. It's also a sweet love story, and had moments of intelligent humor. The tone was charming and at times surreal -- beautifully shot and featuring a great climax in front of the jellyfish at the New England Aquarium. Great work!

So, in the opening scene - he ties his senior dog to a wagon, pulls the wagon to the edge of a dock on a pond and pushes the dog and the wagon into the water. He stands there for a moment and you are shown the peaceful pond - where the dog is probably squirming, crying and trying to find a way to live under the water - but will die anyway. The the boy turns and walks away.

Based on the other review - I thought this would be a nice movie about a boy overcoming a difficult situation at home. What I didn't realize is that this movie was a horror. Nor did I realize that it was about a mentally disturbed boy with violent tendencies. The opening scene was enough to turn my stomach. How could I continue to watch the movie and hope for tones of love and friendship, when he just killed his dog? I don't know if they addressed this issue as the movie went on. And I guess, if you are immune to this kind of visual, then maybe the rest of the movie is okay.

For me, it was too much. And for a movie labeled as one of friendship and romance, the opening was truly unexpected and for me, ended the experience.