Short Film Ancillary Text Review Article

Thrilling, high octane and at times melodramatic, this short film produced by Jack Campbell is five minutes that you’ll want to relive over and over again. The short begins in a way that foreshadows the drama to come, the door being slammed in the first shot perhaps a nod to the final scene featuring a killer twist panning slowly to the door at the other end of the kitchen. The action in-between is thrilling, including drugs, a deadly weapon and a dilemma for the main character Harry which has potentially deadly consequences.

All 3 actors play their roles with conviction, bringing the roles to life in a way that encapsulates and engrosses the audience. You really feel sorry for Harry and Lauren, pushed into a sticky situation by the evil Carl. Carl is the ultimate villain, causing destruction wherever he goes for the siblings. The plot is fairly simple and perhaps overshadowed by the thrilling direction and acting performances. Harry owes money to Carl as he has roped him into a plan to sell drugs to his friends at school, when Lauren finds the drugs and destroys them he has no choice but to confront Kingpin Carl at a secretive location. The end is thrilling, full of suspense and a tad of violence creating a solid, enjoyable, out of the ordinary short film.

However, the short film does suffer from some misfortunes. How does Harry get to the abandoned area to meet Carl? Why does the drug baron Carl try to reason with a schoolchild? The ending poses questions to the audience too that, annoyingly, will never be answered. Who? How? Why? In a way, it adds to the mystique and thrill of the film, albeit at the cost of closure you normally get from a cinematic experience that is often so vital.

Despite the plot holes which pale in comparison when taken into account with the action we see on screen, this film still holds some sort of moral and message modern cinema often ignores. We see the torment of two teenagers, an age group so often ignored by the media as a whole. It is a naturally over the top, Hollyoaks style production but at its most basic level- it’s entertaining and meaningful. And that is all that really matters.

****