Candy Heart Heist

A short crime drama written and directed by Dave Shecter and starring himself, Scarlett Vaill, Jason Whited, Amy DiLorenzo and Carl Covington.

Teenaged Amber (Vaill) lives in a small town with her parents. One school day, she goes out, ostensibly to meet with a friend, however it soon becomes evident that her true intentions are to steal here and there. She enters a convenience shop and steals some sweets, before wondering around the area and breaking into a car. Eventually, she ends up in a restaurant, where she sits at a table with a stranger, a middle-aged man named Bradley (Shecter) and he tells her interesting things about him and offers her some advice.

The narrative takes place over the course of a few hours and focuses primarily on exploring Amber and Bradley's lives, as well as several other characters, including a shopkeeper (Whited), Agent Grey (Covington) and two police officers. It is when Amber meets Bradley that things turn very dramatic and the film reaches its peak, communicating important lessons about life. There is great character development and the inclusion of tense and interesting music adds to the atmosphere.

This may be a minor observance, nevertheless, it should be acknowledged as it is obvious. When Amber is at the restaurant, why does she sit with Bradley, a person she has never seen before? This does not really matter, but when people go to places like these, they do not tend to sit at the same table with stranger.

As Bradley, Shecter portrays a career criminal, a theif to be precise. However, he is not proud of his illegitimate actions, on the contrary, he deeply regrets having chosen such a life, particularly due to a terrible incident and when he meets Amber he becomes a sort of mentor, trying to persuade her not to follow in his footsteps. Wearing a black jacket and headphones, Amber is a rebellious teen who is going down the wrong path.

Crime is a main theme in this short, especially the fact that crime does not pay. The film's primary objective strongly appears to be to communicate the message that turning to crime will only end in tragedy. Alongside this, this is also a story about law enforcement, self-reflection, regrets and the ups and downs of marriage.

A story about crime that centers on a life-changing encounter between two strangers. The strongest aspect of this film is the fact that it encourages people to say no to crime and that is enough for it to be categorised as a viewing of considerable significance.