Everyone Writes Memoir

A story about a couple's relationship, which is suffering due to a lack of connection and communication.

Mia (Blake) and Daniel (Crum) are a young New Zealand couple who live in a house by the beach. Mia has just returned after being away on business and is unimpressed with her partner's housekeeping activities during her absence and even less happy about the fact that their home does not have electricity because Daniel failed to make payment. Later, during night-time, as the two of them sit at the table, in the dark with lighting provided by candles, they play a game of honesty that involves sharing secrets with each other, which leads to a dramatic revelation.

This short drama explores a relationship that has been unstable for a while and might be coming to an end. The slow beginning contains very limited speech and gradually reveals the couple's situation and it is after the two of them meet at the house that the real insight into how things are between them begins, with Mia's dissatisfaction regarding Daniel's ignorance and unwillingness to effectively communicate with her being the main element of the plot. Daniel spends a great deal of time on his mobile phone, greatly annoying Mia and she is finding it hard to trust him and even suspects him of infidelity. Daniel stands his ground and supports a theory for a book that he is working on, which claims that technology can help people see things better. Clearly, the two of them do not see eye-to-eye and their relationship is unlikely to continue. Generally, there is a lot of drama this thirty-five minute film, which has a script that explores the characters well and contains dramatic dialogue.

Directors Campbell and Solter do an amazing job, create some beautiful shots of landscapes and some well-executed long takes. Credit also goes to the smooth camera movements. The lighting also deserves praise, particularly during the scenes with the candlelight.

This is an emotional story about a relationship that appears to be coming to an end and it is also a commentary about how mobile phones and technology in general end up keeping people apart, isolating them from the world, thus preventing them from being communicative and understanding, which are essential for relationships to work. The film's greatest strengths lie on the well-written dialogue, the revelations and Blake's emotional performance.