On The Nose

Thomas Davisson’s comedic short On The Nose is an amusing, bite-sized story of a couple’s tiff gone spectacularly wrong on the surface. Underneath, it actually manages to function as a surprising commentary on relationships and communication in its 5-minute runtime.

Whilst preparing for a night out, a girl (Alexis Presley) asks her boyfriend (Mustapha Slack) for his thoughts on her outfit. Engrossed in his video game, she senses his attention is elsewhere and his answers are auto-piloted – so she intentionally tries to slip him up by wearing pieces of the same look. What starts as a domestic dispute leads to a chase around town, until the boyfriend gets the chance to reveal what really prompted his reaction.

On The Nose mines a lot of fun in a tight running time out of stereotypical interactions between men and women in relationships. Mustapha Slack’s character appears to be an archetypal dudebro – long having abandoned that extra layer of attentiveness since living with his partner. His seeming refusal to even raise his gaze to his girlfriend is noticeable, and her passive-aggressive responses and testing of his courtesy feels natural. This of course ends up subverted as the film progresses, and whilst the boyfriend may not be perfect, it turns out there are layers to his character, to their relationship, and to the meaning behind the awkward dismissal. It makes all the events of the film, including the extreme lengths the girlfriend’s frustration leads her to all the funnier. And is crowned by the closing credits during which the couple keep up appearances and act entirely normal at the event they are heading to – that post-argument feeling we all know all too well.

The opening ‘classic Hollywood’ title card sends a message from the get go that this couple is synonymous with tradition. It seems a strange takeaway given the row that takes up much of the narrative and each of the pair’s actions, but the importance of the message is how normal disagreements and frustrations are in perfectly functional relationships. Steering into our worst impulses is sometimes an understandable misstep, and forgiveness is sufficient to bridge the gap. Or in this case, canny styling advice…

On top of this the film is shot beautifully. Alexis Presley is bathed in vibrancy and light to match her extravagant outfit, whilst the cool tones that accompany Mustapha Slack extenuate his laisse-faire attitude to his relationship. Fast-paced editing is a necessity for the running time, and creates a sense of pace and franticness that add to the believability of a situation quickly spiralling out of control. Unlike so many shorts of this length, the film is perfectly timed – completing a natural arc for its two leads and telling it short story concisely and completely. It is a testament to director Thomas Davisson’s restraint and control that such a film feels so accomplished. On The Nose really is anything but.