Redrum

A man unwillingly gets into trouble and is forced to take drastic action.

Marwan (Mokaddem) and his cousin Fouad (Ben-Chaib) work at a coffee shop in Amsterdam. At first, things appear normal but it becomes apparent that unerneath the peaceful surface there are issues. Marwan is in a relationship with Lara (Roozemond) and her ex-boyfriend Vincent (Huisman) is not happy about that and decides to extort Marwan for money. Meanwhile, Fouad has also found himself in an unfortunate position by owing money to nasty people and teams up with Vincent in order to get himself out of debt.

This is a dark and exciting thriller from the Netherlands, with elements of film noir. The plot focuses heavily on extortion and mainly follows Marwan, as he is mistreated and pushed further and further into a corner until he is forced to react. There is a great deal of threat and confrontation and the viewer is kept in suspense as they try to guess how things are going to turn out.

The acting is generally good. Mokaddem is convincing as a friendly, well-meaning guy who does not want any trouble, but changes his ways under pressure. Ben-Chaib is a careless and disrespectful person who is willing to use others to get what he wants. Huisman is menacing as an agressive fiend.

One of the strongest aspects here is the music by Thies Bouwhuis, which includes electro and sounds dramatic, suspenseful and tense and it goes very well with the scenes.

Robert M. Berger makes an outstanding contribution with the wonderful cinematography. The lighting effects are great and there are beautiful establishing shots of Amsterdam.

This short is a thrilling ride, with a narrative that grabs the audience's attention and is well worth the experience.