Un/Cut

Un/Cut is a curiosity on many levels and really not what the viewer would necessarily expect. Bored businessman (Gordon Hickey) is rooted to a grey, non-descript hotel room. He right swipes on his smartphone looking for a diversion to brighten up his evening. He alights on a bearded and mysterious individual. The bored businessman guiltily rubs what appears to be a wedding ring. Complete with a devil emoji he directs his new companion to the appropriate room. Bearded man (Jeremie Cyr-Cooke) arrives and they exchange pleasantries. They soon get down to business but their liaison soon takes a novel turn.

This is where the narrative path would usually dive into the guilt of a man away from home cheating on his partner out of loneliness, boredom or frustration. But no, between the sheets the talk is more a discussion of manners, social custom and the origins of a surgical procedure performed on men as babies. Well, there is no cause to elaborate any further as it would entirely ruin the plot and viewers would be less likely to give it a spin. The dialogue is concise with a genuinely surprising exposition of a true story folks. This is a clandestine liaison in a hotel room and has ‘booty call’ written all over it; and to all intents and purposes that’s what it is.

But it’s where the plot goes after the initial premise is established that really raises this short film to a different level. Logically, the action takes place in one room, but facilitates some lively verbal exchanges between the characters. The audience is then compelled to consider a message that is much more cerebral than physical or visual. It becomes a cleverly constructed study of assumptions that endure because people always accept what they’ve been told. A very well thought out piece that broadly ticks all the right boxes.