★★★ Directed by #TimSutton Written by #TimSutton #FrankBill Starring #JamieBell #FrankGrillo #MargaretQualley Film Review by #MattWeiner Go into Donnybrook expecting an action movie about bare knuckle fighting and you’re going to be sorely disappointed: there’s more road movie than Rocky. But director Tim Sutton’s dissection of American desperation is out to expose the underbelly of more than just backyard brawling. Sutton adapts Frank Bill’s novel with unrelenting sparseness. The movie centers on the intertwined lives of Jarhead Earl (Jamie Bell) and Chainsaw and Delia Angus (Frank Grillo and Margaret Qualley) as they pursue the limited versions of the American dream available to them in rural, addiction-ravaged Ohio. Earl wants to win the Donnybrook, a legendary underground fight whose winnings will allow him to give his family a better life. Delia just wants to sell a bunch of meth so she can escape dead-end life with her abusive brother. And Chainsaw Angus just wants all that meth back that his sister stole. (You know a situation is dire anytime someone steals drugs from a person named Chainsaw.) Donnybrook is violent but not gratuitous. As the characters’ lives converge on the road to the fight, the flashes of violence that build toward the climax serve mostly as a reminder of the pervasive despair everyone is running away from. Grillo plays Chainsaw Angus as a relentless force that blows right through anyone and everyone he comes in contact with—men, women and children alike. There’s more than a touch of Coens-meet-McCarthy to Sutton’s adaptation, and not just in Angus’s almost elemental pursuit. Earl’s milieu echoes the Appalachian noir of Winter’s Bone, but with a contemporary urgency all its own. Unfortunately, the film’s singular devotion to its economically downtrodden message leads to some shortcuts for the characters. Delia doesn’t get the space to expand beyond her tragic archetype, but the movie is at least an equal opportunity offender when it comes to dispensing with supporting stereotypes: James Badge Dale’s alcoholic cop could be removed entirely and the story wouldn’t miss a beat. The degree to which Sutton’s languid, dream-like depictions of this world succeed in amounting to a whole greater than their parts will probably come down to how much you think we need another Fight Club-style examination of a narrow (and uniformly white) male anger. Giving that perspective such lyric treatment is certainly a choice. Even when the blows don’t connect, there’s something to be said for action with ambition.

★★★ Directed by #ToddStraussSchulson Written by #ErinCardillo #DanaFox Starring #RebelWilson #AdamDevine #LiamHemsworth #PriyankaChopra Film Review by #GeorgeWolf Every time someone on your social media thread pokes fun at the latest Hallmark Christmas special, you can get some pretty good odds they set the DVR to record it. Isn't It Romantic is all about indulging those guilty pleasures, laughing with friends as we all point out the reasons we shouldn't love something that we're going to keep on loving anyway. Romantic comedies, why can't we quit you? Natalie (Rebel Wilson) is a low-level architect at a NYC firm who chastises her co-worker Whitney (Betty Gilpin) about her love for predictable rom-coms like Notting Hill and 50 First Dates. As Whitney watches yet another one on company time, Natalie wags a finger and reminds us all of the romantic comedy playbook she's soon to act out. Fighting with a would-be purse snatcher, Natalie is knocked unconscious, only to awaken in a strange new world. She's glowing with full makeup in a lavish E.R., where sexy doctors are available at a moment's notice and there's voiceover narration for Natalie's inner conflicts. This can only mean one thing: Natalie's living in a rom-com! The screenwriting team has plenty of experience in the genre (How to Be Single, The Wedding Date, What Happens in Vegas), and rolls out the tropes with fun, familiar ease. Natalie is instantly pursued by the rich, handsome Blake (Liam Hemsworth) while her friend-zoned buddy Josh (Adam DeVine) hooks up with supermodel/"yoga ambassador" Isabella (Priyanka Chopra) and best pal Whitney suddenly becomes an office nemesis. Gay sidekick? Of course, honey! It's neighbor Donny, who shows up at inexplicable moments and is brought to scene-stealing life by Brandon Scott Jones. "How did you get here??" "I just said 'Gay Beetlejuice' three times and here I am, Booch!" Wilson, usually adept at scene-stealing herself, seems a bit uneasy in the lead, as her supporting actors all manage to make solid impressions while she struggles to find a confident tone. Credit director Todd Strauss-Schulson for a finely whimsical pace, pop-up music montages that pop, and plenty of subtle backgrounds that reinforce the wink-winks (there's a cute little cupcake store on every corner!) While never hilarious, Isn't It Romantic manages consistent charm and an effective running gag about keeping it all PG-13. Everybody knows you know how it ends and that's the point, right? Here comes another musical number! Hey, if you want rom-com critique with bite, revisit Joseph Gordon-Levitt's Don Jon. If you're fine pleading guilty to the pleasure, Isn't It Romantic will be plenty enjoyable.

★★★ Directed by #RobertRodriguez Written by #JamesCameron #LaetaKalogridis Starring #RosaSalazar #ChristophWaltz #JenniferConnolly #MahershalaAli #KeeanJohnson Film Review by #HopeMadden Cyberpunk comes to the big screen in the form of a post-apocalyptic roller derby. I would not have guessed that’s how it would go. Alita: Battle Angel is, among other things, director Robert Rodriguez’s best film in years. That isn’t saying a lot, but the truth is that the filmmaker does more with dystopian YA heroine tropes than most recent directors have. In a terrestrial wasteland in the shadow of a sky city eternally out of reach, one kindly scientist (Christoph Waltz) scrounges a scrap heap looking for cyborg parts. He rebuilds something he finds there—something that reminds him of his own lost daughter. Though Alita (Rosa Salazar plus motion capture magic) has no memory of who or what she was, her instincts oscillate between earnest adolescent and battle-honed killer. Based on a Manga series about a bounty hunter, Alita concerns itself more with the themes of today’s young adult franchises: empowering young women to be true to themselves, stand up to authority, own their own destiny, and only crush on boys who love you for who you truly are. All fine lessons. A stocked supporting cast including two more Oscar winners (besides Waltz)—Mahershala Ali and Jennifer Connelly—elevate the sometimes threadbare dialog with sheer will and undeniable talent. The film also showcases the latest cinematic tech wizardry at the disposal of co-scriptor James Cameron, wielded by Sin City’s visionary helmsman. And it looks great. Better than the trailer makes you think it looks. The ruined city, the cyborg monstrosities, the action—all of it commands attention and refuses to be dismissed. If nothing else, Alita absolutely marks a departure from the filmmaker’s traditional style. Indeed, it looks more like something Cameron would make: glossy and epic versus edgy and idiosyncratic. There is nothing especially groundbreaking or memorable, however, about the film. There is nothing inferior about it, either. It pushes some boundaries in terms of content as well as movie experience and it entertains from start to finish. It’s Hunger Games with a more likable protagonist, Ready Player One with a plot. It’s forgettable, cool looking and fun.

★★★ Directed by #ClausRafle Written by #ClausRafle #AlejandraLopez Starring #MaxMauff #AliceDwyer #RubyOFee #AaronAltaras Film Review by #RachelWillis In 1943, the infamous Joseph Goebbels declared Berlin was “free of Jews.” However, 7000 Jewish residents remained in hiding in Germany’s capital. Director Claus Räfle brings this dark history to life with his docudrama, The Invisibles. Focusing on the lives of four young Jewish men and women, Räfle showcases their struggles through a combination of dramatic reenactment and interviews. The dramatic elements of the film play like any well-written, well-acted drama. The actors enliven the words of the survivors, whose interviews are interspersed throughout the film. Newsreel footage from the days of the war also help paint the picture for modern viewers. It’s an interesting choice to retell the more dramatic elements of history through reenactments, but because of Räfle’s attention to detail and the actors’ commitment to the story, it works fairly well. Räfle understands how to balance the dramatic with the interviews,  frequently reminding us we’re watching a story about real people. The strongest performance comes from Max Mauff, who portrays Cioma Schönhaus. By forging documents, Cioma manages to stay behind in Berlin when his parents are sent to a concentration camp. Because of his skills, soon friends ask for help with their own documents. His work gains the attentions of Dr. Franz Kaufmann, a member of the Third Reich, who assists Jewish men and women in escaping Germany., and he enlists Cioma’s help in creating fake passports and papers. Cioma’s work saves the lives of scores of other Jewish men and women. Räfle tries to balance Cioma’s story with the stories from his other interviewees, Ruth Ardnt, Hanni Lévy and Eugen Friede, but he never quite manages to bring the same level of detail to their histories. Though Eugen participates in a resistance movement distributing leaflets to citizens, that fact almost feels like an afterthought. Ruth works in the house of a Nazi officer, who knows who she is, but the tension of such a situation is never fully explored. In addition to the four survivors profiled, there are a number of men and women who assist in hiding Ruth, Hanni, Cioma, and Eugen. It’s hard to keep track of the names of those who risked their lives to do the right thing, which is unfortunate since their actions were critical in keeping people alive. The Invisibles might have been better served by simply letting the survivors tell their stories in their own words, but even with the choice to dramatize the history, it’s a sensitive, emotional portrayal of one of the darkest times in human history.

★★★★ Directed by #NadineLabaki Written by #NadineLabaki #JihadHojeily #MichelleKeserwany Starring ##ZainAlRafeea Film Review by #BrandonThomas “I want to sue my parents!” a defiant pre-teen child exclaims inside of a crowded courtroom. Everyone - his parents, the judge, the attorneys - appears stunned. As his initial outburst lingers in the air, the boy explains further: “Because I was born.” Our world can be a horrific place. Unfortunately, children aren’t spared from these horrors. Capernaum follows one child as he tries to make sense of his place in a world that’s constantly placing greater and greater hurdles in front of him. The streets of Beirut are the playground for headstrong Zain (Zain Al Rafeea). When not selling cheap cups of juice in the gutter, Zain spends his days working in a small shop to appease his parent’s landlord. Even at such a young age, Zain has been tasked with providing for his large family. The abrasiveness of Zain’s demeanor is quickly overshadowed by his need to take care of his siblings and keep them all together. Capernaum isn’t subtle about where it lays blame. The neglect from adults is directly responsible for the misery these children endure. Zain and his siblings are only valuable to their parents because of what they can provide for them; not because they’re human beings. Even the lone caring adult in Zain’s life puts him in a situation that no child should be in. The movie isn’t a miserable experience by any means, but it doesn’t shy away from the hardships these characters suffer. In fact, that honesty is what makes Capernaum so compelling. Knowing there are real children like Zain who live this kind of bleak existence helps give the story weight. Al Rafeea is a revelation in his acting debut. A real life Syrian refugee, Al Rafeea conveys a weariness that cannot be faked. He plays Zain as a hardened, street-smart kid, but allows the cracks in that facade to show. Zain wants the chance to be a regular kid, and those few moments when he is truly happy are simultaneously joyous and heartbreaking. The honesty of the story and the lead performance make Capernaum a riveting experience.

★★ Directed by #ChristopherLandon Written by #ChristopherLandon Starring #JessicaRothe #IsraelBroussard #PhiVu Film Review by #HopeMadden Two years ago, writer/director Christopher Landon’s Happy Death Day managed the unexpected. It took an immediately tiresome premise—Groundhog Day meets Scream—and generated enough audience good will to entertain. This was mainly thanks to Jessica Rothe, whose performance was funny enough to be simultaneously likable and detestable, and whose character arc mostly felt earned. (Bill Murray’s are big shoes to fill.) Well, Rothe is back for a second helping of death day cake, as is Landon, who again writes and directs. Can the pair keep the story fresh for a sequel? Why, no. Thanks for asking. Where the original was a funny slasher with a SciFi bent, the sequel is a standard Eighties romcom with an occasionally morbid sense of humor. Think Real Genius, only dumber and more tedious. Or Zapped. Remember Zapped? Tree (Rothe) believes she’s broken free of her murderous time loop by killing the person who was out to kill her—and learning some hard-won life lessons in the meantime. She was wrong, though, because the truth is that her boyfriend Carter’s (Israel Broussard) weird roommate Ryan (Phi Vu) has gotten all Timecrimes in the college lab and that’s what caused the loop. In fact, it’s causing another loop into a parallel dimension. Everyone from the original is back and almost the same as last time (because this is a parallel universe). Any new character who is not white joins Ryan in the lab. Nerds – another sad Eighties theme that won't stay dead. Slapstick humor (Oh, this blind French thing is enough to make your brain bleed) and dumbfounding gaps in logic follow. A list of what does not follow: tension, horror, laughter. Seriously, though, if you haven’t seen Nacho Vigalondo’s 2007 mindbender Timecrimes, you should definitely do that instead of going to HDD2U. Oh! You know what else is great in that SciFi/time loop/horror neighborhood? The Endless. The point is, if you are in the mood for some genre bending SciFi fun, you won’t find it here.

★★★★★ Directed by: #RichardMiller Written by: #RichardMiller Starring: #GavinFowler, #BethanSweet Film Review by: #DarrenTilby Like #DarioArgento's, #Suspiria, Night Tide bombards the senses with light and sound; imparting a sense of dizzying, #otherworldly eeriness to this excellent #horror #short from writer and director, Richard Miller. In a scene which, visually, reminded me of Father Merrin’s arrival in #TheExorcist, our protagonist (Gavin Fowler) approaches his dimly lit home, late one Christmas night. As he settles down, with a drink in hand, his dismissive partner, Amy (Bethan Sweet), giggles away on her phone. It’s no longer a happy relationship, that much is clear. She doesn’t greet him, she barely even looks at him, and she’s cancelled plans to spend the following day together, claiming “I’m seeing the girls.” But that night, Amy seems to disappear, and strange things begin to happen. Night Tide is a stellar example of what a movie can achieve with a cast of only two characters and very little dialogue. And even then, most of that dialogue takes places in the first act of the film. Richard Miller relies on the strength of his actor’s performances to guide us through the #nightmarish scenario unfolding before us. It can be a risky move, one which could easily have backfired. But it never does. Both Gavin Fowler and Bethan Sweet give it their all, and the on-screen results speak for themselves. The first thing you’re likely to notice as the film begins is the beautifully lit visuals and extraordinary ethereal music; which seems more like something from a Sleepy Hollow film. The selection of music—which includes Beethoven’s Für Elise—may seem odd, and in fact, would seem completely out of place in any other film. And yet, here, it not only works but also adds to the #otherworldly #atmosphere of the film. For me, however, it’s #GrantArcher's #cinematography that really pushes this film to greatness. Everything aspect of this film’s visuals is pitch-perfect. The #framing is sublime, the lighting is stunning, and the #editing simply couldn't have been better. Night Tide is not only the best looking #horror film I’ve seen (so far) this year, but it’s also one of the best at making effective use of its visuals of any #horror in the last several years. I spotted references to many classic #horror films during the 8-minute runtime: #TheExorcist, #WhatLiesBeneath, #TheChangeling. Maybe these references are intentional, maybe I’m just seeing what I want to see. But I would be very surprised if #Suspiria didn’t serve as a major source of inspiration. There are simply too many similarities for it not to have. Again, it may be I’m looking into it too much. But the film’s use of sound and light to create its dizzying and #nightmarish #dreamscape atmosphere won’t allow me to perceive this as anything other than a gorgeous homage to #Argento’s classic. This isn’t a complaint. I genuinely loved this film. There aren’t enough like it around. And whilst I’d worked out the twist ending quite early on, there’s no doubt Richard Miller has made something truly special. In fact, everyone involved should be hugely proud of their part in this unique and wonderful film. And, as it enters the festival circuit, it’s guaranteed to become a big winner.

★★★★★ Directed by: #StefanGeorgiou Written by: #FredArmesto Starring: #OliviaHallinan, #SebastianArmesto, #JimConway, #VinetteRobinson Short Film Review by: #ChrisOlson Haunting and palpably tense, short #horror #thriller film The Dead Ones moves in mysterious ways. Written by Fred Armesto and directed by Stefan Georgiou, the movie gives its audience plenty to contemplate when it comes to living with our mistakes. Olivia Hallinan plays Alex, whom we meet at the beginning of The Dead Ones through a rainswept car window looking fairly distraught. The reason for her distress manifests itself in the form of Jono (a fantastic turn by Sebastian Armesto), the victim of Alex’s drink driving who now follows her around as a constant reminder of her guilt. After meeting a “spiritualist” (Jim Conway) and meeting his fellow dead companion (Vinette Robinson), Alex learns there is a whole other side to the life she knew before, and that there may be a way of redeeming herself. The casting for this movie is phenomenal. Rarely does a short film achieve four stunning performances but The Dead Ones certainly breaks the mould. Hallinan, as the lead, runs through an impressive medley of terror over the sub-twenty minutes run time that is terrific to watch. Armesto is completely intriguing and pretty much flawless in his portrayal of the car crash victim, in particular during a scene beside an outside swimming pool. Robinson is a joy to watch as the violent victim of the spiritualist’s rage, and Conway is utterly marvellous as the antagonist of the piece. His cockney charm and imposing presence provides, arguably, the most powerful sequences. As a film dealing with guilt and redemption, The Dead Ones is a tour de force. The themes are explored with bold filmmaking and a consistently engrossing mise en scéne. As Alex’s nightmarish experiences build towards an ethical dilemma and crossroads, the audience is asked to question the motives of all the characters involved and whether two wrongs can indeed make a right. Georgiou enlists a talented crew to deliver a compelling atmosphere throughout. The sound design is moody and tense, the cinematography is stark and enjoyable, and the use of some fabulous locations (including the aforementioned outdoor swimming pool) are superbly chosen. Whist the supernatural elements of the piece are strong, there also exists a gritty realism to some of the scenes which keeps the movie grounded. For example a car ride through the urban streets and the thrilling final third.

★★★★ Directed by: #PaulRamshaw Starring: #GemmaWilks, #MatildaWilks, #PhilWilks Short Film Review by: #JackCameron Daffodil, directed by Paul Ramshaw and written by Gemma Wilks (who also stars) tells the story of a woman who, after suffering a terrible accident, finds her life to be drastically altered. Once so active, participating and competing in various sports she is now in a wheelchair and believes that any purpose to her life has gone. It is a tragic story but not one without some hope, as highlighted by the warm and bright external shots and scored with some beautiful classical piano. It is also a story that we have seen before. However this not meant as a negative criticism; stories of the fragility of life are almost ten a penny and yet still make for compelling viewing, perhaps because it does us humans good to be regularly reminded that we can’t expect the good times to stay forever. Daffodil, however, offers more than a simple tale of redemption, or even the classic boom and bust structure from the likes of Goodfellas, The Wolf of Wall Street or Boogie Nights. Daffodil’s strength lies in its writing, especially with its central metaphor. The protagonist describes herself as a daffodil, “because I stood tall and shone so bright”, but this also implies she’ll have a moment of beauty, before wilting, dying and being reborn. As the film’s story plays out we see that it’s structuring life as a cycle rather than episodic. The film emphasises this cyclical by repeatedly cutting back and forth between the lead’s present and her childhood. Perhaps not every member of the audience can relate to a flower but we all understand that our childhood was a time of infinite creativity and imagination. Our protagonist discovers that this side of her never left her, that she is always at once an adult and a child with the ability to return to talents (playing the piano) that she thought forgotten, and that while her previous life seemed so solid it now feels more like a house of cards. While this is still a tragic tale it is arguably more hopeful than others by changing the story from a rise and fall to a constant cycle of birth, death, and rebirth; of multiple chances and infinite potential. However, perhaps some of this impact is lost in the way the film unfolds. The story is told entirely through voice over which is well performed by Wilks whose voice, while clearly adult, does still have a slight childlike quality adding to the timeless nature of the film, but this doesn’t leave much for the camera to do. The shots are simple and well composed but they are only in service to the voice-over. For example, when the narrator is first in the wheelchair the setting swaps from mainly exterior to interior, adding to the claustrophobia she is telling us about. But the camera doesn’t try to convey this feeling in a way that works of a similar nature like The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, or Notes on Blindness really do. The message is well delivered and the opening and closing shots of a daffodil give the film a solid cyclical structure but, other than the voice-over, there is little emotional connection to this story. An admirable story that bucks the trend of similar features but would have benefitted from more crossovers between the script and the visuals.

★ Directed by: #JoaquinSharpeJr Starring: #JordanKrause, #AlexandraBrumley, #TorieAdamson, #TravantaeBartee Short Film Review by: #AndrewGalvin Every filmmaker has to start somewhere, there’s no doubt about that. Filmmakers from Spielberg to Edgar Wright have told countless stories about their earlier works on Super 8 cameras, editing from their bedrooms. But even though probably wouldn’t want those early attempts to hit YouTube. Which makes it hard to give Galaxy on Fire, clearly a very early effort from young director Joaquin Sharpe Jr — the kicking it’s about to receive, but this #animation is probably best left to the laptop screen in his bedroom. Because, if truth is told, this short film is utterly unwatchable. Made from a hodge podge of cheap animation (a “free trial!” logo is watermarked across the entire runtime) and actual footage from the video game of the same name it is adapting (presumably without consent). Neither style is pleasant to look at: the former makes characters appear on screen like cardboard cut outs, moving jerkily, with mouths that either don’t move in time with speech or simply don’t move at all. The latter, compete with floating health bars, is rendered like a PlayStation-era cutscene. This is especially true in the short’s interminable dogfights, which sees lasers flying in all directions from ships you can’t even see properly. Sharpe may also want to get to know a lawyer pretty quick, and hope that John Williams doesn’t find out about the snatches of his Star Wars theme used in theses sections… Even behind the look and sound of the animation, Sharpe has everything ahead of him to learn about narrative. The story makes zero sense, with characters zipping in and out of far flung locations with no understanding of how they got there, while the characters themselves are entirely non-existent. The voice performances are extraordinary too, and not in a good way: flat and monotone, with some clearly recorded over Skype and a TV blaring in the background. If film really is Sharpe’s passion then it would be churlish not to wish him luck in learning his craft; but that doesn’t make Galaxy on Fire any more enjoyable to sit though, feeling more like a playground recreation of a video game by a bunch of ten-year-olds.

★★★★ Directed by: #OliviaMaiden Starring: #AdamJMorgan, #RockSalt, Olivia Maiden, #SamanthaBadman and #AmyBorbone Short Film Review by: #BrianPenn In everyday parlance, Sophie’s Choice is a difficult situation in which a person must choose between two equally deserving alternatives. The movies have a reference point in the 1982 tearjerker starring Meryl Streep; the title character was forced to choose which of her children lived by a Nazi officer at Auschwitz. Bea Before Me follows roughly the same trajectory and makes a pretty decent fist of it. Life seems to have treated James (Adam J. Morgan) kindly; a successful author with a lovely home in the countryside. His wife Emily (Samantha Badman) is a respected doctor and they have two bright daughters, Bea (Olivia Maiden) and Chloe (Amy Borbone). However, their idyllic life is shattered when Michael (Rock Salt) armed with a pistol confronts James in their home. He has taken Bea hostage and delivers a shocking ultimatum; James must kill his wife Emily or else Michael will kill daughter Bea. Bea Before Me captures a range of emotions including revenge and atonement, as younger daughter Chloe suspects something is seriously wrong; despite James’ attempts to protect her from the emotional fall out that will inevitably follow. It is one of those ‘what would you do?’ moments and we naturally run through the scenarios and escape routes; assuming anyone could think clearly under those circumstances? One sequence illustrates the mental torture James suffered in reaching a decision. Pacing his study: what would the repercussions be for the family; how would his daughters cope, could he criminally liable? All conveyed without the need for dialogue as the audience can reasonably surmise his thought process. There’s a surprisingly clever sting in the tail as the final frames of the movie approach; gun shots ring out from the Evans house, but who if anyone was shot, killed or wounded? The fade out leaves a tantalising quandary for the viewer; but thankfully director Olivia Maiden delivers sufficient narrative for a reasonable conclusion to be drawn. This is sharp film making using visual techniques to provide a backstory for the characters. Well placed dialogue also allows the viewer to store basic facts making for a much smoother narrative. This is an accomplished piece of work packing an extraordinary amount of detail to create a well-rounded story.

★★★★ Directed by: #LeahPatterson Written by: #NorelleScott Starring: #ViviennePowell, #DamianSommerlad Short Film Review by: #ChrisOlson The devastating consequences of kids with addiction and their parents gets explored in this affecting short film, directed by Leah Patterson from the play by Norelle Scott. Bridget and Iain is an emotive #drama that banks on wonderful filmmaking and two incredible central performances. Vivienne Powell plays the titular Bridget, am exhausted mother whose adult son Iain (Damian Sommerlad) is in the throes of a reckless spiral with drug #addiction. Having been recently arrested and checking himself into rehab, Iain gets a visit from his mother and the pair’s relationship becomes a tug-of-war for blame and guilt. The dynamics of parental guilt often provides storytellers with plenty of interesting avenues to explore in their movies. Whether the offspring are in immediate danger (see any number of movies, including the Home Alone franchise) or if the damage has already been done and we are witnessing the fallout (see any number of films dealing with divorce), the central theme remains a constant: will the parents be able to redeem themselves before a larger tragedy takes place? In short film Bridget and Iain, Scott and Patterson aim to approach the mother’s painful guilt in a different way: seeing if the character can come to terms with the absence of control or responsibility for her son’s destiny. As mentioned, the two main performers are phenomenal. Powell’s, ironically, controlled portrayal of Bridget is breathtaking to watch. As her character journeys through the various demands on her emotions, the performer delivers a convincing and moving turn scene after scene. Sommerlad is also terrific as Iain, a character prone to blaming everyone but himself. The increasing desperation of Iain is splendid to watch, offering Sommerlad plenty of dramatic sequences and dialogue to chew on. His vitriolic outbursts towards Bridget are particularly effective. From an aesthetic perspective, Patterson creates a believable and engulfing atmosphere for the audience to experience. The drab coldness of a rehab coffee room is brilliantly juxtaposed with the fuzzy warmth of a memory sequence. The sound design is also immersive, lending plenty of pathos and depth to the scenes without disjointing the viewer. By exploring several notions of parenthood as well as drug addiction, Bridget and Iain feels slightly ambitious with the given running time. Viewers may certainly feel shortchanged with these two excellent characters, whom perhaps deserved more plot and development. That being said, what is offered is potent and well-crafted cinema that has two of the best performances of the year so far. Watch the official Movie Trailer below.