The film is a hilarious and fully entertaining take on an unspoken rule of society, and how it comes to define an exchange between the protagonist and one of his friends. The question in the film’s title is what gets the ball rolling. The protagonist’s initial reply to it is commonplace and perfunctory…until it’s not. 

Next follows a barrage of truly terrible things that have happened to him in a short duration, ensuring that the caller, his friend on the other side, is caught off guard and completely unsure of what to say when someone replies to this mundane greeting in a manner out of the accepted norms. 

The thought thus presented is meaningful and honest, but it never becomes didactic or burdens the narrative. It also eschews needless frivolity. This ensures that the film keeps the viewer involved throughout, even if at the expense of the hapless protagonist.

How Are You? | Spotlight

The film locates itself in an empty diner, save for a couple and a curious stranger who watches them from afar. As the couple discusses their internal dynamics, the issue of one of them not giving the other one enough attention, a horizon of expectation seems to be forming before the viewer. However, before this thought can go any further, the stranger’s presence becomes too overwhelming for either of them to ignore, and in an even stranger progression of events, he joins them. 

As the conversation now begins to move amidst the three of them, a tight script, marked by something deeply disconcerting right under the surface, takes shape. Thus develops a story of relationships, the secrets they harbour, and how fidelity and the very idea of attention can mould them. No one can be trusted in this realm. 

The narrative presents a single, crisp moment and closes a little too soon, definitely leaving the viewer wanting for more. With its seamless screenplay, skilled performances, and chemistry, it is easy to overlook a slight inconsistency within the sound department.

Additionally, it would be interesting to see the story delve deeper into the lives of the characters in a longer project in the future.

Star Night | Spotlight

It is a sunny afternoon, and the air is cheery as a group of friends enjoy a barbecue. An observation about the yard’s grass gets competitive juices flowing and two from the party procure a lawn mower each, turning it into a little game of sorts. 

A harmless activity at first glance, the circumstance gets very dire, very fast, but never without humor that defines the film right from the get-go. As innards of a character go whizzing all around them, and slapstick meets gore, the narrative presents a bite-sized moment of comedic horror. The crimson of human blood and entrails makes for an interesting contrast against the bright, formerly cheerful day. Action more than dialogue constitutes the screenplay, and all of this together ensures that the audience is shocked, horrified, and entertained in equal measure.

Mow Down | Spotlight

The film presents a physically confined reality of two characters who undertake a very dangerous, challenging scheme. In this scenario, hired assassins dispose of an important associate of a political campaign, and it is the ensuing conversation that forms the body of the film. 
The narrative employs intelligent use of its resources, keeping itself limited to a single room and a television screen, to invoke lofty ideas, as well as their critique. The writing and story construction exhibit strength and professionalism, and present a result that endeavors to take apart the intensely dysfunctional machinery of capitalism, where the rich get richer, and money and power remain the only true masters. 

The final result of the film presents a germ of an idea, albeit handled with attention to detail. Consequently, it reveals potential to be developed into a longer, deeper commentary on the same, alongside notable performances that shoulder this endeavor with skill.

Death is Business | Spotlight

The protagonist of the film, Poppy, has the power to put the viewer at unease right from the get-go. With her stiffly wavy, blond hair and a smile that never reaches her wide, wide gaze, she encourages a young woman to find her best self, and yet, the discomfort never leaves the scene. 
As the story progresses, and Poppy inserts herself into the life of another unsuspecting woman, it becomes clear that something truly amiss is afoot, until the shattering revelation of a death by suicide. In the process, the film presents a brief but sharp glimpse into the hollowness of multilevel marketing schemes that exploit and damage people in terrible ways. 
The narrative’s engagement with its protagonist’s internal journey further offers an insight into the kind of individuals that constitute this world. The film maintains its approach and storytelling with steadfastness, alongside a strong portrayal and performance of the protagonist. The short is a concept for a longer project, one that surely has the potential of becoming a gripping full-length feature that takes the viewer deeper into its realm.

The Downline | Spotlight

The world of the film opens in shadows where a new mother battles sleepless nights, endless chores, and the many demands of a baby who depends entirely on her for their existence. The repetition, mundaneness, and the circular reality that life becomes while raising a newborn form the backbone of the narratorial progression. It further presents a much-needed glimpse into motherhood, often glossed over with upbeatness and a sense of perpetual and irrevocable joy, an approach that diminishes the true sacrifices parenthood entails. 

The edge, the isolation, demands, and pressures of motherhood are capable of pushing a woman to, is portrayed for the viewer with an economy of dialogue and a minimalism intrinsic to the screenplay. Consequently, the film’s shadowy monochromatic realm employed to pronounce this isolation, and the lack of colour in the protagonist’s life, becomes a fitting storytelling device. 
Shot entirely on a smartphone and stripped to its bare bones, minus any bells and whistles, it is simply the power of storytelling and performances that drive the film forward. Its single-member crew, bolstered by skilled actors, ensures that all of these ideas are portrayed in an unmissable manner.

Desperation | Spotlight

The film locates itself in nineteenth-century England, where the sexism and other restrictive social norms of the Victorian era ensure that women’s potential and intelligence are dismissed with casual indifference and misogyny. The woman the narrative engages with is Ada Byron Lovelace, the mathematician known for writing what is considered the first-ever computer program. 

The performances and world-building both are achieved with seamlessness to bring this reality from two centuries ago to life. It tells an important, often overlooked story of a woman’s seminal role in the world of technological advancements and does so with an unforgettable protagonist. 
Through Ada’s drive and relentless perseverance, even in the face of terminal illness and imminent death, the film shares a compelling piece of history. The end result, though not entirely seamless in narratorial progression, presents a story marked by skill and earnestness, and one that expertly conveys everything that it had set out to.

Ada | Spotlight

The film locates itself in a shadowy warehouse where a clandestine drug deal is underway. However, out of the darkness, an unnamed, unknown assailant makes himself known, and a bloody battle ensues. 

The narrative endeavors to employ action, alongside, an internal emotional battle of the protagonist, to introduce the viewer to its world. A story of loss, tragedy, heartbreak, and vengeance comes into being. Additionally, it presents the short film as the first part of more installments within the universe. 

Though the lighting sometimes exhibits a few rough edges, all the fight scenes and action, which form the main core of the film, are approached with dedication and effort. They are further supported by an energetic background score. The narrative, and subsequently, the screenplay present themselves together like a multilayered product where it is at each step that a layer comes off, taking the viewer deeper into the film’s world.

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