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 opens during a crucial night in Lucy and Banks’ lives. After having worked at a diner for many years and harboured a deep hatred for its griminess and everything else that it stands for, tonight is the night they burn it down to the ground and head for the mountains. As they prepare to tie up the loose ends before starting the life that awaits them, the entry of an unexpected character changes everything. 
Montgomery has driven long hours, eventually crashing his rental car outside the diner, to at last have the meal he has looked forward to, and some more. The ensuing exchange is marked by a characteristic outlandishness that imbues the film with notable texture. The storytelling becomes metaphorical as it talks of burning down something that holds you back from an ideal, or in the case of Lucy and Banks, an idyllic life. While the fate of all three of them hangs in the balance, the film further comes to be defined by a seamless visual progression, expert performances, and unlikely moments of humor that only serve to accentuate the skill and tonality of the end result.

Danny's Diner | 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.

The Nightjar: Reckoning | Spotlight

The film establishes a moment where a conversation between two detectives takes a very unexpected turn. Through its meandering path, the exchange brings up emotions of a disconcerting past, while also examining the ideas about the flow of time. The relationship between the past and the present is explored while one character presents his partner with shattering revelations. 
A sense of vulnerability is invoked within the screenplay through the progression of events that is both sincere and convincing. While at first glance the film might have presented a sense of thrill, crime and preternatural abilities, it also presents human relationships, isolation and the heartache of being unwanted with equal vigour. Additionally, the performances and music enhance the impact of all the film intends to convey. 

If the story is developed further, allowing audiences to delve deeper into the realm conjured so far, to get to know the characters and their back stories better, it would be a convincing and engaging world.

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