Town Red (Short)

(Spoiler Free)

I had never really given much attention to shorts before and hadn’t thought that I would enjoy them that much either however recently an opportunity came to light where I have been lucky enough to watch and review a short, Town Red.  Directed, written and produced by Ryan Geiger, Town Red is set in 1952 Kentucky and something sinister is happening to the residents.

Town Red gets straight down to business and the very first shot grabs the viewers attention, it immediately creates an atmosphere of tension which is carried on through the short.  This atmosphere is also added to by several shots being filmed through the windows of cars etc, this gives the sense that someone is watching the characters.  The way this short was shot is brilliant, I really enjoyed the shots of the town and all in all it was very visually appealing, this is to be praised.

The acting in Town Red was good for the most part but there were a few instances where I thought some of the casts reactions to things could have been a bit more convincing.  However this didn’t bother me as the story was interesting as there were several layers to the plot which I thought was impressive considering Town Red is only approximately 22 minutes long.  I felt if it had of been longer that more impact could have been made but I suppose that that is not the nature of a short.

The use of music was well exploited throughout and added well to the atmosphere of the given scenes, the atmosphere created was what stood out to me, as it didn’t rely on cheap thrills but instead moved effortlessly between scenes but still creating that sense of terror and uncertainty.  Town Red had an interesting story and I liked how it focused more on the characters than maybe the overall plot of the short, this was a clever decision and allows possible further exploration into these characters if Geiger decides to add to this story in the future.

BIGGEST FLAW – Unconvincing acting in a few instances

BIGGEST ACHIEVEMENT – The atmosphere created throughout

Town Red has been my first experience of a short and I really did enjoy it.  It has encouraged me to explore this avenue of film further and I would encourage other fans of film who haven’t experienced shorts to give it a go!

Rating – 8.5/10