Brendan Jesus
If you know me, either personally or from my writing, you know that the body horror subgenre is my favorite. There’s just something that always gets me. Whether it’s an extreme physical change or heaps of goop, it never ceases to elicit emotion. When I saw there was a body horror short film block for this edition I was beyond pumped. From solo horror to shared marital stresses, this block did not really cease to disappoint. I hope you’re ready to get into the gooey burning body horror from this block because things are about to get weird.
In The Flesh – Written/Directed by Daphne Gardner
A woman from New York decides to relax in her bathtub, but things don’t go as planned. She faces unexpected issues, including a sewage problem, someone hiding in her basement, and a strange addition to her diary. It’s definitely a day she won’t forget.
I truly think one of the most important tenants of body horror is the feeling of being uncomfortable. If the filmmaker can make the audience squirm in their seat, or make them feel queasy, then that is a successful piece of body horror in my book. There is something about the smell of this short. By that I mean I feel like you can really smell what is going on. Part of this is due to Gardner’s direction, the other part is due to Edy Modica’s acting.
On top of all of this, you get a highly comedic body horror short, which usually doesn’t work for me. The whole idea surrounding this short really struck a chord with my funny bone, and I really appreciated the direction it took. It was able to have these comedic undertones while still keeping a level of severity to the whole short. Plus In The Flesh features the world’s greatest dancer Rob Malone!
6.5/10
Violet Daze – Written/Directed/Produced by Clare Langsford and Marisa Martin
Two lifelong friends find themselves in an unfortunate situation: one of them is moving. Violet (Bonnie Ferguson) and Daisy (Emma Horn) have one last get-together before the big move. In hopes of appealing to Daisy, Violet tries talking Daisy out of it in their secret language. When that doesn’t work Violet decides she will take matters to the extreme. How far would you go to keep your best friend an arm’s length away?
This short falls less on the gross/goopy side, and more on the physical aspect of body horror. The biggest problem I have with Violet Daze is that the concept and execution are great, but it is visually unappealing. There is this almost One Tree Hill-like sheen over the image and it creates an overall dull-looking image. It almost looks like a Dimension Extreme film, but somehow cheaper.
Visual appeal set aside the idea of this short is really solid. The concept isn’t a fresh one, but it is an interesting take on it. I love the whole one friend can’t move on type of scenario, it always leads to fun scenarios. The practical effects look decent, with the exception of one visual effect shot that doesn’t really hold up. I think Langsford and Martin are a solid team, and I look forward to whatever projects they may have in the future.
5.5/10
Shlop – Directed/Produced by Luna Deleani, Camilla Hoffmeister, Noee Zahavy
Have you ever wondered what spoiled cottage cheese does in your fridge when you close the door? It does Shlop.
Every festival, like every anthology film, is going to have segments or shorts that fall flat. It’s inevitable. As stated earlier I listed my main tenant of a body horror short as something that elicits a sort of uncomfortable feeling. If there is anything that Shlop does, it is that. So by my definition Shlop is a successful body horror short film…that just doesn’t mean it has to be good. Shlop is a roughly two-minute exercise in patience and stomach fortitude. It looks gross, sounds gross, and feels gross. It made me supremely uncomfortable and is the first short film of the festival I really didn’t care for in any form. It feels like one of the many throwaway segments from ABCs of Death.
2/10
Swallow – Written/Directed by Mai Nakanishi
What would you do to get ahead in your respective career? Two friends, Mimi (Ning Han) and Xue-Lan (Yu-Chen He), get together to discuss their latest film roles over lunch. Xue-Lan accuses Mimi of getting some sort of work done, as she looks just like when they first met 10 years ago. With insidious plans in mind, Mimi invites Xue-Lan to a special dinner to show her the truth behind her youth.
Swallow takes a slight detour into the realm of psychological horror, on top of the body horror. This beautifully shot short, by Tzu-Yang Wei, takes a restrained approach to its subject matter. It departs from any flashy or over-the-top reveals and relies on powerhouse performances to sell horror. There is a slight twist at the end that took this story to a whole new level. The antagonist, though I would label her the protagonist, is a tragic villain; I rooted for her the entire time. Nakanishi really crafted a wonderful story and is something I think a lot of people will be able to relate to.
8.5/10
Love Is A Fire – Written/Directed by Sofie Somoroff
If there has ever been a film to make you abstinent, it is Love Is A Fire. A young couple, Olivia (Celina Bernstein) and Andrew (Kenny Yates), moves into a new apartment, only to find out their burning intimacy has tragic consequences.
When body horror and sex are mixed together, you have a formula for success. Love Is A Fire not only succeeds as a body horror short film, but it succeeds as a look into the budding relationship of a young couple. There are multiple moments of cringe-inducing imagery complemented by Bernstein and Yates’ great performances. Somoroff really hit the nail on the head with this short, and will definitely strike a chord in the body horror community. If you want to truly be unsettled then you need to check this short film out immediately.
7/10
Legs – Written by Alannah Lewis, Directed by Celine Cotran
Joy (Laura Carmichael) and Harry (Amit Shah) are trying to have a baby, they even track Joy’s ovulation to stay on track. After multiple unsuccessful attempts, they start to lose hope. Things all change one night when Joy swallows a spider in her sleep, leading her to become infatuated with flies and question what motherhood truly means.
This is one example of the great curation by the FGBFF team because Legs is the perfect follow-up to Love Is A Fire. Both shorts have similar themes, but handle them in two completely different ways. Legs uses the subject matter to create a mixture of horror and comedy, but whereas Love Is A Fire has more of a comedic stinger, Legs ends with a truly brutally emotional moment. Plus, this plays into that primal fear I think many of us have of swallowing a spider in our sleep.
7/10
First Blood – Written/Directed by Olivia Loccisano
When a teenager has her first period, she finds there is something more insidious on the horizon for her.
Okay, so this one is special. Film reviewers have been blessed with the ability to virtually participate in film festivals throughout the pandemic. This has given us the opportunity to be a part of festivals we wouldn’t have been able to make it to even without a pandemic. I cannot articulate how grateful I am to be a part of this festival because of shorts like this. I can probably count on one hand how many times I’ve gagged or thrown up during a short. First Blood adds another finger to that list. Watching this after eating a few pieces of sashimi was one of the worst decisions I’ve ever made.
I really want to leave the majority of this unspoken as I think this is a short that needs to be seen. All that is important to say is between Loccisano’s script and direction, Lauryn Sa’s unflinching performance, Catherine Hois’ practical effects, and Gino Visconti’s impeccable sound design, this is one hell of a special short film.
9.5/10
