So brightly in the dark - Lawrie Brew :P

I was pretty surprised at this short Lawrie because from your previous fest reviews I figured you would be all about story, so to see something experimental is a nice surprise.
I really liked what you did, it was esoteric, it was poetic, it was creepy and it was affecting. Has anyone mentioned Donnie Darko? any influence there? The cat mask reminded me of the rabbit
in DD as well as the slow tone of creepiness. The framing and lighting and overall composition of the cinematography mixed with the music really struck a haunting chord for me. thumbs up!
 
Really experimental Lawrie and I dug the hell out of it. At first the pacing, narration and shot selection were quite good and really dragged me into the story. The editing is top notch and shows this great arc from silliness to creeping terror.

The scene in the room where he is staring and his lip is trembling seems a bit over the top and when he comes out with the cat mask I laughed a bit. Then suddenly he's under that street lamp and I have a new image to haunt my dreams. So... Thanks for that. :thumbsup:
 
Hey thanks Killoran :) Yep i actually live at the harbour - by that old street lamp - and the place is just beautiful and yep sometimes eerie at night!

Thanks Matt im really glad you liked the film, and i very much admired yours too! Yep well story is important to me, but i am a bit of a dreamer and attempted philosopher in my films. Anything too literal without a smack of romantic inspiration (that is of the extra-ordinary, the supernatural, metaphor and emotion) is a little dry for my ol' taste buds!
 
Hmmm, lovely transformation of character here. Some bits might be seen as over the top, yes, but everything was so stylized that in the grand scheme of things, it all worked. Man those old children's fables are gory, aren't they? This was very poetic and dripping with atmosphere. And shame on me for watching this just before Halloween. If I see anyone wearing a mask remotely like that, I'll probably freak out.

Nice work, Lawrie!
 
Thanks Derkoi awesome of you to say! Awe and thanks Amy - yep its very stylised (i mean i dont believe in over the top or not its just all art and illusion) in this case its inspired by some mythological freaky weirdness which i hope to express. (That or it makes me come across as a misanthrope) Aweee you know Amy when i saw the mask on ebay i just had to have it - i get fascinated by things like animal masks, antlers, celtic stuff really.

However, i did have a friend who wearing the mask climbed up this tree to try and freak me out (on my office in the 2nd floor of a building) - nearly crapped myself haha (but not as much as the poor toddlers playing outside a nursery opposite our office... (my friend didnt know...) That required some awkward explaining.
 
What was that? Kinda felt like I got on the wrong bus. Not sure we were going, but had a lovely ride along the way. Cool shots! Loved the opening narration and the cat. I was expecting the cat. OK, so I wasn't but I thought it'd be fun to say. Thanks for another groovy ride!
 
Have to say Im really really surprised. I got genuine creeps from your film and that does not happen to me often (Im a hard nut horror buff ;-) Your little short freaked me in a way a lot of feature haven't done.

However, I think you should be really proud of your short because as you know, making something a little more leftfield is risky for the bums on seats quota and it takes more guts to step out of the box. I salute you and all I can say is you were firm in my top 3. Real shame, but the work IMO stands very tall.
 
I second everything Darkline said, I'm surprised you didn't make the finals, i gave you a high grade.
but more importantly you made a creepy cool entry so congrats on one of the highlights of the fest.
 
This was one of my Highest rated films in the fest. I'm actually shocked that it didn't make it. :(

Sorry, Lawrie. Shop this one around as it is really excellent.
I'm sure you're proud of it, as you should be.

MAH
 
My absolute favorite! I feel like this movie turned my world upside down. I need a nightlight now. hahahahahahaha j/k but it was incredibly creepy and I LOVE it! :)
 
This is one that I think people either love or hate, and I imagine that is a very tough category for "accurate" voting since 2 stars vs 9 stars averages worse than 8 vs 7 stars.

Best wishes, I enjoyed this entry.
 
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