In the short film "High Maintenance" there are two plot twists. The first twist occurs when the wife gets up from eating her food and turns her husband off through a switch on the back of his neck. This plot twist is unexpected as there are no prior hints to firmly say he was a robot. Even though he acts slightly robotic, little eye contact, no facial emotions, we don't actually believe that he is a robot, just an annoyed husband. The film's title also gives us no hint to its genre, leaving the audience surprised when we realise it's a robot themed film.
The film for me was very anti-climatic, as the expectations I had for the finale were very different to how it played out, being a calm ending, lacking the classical shoot out that westerns usually have. After Llewelyn's death, my focus shifted to Sheriff Ed, who I expected to step up and eventually kill Anton, capping off his police career as a hero despite being lazy throughout. However, this did not happen, instead a series of scenes took place where it seemed that a final fight was going to occur, however never did. This built up tension, teasing the audience with an action-packed ending but never delivering. The film left me with an empty feeling, like something was missing, which was the conflict between Ed and Anton. Even though I felt let down by the lack of action, I do appreciate the alternative ending that was explored, something that almost never happens in westerns. It makes me think more about what is happening in the film, rather than me just watching and not really...
A good start, Rufus.
ReplyDeleteCan you expand upon this with more reference to mise-en-scene, such as the use of music/dialogue/camera angles lighting etc?
Julian