Short Film Review: Broken

I never really got into watching short films or independent films, those outside of the theaters. It is not that I was going out of my way to avoid them or anything like that, it was just that I never took the time to really look for them. That changed recently. An independent fan film called Star Wars: Revelations was making the rounds, and had pretty good word surrounding it. So I tracked it down and watched it, and was terribly impressed. It clearly had a low budget and it showed, but it also showed me something else. It had so much heart and energy that the viewer, me at least, is willing to overlook it's shortcomings. Seems like a strange way to be an odd way of starting a review for a completely different film, but I have a point, sort of.

Recently another independent film was brought to my attention, Broken. This is a near 20 minute short film from director Alex Ferrari. An action short which goes a long way to prove that you do not need a multi-million dollar budget to craft an exciting action sequence. And that is what the short really boils down to, an exciting action sequence.

The story seems like it was a small segment taken out of a larger vision. The short running time does not really allow us to get to know any of the characters all that well. But what is there is terribly intriguing in a creepy sort of way.

We open with a gunshot and a young woman sitting bolt upright in bed with a gasp. It moves quickly, and she is soon kidnapped by a mysterious figure with a harmonica. She wakes up in a warehouse type of building tied to a chair and surrounded by said harmonica man and his group of cronies. We are led to believe that there is a reason why she was singled out, why this guy, who is named Duncan, wants her so bad. While he is talking, a mysterious figure dressed in black, and well armed, is sneaking into the facility. Back to the questioning, he speaks of the wonders of the harmonica, and how broken things can easily be replaced. There is talk of wanting to see something out of her, she is getting angrier, her eyes turn blue, that's it. There is something not quite normal about her, and this was the reveal. Shortly after the reveal, the man in black opens fire on the gathering. This leads to another conversation, from the not dead Duncan, the girl (named Bonnie), and the man in black, Christian, who can be identified as her boyfriend from pictures earlier on. This all spirals into the stunning conclusion which provides an ending I did not see coming, but definitely left me wanting more.

This is a very impressive piece of work. Crafted on the miniscule budget of $8000, we get an entire set piece of near feature quality. Granted, the story doesn't really have a beginning or an end, only a portion of a middle, I feel that enough is revealed for the more creative of us out here can give it a true beginning and ending. Maybe one day we will be able to see what the entire story is, I read the this is currently in development as a feature film project.

Article Author: Chris Beaumont

Christopher Beaumont spends much of his time writing about music and movies when he isn't indulging in them. He is always ready to talk about his favorite form of entertainment and offer up recommendations. Follow: Twitter and Tumblr. …

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