Thursday, 18 December 2014

Little White Lies Review Draft 2

THIRD DRAFT:
This film is ambiguous on a number of levels - Firstly, its' title 'Drop' which cleverly refers to both a death and the action of spiking a drink. Secondly, this is no ordinary 'who dun it' film because of the unexpected antagonist.
A film of this genre - short - usually has a scarcity of  settings, however Drop manages to overcome this sometimes simplistic limitation and includes a plethora of contrasting locations which adds to the complexity of the story line. One location, the R.A.C Country Club in Epsom, mirrors the motif of the film perfectly: the upper middle class characters display opulence, affluence and wealth which is also denoted in the ample setting. However, the crime committed at the country club may surprise audiences as this social class is not usually associated with 'crimes of passion'. On the other hand, more in sync with the short film genre, the number of characters is limited which allows for the creation of the characters death in such a short space of time. All three characters are executed superbly by Ettie Greenwood, Joe Willmott and James Garbis (up and coming actors/actresses, that could really make their mark in the film world during the next few years).

The plot involves a complicated and secretive 'love-triangle', in which Rachel (Ettie Greenwood), is extremely guilty, doubtful and inevitably miserable which leads to the films unexpected finale. This is skilfully executed by director Rosie Lincoln (also the director of the inspiring film life as we know) who places the plot reveal at the end with the clique technique - a flashback, which literally 'makes the penny drop'.

Female director, Rosie Lincoln, is know for her sly feminist views that are especially reflected in her recent film shorts. Again, Lincoln creates a strong female character, Rachel, who appears to dominate in the crucial love triangle. So, what are the feminist credentials: Rachel is a wealthy, powerful young woman. She emits signs of dominance and control, always putting her man second place. She is not the typicaldependant female character of the past.

However, there is contradicting views which suggest that 'Drop' instead does not display feminist ideology: at the end Rachel is seen in a very vulnerable light, as she panics over then death she had subconsciously caused. This is what contradicts the feminist view and could cause the film to therefore take a more neutral perspective.

There is a great debate over whether these values are consciously displayed or not, of which readers can discover more on the 'twitter-sphere' where the heated debate continues to relish.

ANTICIPATION
Ambiguous title that does not give too much of the plot away, very intriguing.

ENJOYMENT
Cleverly crafted with an unexpected twist...

RETROSPECT
...but are the events unrolled too quickly?

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