Directed by: Vincent Gallagher & Luke Adey
Written by: Vincent Gallagher & Luke Adey
Starring: Tom Grimley, Imogen Stubbs
No Spoiler Synopsis:
A man’s sexual proclivities and apparent disdain for women lead him down a murderous path.
Review:
There’s dark. And then there’s dark… I was made aware of the short film Sicko by one of its directors, Vince Gallagher. Before watching the film, I had no idea what to think of it. It hadn’t come with a synopsis or any kind of early praise, just a little note on the link that it was filmed in the grindhouse style. Not knowing what to expect, I went in with an open mind.
From the short, no-spoiler synopsis I includes you can see this is the story of a man targeting women. Those women happen to bear similarities to the models that frequent the pornography he enjoys. The film itself is extremely sexually aggressive and sexually violent—remember it is a grindhouse style film—and while it’s only just over 5 minutes in length, there is a lot packed into those brief minutes.
The directors of the film made a bold choice in their use of the camera, putting you in the individual point of view of the characters at specific times. It’s a fantastic ploy and while you’re not forced into the POV of the killer for too long, you still see the world through his eyes for a few important moments. Some of the shots are stunningly violent and you can actually feel yourself recoiling as if you were the character. The acting, while completely non-verbal, is fairly engaging. I did however find the crux of the ending a little flawed. If you don’t want a potential spoiler, I suggest you jump to the next paragraph… Why would the prostitute flee from an approaching man/potential john when there was no inference of actual danger?
Watch Sicko and let me know what you think of the film by commenting in the section below. I’d love to hear what you have to think.
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