This week I was given an opportunity to see a an independent film by first time Director Simon Horrocks and asked to voice my opinion. Made over a year on a tiny budget with a cast of friends and acquaintances who worked for pretty much nothing, Si is hoping to get his production Third Contact in to cinemas in the near future.
Third Contact follows depressed psychotherapist Dr David Wright as he seeks to unravel the mysteries surrounding the suicide of two of his patients. The world he inhabits is not as it seems as he falls deeper into the rabbit hole that will see him discover a new outlook on the universe.
Third Contact starts very hurriedly with the complex fundamental idea that underpins the plot laid out mere seconds into the film. If you've never heard of quantum mechanics and its principals, like me, you will find this a hard pill to swallow. With it carrying on by throwing up names of people we've not met, nor will ever meet in a rather off hand way I honestly began to get a little lost. I actually forgot who Renee was and how he related to everything. So whilst I was trying to figure out what the slightly obnoxious man on the couch was going on about, or who the weird woman in the house was, I suddenly found myself thinking, who are these people they are talking about? However as the film continues I started to to scrape back what might be going on. And on re-viewing I realised where I'd missed the cues, having been lost in other thoughts first time around. My main issue is there is no time for you to pick up the pieces, there's no equilibrium set, we're introduced to our central protagonist at the same time this hard to digest idea is thrown into the mix, and that's 30 seconds in to the film. However once you see the film as whole you understand that the confusion at the beginning drives the questions later in the film.
Tim Scott-Walker pulls the most weight here in the acting department, with many moments of conviction and honesty, he's a good central character. Given most of the cast worked for little or nothing and consisted of friends there is an obvious short fall in the conviction of some of support characters. Many of which are foreign, which puts up another barrier when some of them struggle with particular words. My major criticism is the over use of bad language, particularly in a few earlier scenes, some of it is unwarranted and feels forced and is not a mark of conviction, just laziness.
Time mends the wounds inflicted in the first act and I really was driven by the mystery of the plot, the acting and the shooting style drew me in as I realised that I'm really in unfamiliar territory here (a rare thing in cinema). The pace settles and as David tries to unravel the mysteries of his patients suicide, you see the pieces start to fit together. What is great to see is that there are steps towards highlighting character signposts, however some of these aren't paid off in anyway. For instance David has an OCD moment in the opening scene, yet this is never really touched upon or signposted again.
There are films that take a particular amount of concentration, needless to say all films should have your undivided attention, but in the case of Third Contact you really need to have your ears and eyes tuned in properly.With juxtaposing scenes, including one that had me vastly confused, in which David inhabits an alternate universe and sees himself walking the street, you will ultimately leave this film with many questions. Third Contact will jar you at first, but understanding will follow if you want it to. Having been a debut project for Si Horrocks, Third Contact certainly comes loaded with real promise and attention to detail. What I most enjoyed was Davids internal struggle with his past and how those memories, shown in colour, had a great shooting style and gave more depth to his character.
My first viewing of Third Contact resulted in me visiting the website and as if knowing that curiosity would follow, Si has constructed a site that explains more in depth those ideas that underpin the plot. I found this understanding enriched my experience of the film. Like one of my favourite films Donnie Darko I wanted to understand more, and while the dealing of the subject matter in Third Contact isn't as well executed, it comes loaded with that same promise; that you can discover the answers yourself and come to your own conclusion.
Third Contact has one heck of aura around it, from the moment it starts there's an air of foreboding, something isn't quite right, like a David Lynch movie, it's immediately obvious from the way people talk to the cinematography. My immediate reaction was one of confusion with the plot, however the way in which the film is shot, and the quality of it is testament to the effort by Si Horrocks and the tiny budget this was made on. Also for a debut this is fiercely ambitious, with a concept that has it's roots in sci-fi this has a real world feel to it, much like Primer or Donnie Darko, the ideas can be believed in a real world environment. However I can't help but think that this could have been better executed, with expectancy that the audience will figure out certain character traits by paying attention to all of the exposition, this would be a hard film to enjoy for an average cinema goer. However for film fans who like intrigue and go to the cinema to have themselves challenged, Third Contact for a low budget debut has some great ideas and does its best to realise them. There are lessons to be learned here, but what I can honestly say there is real promise here for Si and his future as a writer/director.
★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
No comments:
Post a Comment