This is Film of the Year 2009
Jason watched all twelve winning films from Film of the Month 2009. Below is the winning film and runners-up.
1ST PLACE
Comments
“This little story gripped me from the off, as any short film must. The two characters, a skinny teen girl and a bluff old man, are smartly drawn, hinting at hidden secrets and depths. Without much fuss, the director takes them to a neutral spot, the supermarket, which provides common ground for a relationship that fluctuates between being tender and creepy. It’s got my favourite bit of dialogue too: “Was it different shagging in the War?” “It were quicker, anyway.” I like its ending, too, which is enough on its own yet also suggests there’s more to come. I’d like to see it, if there is”.”
— Jason Solomons
2ND PLACE
Comments
“Chris Hood’s ‘There’s a Man in the Habit of Hitting me on the Head with an Umbrella’ has an admirable clarity and simplicity, crucial to a good short. With echoes of Oliver Sacks in that title, the gently comic and surreal film is a strange yet accessible metaphor for relationships, perhaps viewing love as a dull pain you can’t do without. At least that’s one reading – there are probably several more, which is good. I must mention Jeff Hudson’s music, too, which sets a nice tone for the action to float upon.”
— Jason Solomons
3RD PLACE
Comments
"Animation is beautiful in short form and ‘Zoo’ by Robin Bushell has everything I like in a cartoon (Can I call it that? For me, the term’s still a compliment). I loved the hand drawn style and the kind of jazzy chaos let loose, as if imagination itself were on the screen. Paul Wright’s narration was cheeky and perfectly caught the public information style of old instructional records and gave it a modern twist with its stumbles and giggles. Of course, I loved the Gene Krupa-ish drum track, but what really swung it was the Panda – that bear is funky."
— Jason Solomons
And some final comments…
"Elsewhere, I was impressed by ‘Peter and Ben’, Pinny Grylls’s poetic,
Herzogian examination of a bloke and his sheep – a sort of Woolly Man
in the Welsh wilderness. Coco Sumner’s music on ‘Liver Good Life’ was
delightful; and the comic performance from Rachel Stubbings in ‘Can We
Talk?’ stood out. Duncan Raitt’s animation ‘Ant & Len’ was very amusing
and texturally great fun – I want one of those things for my baby -
and I was really charmed by the kids in ‘Sweet Nothing’, a tangible
little film about buying your first record, an experience made poignant by the director."
— Jason Solomons
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