Metro Weekly

Young Blood: Youth Shorts

Reel Affirmations 2007

Review by Tom Avila

Rating: starstarstarstar (4 out of 5)
Friday, 10/19/2007, 5:00 PM
Shorts presentation, $0 at Lincoln Theatre

SOMEWHAT UNEVEN but rich with raw creativity, the films in ”Young Blood” are simultaneously fresh and fearless. These are definitely the cool kids on the playground.

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The only animated film in the line-up, John & Michael (starstarstarstarstar) eloquently and gracefully tells the story of two boys with Down Syndrome. Innovative in its approach and sensitively crafted, this short film will bring tears to your eyes.

Yeah no definitely (starstarstar) is a bit like spending an unsatisfying evening at one of those parties where you don’t really know anyone and feel ready to leave after your first drink. Part of this has to do with the fact that the film follows what happens when Cam accompanies his best friend Kiff to a lakeside party where Cam doesn’t know anyone. Part of it has to do with the palpability of Cam’s discomfort as he struggles to find the words to express his feelings for Kiff. And part of this has to do with the fact that this short film seems to still be waiting to be finished.

Damage (starstarstarstar) puts the audience back into those high school hallways where the greatest transgression is to be different. What happens when the quiet girl in the corner finally decides to make her voice heard and her feelings known? An efficient and well paced short film, it will leave audiences cheering.

Eddie (starstarstarstar) is a young tom boy desperately fighting against her own maturing body. In the space of just 8 minutes, director Quentin Krueger transforms a single moment into a broad and nuanced film.

Set in a future world where some live in well-secured, technology rich isolation and others roam the landscape in packs, Outside (starstarstar) explores the conflict felt by one young woman who must choose between the safety of inside and her own feelings of desire for genuine contact. Not only is Outside a poetic consideration of the costs of living in the supposed security of the closet, the film’s set will offer the sci-fi junkies in the audience some terrific eye candy. — TA


Young Blood: Youth Shorts
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