Review: Thought-provoking and entertaining short films at Leamington festival night

Short films are a totally different breed of cinema to the feature length films we are used to. So having the opportunity to see ten of those judged to be the best in the Leamington Underground Cinema Festival’s short film competition was an exciting breath of fresh air.

While I may not have enjoyed every single one of the offerings - produced by a mixture of local, national and international amateur and experienced filmmakers - each one was different and most were thought-provoking and intelligent.

Among my favourites was a film about a postman, who we at first warm to, as we listen to his comically cynical thoughts as he makes his way along his round. But as the film goes on, things take a more sinister turn and our attitude totally changes. The postman gets his come-uppance for the bad deeds he has done, but we are left feeling uncomfortable and unsure about who is the victim.

There are also one or two extremely bizarre offerings - including a Spanish language film about an astronaut who turns into a giant red crab. He realises he had been sent on a suicidal mission and proceeds to take out his revenge on those in charge. This is followed by worldwide fame. Surreal. But the film also made us all laugh.

The winning film in my view clearly surpassed the rest. The Hungry Corpse, an animation, tells the heart-warming and beautifully presented take of the ‘living’ corpse of an old man who is frustrated with his useless existence and desperately lonely. A little pigeon, who has problems of his own, befriends him and the two of them find solace in each other. I was moved and longed for more of the same.

The volunteers who ran the festival also organised an entertaining quiz. A thoroughly enjoyable evening. I’ll look forward to next year’s festival number two.

Sundari Cleal