Review of 'The Surprise Demise Of Francis Cooper's Mother' which can be found here on Future Shorts.
Length: 07:41
Logline: Three tales of people learning to cope with the unpredictable and inevitable.
A nice example of three subplots centred around a common theme, something which well structured feature films should be composed off too. Original style, competent animation which shows restraint through pacing, and compelling narrative, this is a well rounded short through and through.
Although 2D, the attention in the shot arrangement and composition gives a great depth of field within the frame. While there is often several different things happening in a shot, and with several points of movement, having certain things out of focus gives a clear indication as to what the filmmaker really wants us to pay attention to. Similarly with the audio, the detailed sound effects and an instrumental music track enhance the experience rather than crowding it and never intruding on the narration by the excellent Alexei Sayle who reels of the dialogue like he's reciting poetry.
That's perhaps testament to the writing which at some points sounds more like a short story. That's certainly not a criticism (well it is narrated isn't it). What probably reads well off the page is a sarcastic and quirky (hate that word) tale which is more than brought to life by the complementing visuals and comedic tones of Sayle. Each storyline is thoughtfully structured together in a way that doesn't leave the audience lingering on one more than the other and which neatly follows on from each other. While the wording may not always be laugh a minute stuff, there are a few gems in there and the character direction on screen more than makes up for it. Very good.
A nice example of three subplots centred around a common theme, something which well structured feature films should be composed off too. Original style, competent animation which shows restraint through pacing, and compelling narrative, this is a well rounded short through and through.
Although 2D, the attention in the shot arrangement and composition gives a great depth of field within the frame. While there is often several different things happening in a shot, and with several points of movement, having certain things out of focus gives a clear indication as to what the filmmaker really wants us to pay attention to. Similarly with the audio, the detailed sound effects and an instrumental music track enhance the experience rather than crowding it and never intruding on the narration by the excellent Alexei Sayle who reels of the dialogue like he's reciting poetry.
That's perhaps testament to the writing which at some points sounds more like a short story. That's certainly not a criticism (well it is narrated isn't it). What probably reads well off the page is a sarcastic and quirky (hate that word) tale which is more than brought to life by the complementing visuals and comedic tones of Sayle. Each storyline is thoughtfully structured together in a way that doesn't leave the audience lingering on one more than the other and which neatly follows on from each other. While the wording may not always be laugh a minute stuff, there are a few gems in there and the character direction on screen more than makes up for it. Very good.
Best Bit: Good structure, layout and who doesn't love Alexei Sayle (Who's that fat bastard?)
Worst Bit: Pacing could be on the slow side but doesn't really matter.
Read a condensed review of this film on Twitter here.
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