A new short film releasing on demand on 21 st August, We Die Alone takes an uncomfortable look at modern dating, the difficulty of human connection and our pre-determined judgements of others.
Aidan spends his time online dating but can never work up the courage to make it to the dates, instead staying home and acting the night out with a rather creepy mannequin. When new neighbour Chelsea crosses paths with him he becomes intoxicated, but can he work up the nerve to seal the deal?
A three hander with the third role of Aidan’s colleague Elaine, the three characters fall into typical character tropes – manic dream girl, awkward nerd boy and caring confidant. But whilst these may seem fairly standard fair, in its 24-minute run time We Die Alone manages to keep the audience on edge.
I went in to the short with some very pre-conceived notions of what the narrative was going to be and the role each character would play but I was pleasantly surprised. The three leads feel fresh and honest, Ashley Jones’ Elaine particularly pleasing to spend time with. Director Marc Cartwright has done a lot with a little and keeping the film small and insular further helps push us in to Aidan’s anxious mindset.
The music is slightly overused, rather than allowing us to build our own sense of dread it takes us by the hand to the emotions we should be feeling, as does a reliance on voiceover towards the end of the film, however these are small choices that in no way tarnish the surprisingly absorbing short.
We Die Alone is the kind of narrative story telling you would expect to find in a dark anthology series centred around modern living and it’s definitely worth a view.
8.7
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Ex film teacher and frequent couch potato. I try and see at least one new release a week, but I’ve somehow got to 30 without having seen The Godfather?
