Pretty much everyone has lost someone during this ongoing thing we call life. However, close friends and immediate family are the worst. It's always sad to hear some person, somewhere has died for whatever reason. Folks in your immediate circle however, are another story completely. Many say pain and suffering, loss and that empty feeling contained within are not only normal... but are the driving factors in developing our personalities. Who am I to disagree? Enter Jesse Binger's short film "Graveyard Girl." A quick ten plus minutes showcasing the effects of loss, and how some deal with the pain. At first glance one may think it's an easy thing to showcase, since pretty much everyone has experience to base a story on. However, in an industry that lives for this stuff, no pun intended, it's very easy to walk down the "been there, done that" path many movies travel. What's more, is that many large studio films fail to get things right with this type of film. They throw more cash into the mix hoping to tell a good story and yet still, eight out of ten times, miss the mark. Hollywood then began adding other genres to the mix. The thought was to balance the good with the sad, and teeter their way to success. Again, mostly it's a miss. So where does this leave indie, low budget films? Any chance at all? I can write from experience that many indie flicks have tried this type of plot and failed completely. It all comes down to this: Just because most of us have experienced loss of some kind, doesn't make it an easy story to bring to screen. Everyone has a different experience and reaction, making it a tough subject to write about. So here we are, back again to "Graveyard Girl" and the familiar story of Dahlia, played nicely by Kaitlyn Johnston. Here we have a young woman, much like any other we may meet, only Dahlia is grieving the loss of a parent, and it's been a long process. "Graveyard Girl" follows along for a brief period and we, the viewers, get a taste of sadness, depression and maybe, just maybe, see a little light come through the end of the tunnel. I'm not just talking about how Dahlia herself moves down this road, I'm talking everyone else in her life as well. Technically, "Graveyard Girl" features some pretty sharp production work. Nice images and sound graced my screen and aside from a few loosely edited sequences, I really found this to be a nice piece of work production-wise. The cast, led by Kaitlyn Johnston, performed their respective roles with realism and at times, outright greatness. Everyone felt right and even the awkward moments within the film, felt real and unscripted. This could be "any family down the road," and that normality was enough to drive the film home. One thing I did notice was the pacing felt a little... weird. Not bad in the "flow" department, rather like it was missing something. Let me explain. I realize this is a short film, and it's hard to cram a lot in without it feeling bloated. However, it felt as if we jump from act one, straight to the conclusion with no middle act present. Meet characters, learn story... finish. I got the idea. A chance meeting with Giordan Diaz's character, Dennis, kick starts the healing process. Mr. Diaz himself does a great job, especially during the latter half of the film; it all just happens so fast. As I wrote, "Graveyard Girl" just felt like it was missing a piece of the journey; like one big jump from the starting line to the checkered flag. I felt that even an extra two or three minutes may have been enough to really make this film shine and I didn't get it. So reader, yes. This was a good short film. The "tough to tackle" narrative was handled better than many films I've seen, studio or indie, of this genre. It's never pushed down our throat and we're actually left to draw our own conclusions on how the actual depression was handled. Both by the lead character and her family. We're shown that things haven't been easy, without actually seeing everything; leaving our minds to fill in the blanks. "Graveyard Girl" is a solid piece of entertainment with an odd title that grows on you. Interested? Why not give it a few minutes. This is a free one and the link is provided for your viewing pleasure. -JT
