Short Film Review

Film Info:
The grim reaper's difficult teenage daughter and how she must take over
her father's duties for one day. Chaos ensues.

Written By: Peter Dukes
Directed By: Peter Dukes
Genre: Comedy
11 Minutes

IndyRed.com

LITTLE REAPER (2013)

  The first thing I noticed when settling in to watch Peter Dukes short film Little Reaper was that it was done in black and white. A lot of times, that rings alarm bells. Yes. It's true. I'm not a big fan of B&W films. Hell, the first film I made was in black and white. Why? Simply because I didn't want to mess around, trying to match colors. But let me make one thing clear. The B&W works here. And it works well.
  This short is charming and entertaining. You may think you're going to have a quick peek, to be polite, and then something cool happens. You watch the entire short. And let's throw it all out there and say: you'll probably have a smile on your face. All the pieces are here, and they all fit together perfectly. And I want to add that I really liked the ending. I was expecting something, as the teenaged Reaper... slacked (cough cough) a little. But I can truly say that I wasn't expecting that.
  The short itself looks great. Even though it's in B&W, it doesn't come across as cheap in any way. I'm sure Peter Dukes took great care in setting everything up the way it is. And the effort shines through. I actually think that releasing this short in color would take some of it's charm away. It just works here! Aside from the color and shots, the audio is crisp and mixed well. The scoring is done nicely, and there is a slick edit going on that reeks of experience. Like I said, Little Reaper shows the way it was intended. And everything seems just right.
  It's also worth mentioning the cast. They all pretty much nailed their parts! That includes Athena Baumeister as the teenaged Reaper and John Paul Ouvrier as death himself. The frustration ol' Black cloak must've been feeling oozed through, as his daughter... well, basically acted her age. Excellent job, to all.
  In the end, this is one of those shorts I'm glad to have watched. And you'll be glad you did as well. And to be honest? What's stopping you? It's free and available right now! Look to your left for the links, or above this review. Little Reaper is a short but great diversion, worthy of any attention it "Will" get in the future.

Little Reaper? A completely deserved and earned 4 / 5.0

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