directed by:
William P Cook written by: William P Cook, Robert Lee Brown, Dave Huber genre: Thriller |
Regarding the art of the short film, I've always figured one goal should always be paramount: filmmakers should strive to ensure we've got no reason to tune out for the tiny fragment of the time we're being asked to watch. Attention retention is the most important way to measure the success of anything in the artistic realm, from sight to sound - we want entertainment that captivates us by the word's very definition. In the case of "The Tragedy Of Senator Abe Froeman," directed by William P Cook and co-written with Robert Lee Brown & Dave Huber, I felt like it did a stellar job of keeping our interest firmly affixed from start to finish.
Whether it's your natural curiosity that compels you to watch, or you like a great spy film - or movies from the Thriller section, or you're like me, and you dig thinking about the potential for where something can go from what we experience in what we see in the future to follow, there are plenty of solid reasons to give this film seventeen minutes of your time. Cook got a whole lot of things right in making this come to life onscreen through the actors selected, the characters within the story, and its potential to be more; it's commendable work. When I read the initial synopsis of the film, it instantly stood out as ambitious. Not only does it give you a lot of information up front, but the idea that all of these plot points could fit into one film in fewer than twenty minutes seemed almost overly ambitious. How would all these details fit into "The Tragedy Of Senator Abe Froeman" effectively? This is a large ask to pull all of this off effectively in such a short timeframe. Credit where credit is due, William P Cook got to work and made the magic happen here. Clearly, he had to move quickly inside the storyline to create enough space to get to the scenes that contained the most plot revealed, but it's actually the patience Cook displays in how these scenes unfold that has us appreciating how much time there really is in a short film if you know how to use it right. "The Tragedy Of Senator Abe Froeman" has the look of an expensive movie. I'm not talking about effects or anything like that - I'm talking about the actual look, scene for scene. There aren't too many demands for effects in a story as this film has, which perhaps leads to opportunities within the budget to spend money elsewhere, like on camera equipment or editing software – that's all technical stuff beyond my knowledge, but you get the picture, "The Tragedy Of Senator Abe Froeman" is shot with a real quality look to it. Character-wise, I felt like there were some great things happening too. Like, I'll admit, I had my moments here and there where I wrestled back & forth about Tony in terms of whether he got the most out of his role, but I think that's kind of the point – he's supposed to seem like an everyman, just like you, me, and everyone we know. For him to start leaping into some kind of John Wick superhero stuff would have put this serious thriller into a needless over-the-top style of film that could have felt like parody. Tony is more akin to Michael Douglas' character in "Falling Down" than he would be to something like a Jack Ryan or Jason Bourne. Conceptually, I'm 100% behind the twist of Tony being an everyman; I think that's more relevant in today's world, and besides that, who doesn't love cheering for the relatable underdog?
That being said, very challenging to make the everyman as exciting as an action hero would be in the court of public opinion. Tony is a man that has been pushed way too far, and the more actor Robert Lee Brown gets to embrace that burning inner rage - and let it out in hot fiery bursts, beyond the controlled emotions that he displays on the surface to help mask who he really is, I think the more we'll see this series continue to thrive and reach new heights. Because that's what this is, right? A series, yes? You'll see what I mean when you reach the end of "The Tragedy Of Senator Abe Froeman" & how many opportunities there are for this to be a mere chapter of what's to come, which it very well may be. I mean…honestly, I'd kind of hope for that to be the case; I feel like this film would be walking a fine line of being able to stand alone otherwise…without more details added through another film down the road and/or multiple chapters to become an online saga. Don't get me wrong, I was still more than entertained and enjoyed watching every minute of this film, but just because you or I might dig what we see doesn't mean something's entirely complete. Cook knows that! In my opinion, he's setting up more of Tony's story for the future to follow, and this is like a pilot, or origin story, to provide the background, establish the character, and give us a reason to return later. So while it feels like we're getting a mere piece of the puzzle overall in a way, I feel like the execution is there and that there's a high degree of watchability goin' on in this film. The most you'll find me conceding to you is that the storyline feels a bit on the familiar side or like we've experienced something similar at some point in the many things we watch. Still, again, this could be rectified by having more to Tony's story revealed as we continue on from where this short film begins. Robert can dive even further into his character to create that uniqueness & separation from any similarities in stuff we've seen before. That can make the difference between the good & the great in anything we're watching. As it stands, I want a little more, but I'm also quite happy with what I've seen so far, and there is real series potential here, which has gotta be an indication of great things, right? We wouldn't want more if we didn't like or love what we experienced, and to Cook & the cast's credit, we do want more of what we get. I'd certainly hope that Cook would be encouraged to continue with Tony's story & that Lee Brown would be motivated to bring a wild range of emotions to this complex character he's playing as the story develops. I'm going with a confident four stars out of five because there's no doubt this is quality work…but with the caveat and condition that Cook still needs to go further with "The Tragedy Of Senator Abe Froeman" from here. |
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