The title of this shorts program might well refer to the quality of the work, which ranges from content in search of technique (Stanley Cho's awkward and cliched family drama
Mallory) to technique in search of content (Eric Patrick's fast-motion epic
Ablution). Three of the ten entries are worth seeing, though: In Reza Parsa's
Meeting Evil (12 min.) a terrorist with a bomb strapped to his chest sits in the backseat of a car, taping a video letter to his daughter that he hopes will explain his motives and excuse his crime--and for the length of the video, anyway, it does. Brin Hill's sleek
Morning Breath (17 min.), shot on location at Coney Island and a Brooklyn housing project, uses impressionistic imagery and a voice-over rap poem written by Sir Mums to tell the story of a street-level dealer who's trying to hang on to a woman of substance. And Dave Lieber's loopy clay animation
Reaper, Sheeper, Treasure Seeker (15 min.) shuffles together blackouts about a sheep that devours everything in sight, a quartet of pirates who carpool every day while listening to talk radio, and the grim reaper, whose job is beginning to get to him. 119 min.
By
J.R. Jones
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