Directed by: Leland Montgomery Written by: Leland Montgomery Genre: Drama Connect:
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Like Animals
Following the funeral of their mother, three sisters and their brother have everything planned out. He is the executor of the estate, but it's been agreed that their mother's house would be sold. The sale is a surefire way to get out of the small one horse town the sisters live in. The only way out. As narrated, their town has a habit of never letting go of its inhabitants, and the trio, although devastated by their loss, finally have a means to an end. Or so it seems.
After a short amount of time has passed the brother, Andy (Chris Aguila) returns home with his fiance. The plan was for him to wrap things up and possibly drop the news that the house has sold. Andy has other plans though, and has decided not to sell and move into the home with his soon to be husband. This decision was not only not talked about, but puts the sisters in a bit of a situation, both mentally and financially. At about this point, I believe we're past the halfway mark of this short film. The three sisters, Mary (Zoe Chao), Olga (Cass Bugge), and Irene (Tera McHenry) are very different people with one goal. When that goal has been removed, we see the true personalities of all of them, as well as Andy. They are all very different with Andy seemingly the the pushover of the family. But not this time because now, he has his fiance Nate (William Thomas Hodgson) to back him up. Nate comes across as very pushy and a tad rude, but the relationship between him and Andy is clear. The house is not being sold. The sisters are stuck. The final bit of the film deals in coping, acceptance, and simply pushing on. In truth, Like Animals did feel a little unresolved but I believe the point was to explore family dynamics; how different siblings can actually turn out. It works well and included with the project package is a great looking and sounding title. There's nothing cheap here and Like Animals looks fantastic. I should also note that for a length of around 14 minutes, the cast manage to really deliver some excellent performances. Like Animals is a title that will especially appeal to those into hardcore dramas. There's not a lot of latitude for anyone who has stumbled upon this title. But for what it is, Leland Montgomery delivers an excellent production. I actually found myself wishing it was a little longer, so that more of the story could have been fleshed out. A compliment for sure. Like Animals was an entertaining diversion. Four stars and thanks for reading. |
