Malcolm

I had mixed feelings when Jake Beare, Charlie Robertson and Ben Bullock collaborated for this project as it is believed that they have personal relationships. However, my mixed feeling were obliterated when I watched this film.

“Malcolm” about a teenage prodigy struggling with mental issues and a closing contract with a film company as they believe he can write scripts just as he wrote his first book.

I must admit a very tricky concept for young students, however I was going into the film not believing that Jake Beare (actor and writer)

CERTIFICATE 15RELEASED May 15

PLOT A young writer struggling to deal with the pending deadline of his first publishing contract

RUNNING TIME tbcDIRECTOR Charlie Robertson

could play a believable writer. But I was pleas-antly surprised with his performance as it was extremely believable and I truly felt sorry for his character, which I am assuming is what the director Charlie Robertson was hoping.

In regards to Charlie Robertson I have no doubt he has the passion and the skill to go onto any project and improve it. Thats exactly what he did for Malcolm, you can sense even this early on an auteur style blooming. His ex-perimental yet artistic eye compliments the film in such a way that he possesses skills compare to a young Abbas Kiarostami. I am highly confi-dent we haven’t seen the last of him.

Onto the cinematographer and supporting actor Ben Bullock. It is a well known fact that Ben is a photography fanatic and this is visible in his work in Malcolm. I feel that Ben and Charlie’s collaboration in the cinematography was a really important move as Robertson’s auteur style really works well with Bullock’s knowledge and eye for a successful shot. Ben Bullock’s acting is also impressive as he plays the imaginary friend of Malcolm. To an extent he plays an antagonist but you end up still liking him.

Lastly, Jake Beare, I feel his screenwriting skills will only get better and it is believed his next goal is to direct. You can already tell his imagination will serve him well in this industry. His passion for film is visible in his narrative and his love for a good character.

Obviously these three are still very young so there is no limit to what

they can achieve but it is believed that they all are heading in different paths. In terms of Malcolm in general I feel that the Narrative is slightly unrealistic as it gives us an illusion that an eighteen year old boy can achieve a

contract with a film company but this is simply not the case.

However, with this unnoticeable hole the story possesses a lot of character and steps inside the mind of a troubled teenager. The Malcolm team show promise and it is liable that they will be very active in the industry in the future, whether they delve into different styles is unknown, but we look forward to see-ing more of the trio in their future projects.

“A SIMPLE NARRATIVE IS ACCOMPANIED BY A DARK, YET INFECTIOUS MOOD ”

Malcolm (2015) is a charming short film that rep-resents the mental perils of a teenager and the ex-pectations of a high achieving one. Theres no doubt it is a successful story. The concept of Malcolm was impressive for artists of their age but I truly feel that there is some holes that let the film down. Jake Beare, Charlie Robertson and Ben Bullock have the skill and passion to go far. I believe that the filmmakers went to great lenghths to entertain and intrigue the audience. However they have a lot to learn and I look forward into seeing them flourish into successul artists in the future as it is already believed that they are working on another film.

REV

IEW

S

January 2015 | StudentScope | 88 subscribe at www.studentscope.com/sub

VERDICT:

THE STORY OF A YOUNG WRITER BECOMING HIS OWN WORST ENEMY

Live twitter feed #Malcolmshortfilm

@HelenWH84 Helen Whitehead Nice little film from a group of college students, would recommend a watch! #Malcolmshortfilm

@PaulTu78 Paul Turner Decent short.. pretty emotive stuff!! #Malcolmshortfilm

@MoHarmsey Mo H Enjoyed this - give it a watch! #Malcolmshortfilm

Malcolm begins to accept his sorrows..

Ss Ss