User Reviews

Written and directed by Nizar Nassar, 'Yesod' is a science fiction short film that stars Tarek Bob and Nermin Habib.

The film follows an unnamed protagonist in a desolate landscape who survives in a hideout below ground to escape from the harsh environment above. On one such expedition foraging for food and survivors, the protagonist comes across a female sub-human. The discovery of another human ensues chaos and what the protagonist chooses to do from here onwards will define if he lives or dies in the hostile environment.

Yesod is a great film from all aspects. From the actors to the makeup and from the cinematography to its dialogue absent narrative, the film has all the ingredients needed to make a resonant, well rounded story.

Utilising minimal exposition and dialogue, Nassar chooses instead to make the audience explore the world through the protagonist's actions. This approach works wonders as it enables intrigue right upto the very end and transports the audience into the main character's shoes as he tries to survive in this very hostile world. It is creative choices such as these that elevate the film substantially.

From a visual perspective, the film is absolutely stunning. From the above ground desolate landscape to the underground sets, each visual aspect of the production rivals any well funded Hollywood production. In addition, the sound mixing and sound editing are also impressive, helping to fully immerse the audience into the hostile and desolate world that the story takes place in.

Beautifully shot, expertly paced and full of intrigue, Yesod is a cool little scifi gem that is way better than it has any right to be. Nizar Nassar has created an absolutely gorgeous science fiction marvel, one that utilises minimal dialogue to tell an expansive story that bursts out of its canvas and soars into the sky.

From the opening image and first sound we hear, I knew I was ready to watch a short film that would stand above most, not just in genre, but in almost every aspect of filmmaking and storytelling.

The short film, which has a run time of about twenty-six minutes, is visually stunning. It relies on it's visual storytelling throughout the entire runtime, only has a handful of dialogue throughout, which isn't spoken by either character that we see on screen, and the majority of dialogue comes within the last few minutes of the film.

We follow an unnamed male character as he lives an average day, well, average in terms of this world that the film takes place in. You see, the earth's population died off due to powerful radiation from the sun. In order to go outside, our male character, who lives in an underground bunker, must suit up, from head to toe, in protective layers, including a full mask covering his entire head and face to make sure he does not meet the same fate as the rest of the world's population.

While outside, he finds foot prints that obviously catch his attention. As he goes to investigate further, he's attacked by an unnamed female character who acts more animal like than human.

This quick action sequence is one of several that is very well shot and executed. The use of POV to show this important moment was brilliant on the part of writer/director Nizar Nassar as it puts you in the mindset of our male character, shocked, and desperate for answers.

For the rest of the film, we watch as these two characters try to understand each other and figure out not only what has become of their world, but who exactly each other are and if the other person is a threat or not.

There's a great moment when our male character shows the female character a projection on a large stone wall showcasing some of mankin's history. Personally, this was one of my favorite visuals of the film.

The budget for this film is listed to be around $10,000. In today's Hollywood, nobody would be able to pull off the cinematography, sound and set design, like these filmmakers did. In some of today's big budget films, they wouldn't be able to world build like this film did masterfully without millions of dollars.

As a screenwriter myself, most of the time I can watch a film and predict what's going to happen next. With this film, I found myself unable to predict what was going to happen, and at times, found myself genuinely surprised with the twists (even if small) that the plot takes.

Once or twice, I thought things might start dragging when it comes to pacing, but whenever that thought started to creep into my mind, the film would hit another unexpected plot point and those thoughts quickly went away.

I highly recommend that you watch this film. Everyone does a great job both in front and behind the camera and you can tell that not only was everyone involved very talented in what they do, but that there was passion put into the film, something that seems to be lacking in most films these days.

There is no question that Yesod is not your regular film and this is very evident from the very first scene. The film tells its story in a cryptic manner, shrouded in some level of mystery, and is quite reminiscent of some of Christopher Nolan's early works.

Yesod is set in a post-apocalyptic world after solar radiation has wiped out nearly every human on the planet, though this is not very evident from the onset of the film. The only survivors are two humans, an unnamed male and female protagonist. Both live in seclusion protected from the harmful effects of the sun. However, trouble brews when they discover each other, and a battle for survival ensues for the rest of the film, with each one of the two struggling to better the other in their mutual quest to emerge as the sole surviving human.

At the very core of the film is a story of a love-hate relationship between two vastly different human specimens and in this aspect, the film succeeds. It manages to depict a constant conflict between the two protagonists, with occasional ceasefire as they struggle to understand each other, and co-exist after such a long time of living in adversity with the rest of the world. Besides the plotline, the film also excels in its cinematic value. Stunning camerawork, great editing to piece together the scenes and moving complementary soundtracks all work together to deliver a powerful short film that bests most other films in its category.

While an altogether great film, Yesod faults in its significant lack of context. As a first-time viewer, one is tossed deep into the plot, and is left to grapple with the vast information delivered in the short length of the film. The almost nonexistent dialog, while serving to create suspense, also contributes to this problem and limits how much information is directly conveyed to the viewer. They are left to their own means, to glean information from the vast labyrinth of the film and to figure out what is happening and the timeframe of the events of the film as they take place.

Yesod, which was written and directed by Nizar Nassar, is the product of the director's fruitful imagination and the joint effort by the entire film's crew. The austere quality of the release far outshines any minor issues with the film and makes it well deserving of your time.

The director, Nizar Nassar, takes us on a future journey. After 45 seconds in the short 26 minutes film, the director's work is evident. He wanted to show us the unforeseen consequences of extreme radiation. We are introduced to a scary, unpredictable, and unhealthy world. All that matters is survival in this new world; no signs of humans exist. The few left behind cannot understand each other by language and character. The film will leave you questioning the dangerous activities in the contemporary world. Nizar proves his ingenious non-verbal communication mastery by allowing the audience to connect with the characters in the film through visuals only.

I credit the performance of the film's main character, Tarek Bob, for giving us excellent closeup shots of the inhabitable futuristic world. First, I was hooked by the apocalyptic environment. I expected to see the dangerous lifestyle of the half-human lifeforms in this futuristic world. The director achieves this by introducing us to the aggressive Nermin. This movie is a manifestation of the time-tested devastating effects of radiation told in a harrowing story. If you are into Sci-Fi movies, this is the movie for you. Tarek, a human, is the center of gravity, and the director makes it clear from the beginning. He has to fight for his place in his new world. His encounters are life-threatening, especially when he has to fight for his survival against the new half-human life forms. I enjoyed the tension build-up and fight established by the characters. While visuals dominate the movie, the sound sparks a curiosity that keeps the viewer hooked and wanting to unravel the story's details.

The intense tension between the characters adds to their authenticity and realism. The conversations between Tarek and Nermin Habib, who plays the part of the antagonist, are far from fiction. The film stands out by understanding the need for not only a unified visual but the need for a unified style of performance. One of the film's strengths is its ability to highlight the direction of the conversation through captivating visuals and unparalleled sound engineering. The film integrates natural cuts to make the conversation seem natural; nonetheless, the sudden appearance and aggressive search for belonging will keep you engaged.

Yesod is a science fiction short film starring Tarek Bob and Nermin Habib written and directed by Nizar Nassar.

Yesod is the absolute quintessential representation of the fact that you don't need the budget of James Cameron's Avatar, or the very expensive cameras used in Denis Villeneuve's Dune to make something extraordinary and original in the science fiction genre

For a low budget film, it was really well made from the cinematography, to the acting, and the original score. The sound production was utilized very well. There are many many scenes with no dialogue but what the characters are doing on screen speaks volumes.

With a runtime of 26 minutes, very minimal dialogue, and a budget of $10,000, I really felt like I knew exactly what the protagonist was thinking and feeling. It was written so well that I felt like that's what I would do in that situation. Nassar makes it work because it's exceptionally believable.

From the very first shot, it is visually amazing. The visual identity of the film makes you feel like you are in this world. We follow a male protagonist whose name is never revealed in a post apocalyptic world, hundreds of years into the future where the radiation from the sun wipes out everyone on earth except a very few. One of them is our protagonists who lives in an underground bunker. The only way he can go outside is with a fully equipped suit that can handle the ongoing radiation in the air. When our male protagonist steps outside, we see footprints which are way out of the norm given that all humans have been wiped out. It belongs to a female that attacks him like a feral animal. They both realize that they are no real threat to each other, or are they? Throughout the film, they try to communicate by any means but words and coexist as "civil" humans.

The overall pacing of the film was easily digestible, engaging, and dynamic. The underground set design was simply amazing and unbelievable given that the production resources were minimal. Great use of lighting and color scheme.

It is extremely hard to make a short budget sci fi film with very few pieces of dialogue that doesn't bore the audiences and at the same time persuade them to turn off their temporary suspension of belief.. Nizar Nassar has produced an exceptional film and I hope to see more films like this. Go check it out.