At the End of the Cul-de-sac (2016) Poster

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7/10
Brilliant execution
rajdoctor10 April 2017
At the End of Cul-De-Sac

What makes this short film impressive is that - technically it is brilliant.

It is a single shot 10 minute short film and it is amazing.

I was perplexed when I saw the film for the first time and wondered how the director has managed the cinematography?

It made me inquisitive to later read that it was taken by a camera- drone.

The Director Paul Trillo researched Google map to find a perfect Cul- de-sac and made an animated version of the whole 10 minutes of shoot.

The most difficult part according to me must have been the placement of drone at appropriate time during a particular happening in the shot that synchronizes with the dialogues.

I read that the whole team rehearsed to make the take "perfect"

The story is simple - it is a classic tale of societal judgment on an individual they see as unfit to live with them. Instead of helping the individual - by the end of the short film - they throw stones at him.

The story goes like this:

In a peaceful Cul-de-sac neighborhood, a drunk and mentally disturbed man pulls over in front of the house and blabbers things that draws attention of neighbors who become by-standers and spectators to the proceedings. As the man's antics become more bizarre, a woman who knows the man comes and tell everyone that this man is "A good man", yet the neighbors start throwing stones at the man who is crying for help.

It is very touching and to a certain extend disturbing to see the world's reaction to an individual's agony - mental or otherwise.

Only thing they did in post-production was dub the entire dialogues, as the syn-sound had drone sound, that had to be over-recorded with sound mixing.

I read that what the Director did as a final cut for the movie, was actually the rehearsal shot of 10 minutes, which came so perfect (better than the final shooting) that they kept the rehearsal shot as a final version of short film.

A lot of things to learn while seeing it - especially if one is interested in the technicality of movie making.

For the sheer brilliance of the attempt to do something different I will give this movie 7 out of 10.
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Technically brilliant; thematically informed and interesting, even if at the narrative level it doesn't totally stand on its own feet on first viewing (SUGGESTIVE SPOILERS)
bob the moo8 April 2017
Warning: Spoilers
It is impossible to talk about this film with the reason you probably heard about it – the technical aspect. For me personally the headline is that the film is all done in one continuous take, which is something I have always loved when it is done well. However, clearly not feeling that this was enough of a challenge, the one take is all done from a drone. The impact of this is impressive as it means the camera is not limited to one plain but rather can move up, down, and around the action – all without the need for expensive platforms (which would then also limit the field of vision). Watching the film, it is really easy to be impressed by the fluidity of movement, but also the related technical aspects – such as the sound work, the cast all hitting their marks and making everything work – and probably lots of technical things about lighting and post-production that I'm not smart enough to even know about.

So that side of the film alone makes it worth seeing, because it is technically ambitious and impressive. In terms of plot, it is not as strong, but still has plenty of interest. An erratic man starts banging on the door of one of the houses in a small cul-de-sac community. It seems he is involved in some white-collar crime, and is at breaking point of stress. As he loses it, more and more of the neighbors start to come out to see what is happening. As a narrative it is not perfect – and if you are looking for a neat resolution then you may be disappointed as it is not really like that. Instead the film is intriguing in the way the focus shifts – at first we are interested in the man, but the community itself becomes the focus as the film goes on. The dark ending links to wider themes of judgment, closed- groups, lack of empathy, and is informed by art such as short story The Lottery, and real things such as the public breakdown of Jason Russell (according to an interview I read with the director on Vice).

This does mean that the film is more interesting on repeat viewings as it allows you to reflect on the meaning and themes within the film; however, I do understand why on first viewing that the plot is picked up on as a weaker aspect of the film. That said, the technical aspects and the interesting content in the narrative more than make this worth seeing.
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