Cold Young Blood (Short, 2015)
Starring Luke Draper
Directed by Tyron Janse van Vuuren
Here’s something to make you think twice about the dangers of social media. This new South African short, from the director of the award-winning Preparation (which was about how Heath Ledger transformed into the Joker), is described as an exploration of “the possibility of genuine human connection in the age of Tinder.”
Cold Young Blood contains minimal dialogue, and what little dialogue there is serves as ambiance (i.e., a sound that you would expect to hear at a certain time along with any other background noise). Instead, the story just happens in front of you, what little there is. That is not intended as a criticism. Less is more, and here the most simplistic story has the strongest effect. You won’t be forgetting this film in a hurry.
In the film, vampires arrange to meet people via the social media app Tinder. They then feast on their unfortunate victims, who are turned into vampires themselves, and thus the cycle is repeated. I guess we really do have killer apps (sorry).
The visual style is also something to be commended, consisting entirely of drab, pastel colors that give the impression that this is a harsh, uninviting world, which is also sadly the case in real life.
Can we really find love and affection towards someone whom we meet via an online dating app? Is that the same as trying to ask someone to fall in love with you? People will always debate that issue, and here we have something that makes us realize, perhaps more than ever, how important social interaction is in the real world. Physical friends will always beat virtual ones.
All too often we hear of the dangers of social media and how people can use it for their own nefarious purposes, but as far as I know, telling us about it using vampires is something new.
Director Tyron Janse van Vuuren clearly set out to make something that would reverse all expectations and really make you stop and think about something you already know about in a new light. Cold Young Blood is the very definition of an experimental film in that it tries to do something entirely new and succeeds in every aspect.
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Film
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