Sadist (Short, 2007)
Starring Michael R. Kureth, Rick Kelley, Charlie Ruckus
Directed by Michael R. Kureth and Charlie Ruckus
Produced by Ruckus Productions
We’ve all seen them; they can be entertaining, straightforward, boring, funny, goofy, awkward, or just downright painful to watch. We’re not talking about grade school pageants or viral videos of epic failures here. No, we’re referring to the quintessential singles’ dating video. You know, that 3- to 5-minute long “theoretical trailer” that gives the viewer a sneak peek into a potential mate’s character in order for them to judge whether or not they could possibly tolerate this person long enough to start a relationship with them.
Yup, a dating video… A dating video entitled “Sadist”. That’s what I just watched. Well, for most folks sadism is probably a pretty tough sell even on a good day, especially when it comes to dating someone new. Mike is a handsome, polite, well spoken guy with a very energetic personality. He seems passionate and motivated. With all these great qualities he probably wouldn’t have done so badly with his video if it weren’t for someone splicing snippets of his previous “dates” into the mix. It’s very safe to say that Mike has a hard time with long-term relationships since he seems to go through his partners like a hot knife through butter. Of course who knows how long he keeps the bodies afterwards.
Sadist is a six-minute long short film, and it is exactly what has been described above. A dating video submission from one seriously fucked up individual that plays out like a lonely murderer’s schizophrenic wet dream. The story is simple: A man is looking for his latest victim…er… love interest and is rudely interrupted by his own vivid flashbacks of torturing and killing his prior partners. The kills are quite juicy, and the effects are pretty decent for a low-budget short film. Some of the photography and camerawork is rather well done, while other moments showed more like an experimental film for a college class.
When all is said and done, though, Sadist is an interestingly enjoyable direction and FX reel for the creators to pad their resumes with and hopefully find bigger and even better projects in the future. That being said, since being recently thrown kicking and screaming back into the dating pool, this single girl will definitely think twice about accepting any future offers for dates after seeing Sadist.
3 1/2 out of 5
Categorized:Reviews
