A woman goes on a date with someone she met online – the first time she has ever done this. Clearly a bit nervous, the woman chats about what she looks for in a partner.
I like things that make you think – films and shorts that trust the viewer to at least be paying attention and be willing to do a bit of legwork for themselves; however this is a fine line because it is possible for shorts to be too obscure, for their makers to have such a good idea of what they are trying to do that they forget that the viewer will not have the benefit of knowing this without some help. That is how I feel about this film, because it genuinely does seem to have a good core idea but at the same time it spends so much time making itself seem arty and indirect, that it forgets to share this with the viewer.
My own guess is that the woman is meeting someone in real life because her previous (current?) relationship is far away and thus missing that connection in the flesh. The title suggests that the break is from the internet to the real, since it is internet shorthand, but it could also be that she misses the contact of a person and is trying to replace that, since long-distance relationships are hard when there is only remote contact. This is suggested by the ending, and the way that the discussion with her date seems to flow as something that is on her mind – and something that makes her date feel he is not going to get anywhere here. This is my thinking though, as the film doesn't help too much and indeed seems to be deliberately making it difficult for no reason.
This feeling is not just the narrative, but also the presentation; we get out of focus shots, drifting camera movements, and general obscurity in every aspect. The music is a little ominous and further misleads the viewer by suggesting a tone that nothing else about the film backs up. Mellinger is natural and watchable throughout – the date in particular sounds and looks real, and her thoughts come over as those of a real person, but the film itself could have benefited from being a bit less deliberate in its obscurity, and given a bit more development and time so that the viewer could be guided and not just left to fend for themselves.
I like things that make you think – films and shorts that trust the viewer to at least be paying attention and be willing to do a bit of legwork for themselves; however this is a fine line because it is possible for shorts to be too obscure, for their makers to have such a good idea of what they are trying to do that they forget that the viewer will not have the benefit of knowing this without some help. That is how I feel about this film, because it genuinely does seem to have a good core idea but at the same time it spends so much time making itself seem arty and indirect, that it forgets to share this with the viewer.
My own guess is that the woman is meeting someone in real life because her previous (current?) relationship is far away and thus missing that connection in the flesh. The title suggests that the break is from the internet to the real, since it is internet shorthand, but it could also be that she misses the contact of a person and is trying to replace that, since long-distance relationships are hard when there is only remote contact. This is suggested by the ending, and the way that the discussion with her date seems to flow as something that is on her mind – and something that makes her date feel he is not going to get anywhere here. This is my thinking though, as the film doesn't help too much and indeed seems to be deliberately making it difficult for no reason.
This feeling is not just the narrative, but also the presentation; we get out of focus shots, drifting camera movements, and general obscurity in every aspect. The music is a little ominous and further misleads the viewer by suggesting a tone that nothing else about the film backs up. Mellinger is natural and watchable throughout – the date in particular sounds and looks real, and her thoughts come over as those of a real person, but the film itself could have benefited from being a bit less deliberate in its obscurity, and given a bit more development and time so that the viewer could be guided and not just left to fend for themselves.