Film Review: Crave (short Film) (2018)

REVIEW:

Crave, is an unconventional portrayal of one man’s struggle with grief and addiction, unfortunately, the real horror of Carl Shanahan’s short lies within ourselves and not the scary monsters that are presented to us. Introducing Rob (Kris Fisher), a young man beset with undisclosed problems decides to visit a seemingly unorthodox therapist called Edmund (Joe Hancock). The short was filmed within a beautiful building, which Shanahan and his crew were granted access to by the Poltimore HousTrust. Therefore, through utilisation of such commodities, the film was made on an incredibly low budget of £300.

“When the song finishes, we have to stop”

The tale follows our protagonist Rob who arranges an intervention with antagonist Edmund in the attempts to experience the touch, from whom I imagine to be his deceased lover. Sceptical Rob is unsure of what to expect from his session with Edmund, but regardless presents Edmund with a photo of his partner, and is told the set rules that they must both abide by to ensure their safety and its success. Tensions built from the waiting room strengthen after this odd conversation, yet are quickly diminished when anxieties are laid to rest, covered by the sound of a sad song that fills the uncomfortably empty room. The illusion is all but pleasant when Edmund’s true form is revealed. When relating this tale to a unique understanding of addiction, we cannot begin to question his reasons as to why he allows these things to happen, but sympathise with Rob and all of Edmunds others victims regardless, who anticipate their next meeting, going as far to present this monster with pleasantries and gifts. While the death of Edmund should be heroic, you can’t help but sympathise with those who are now unable to see their loved ones again, except for in the pictures they so longingly cling to. All of the performances were surprisingly brilliant for a film with such a low budget, but devilishly charming portrayal of Edmund deserves a lot of praise, as does his make-up after his transformation.

It’s undeniable that this film was made with an exceptional amount of passion and love and deservedly so the film was premiered at Screamfest 2018 followed by Celluloid Screams, LSSF, Leeds International Film Festival, Fear NYC, Morbido Film Fest and Frostbite. After speaking with Carl he was very humble towards the premiere of Crave, we discussed what was the most exciting thing to follow the release of the film:

“The bigger expense was entering film festivals and then attending the premiere at Screamfest but that was a pretty wonderful experience, and getting to see it on the screen at the Grauman’s Theatre in LA”

Previous work from Carl includes the short EAT, an undesirable dinner for five helpless children. Similarly, as gothic as Crave, it’s apparent that Carl has a distinct style in his work, which undoubtedly stems from his work as a cinematographer. He is currently working on a feature-length film residing in Norway; while he was very secretive on what the film was about, it was obvious that he is just as excited as we are to indulge in his next project.

Watch Crave here: https://youtu.be/qJ5gWLkrtdw