Film Review: She’s Having a Baby! (short film) (2012)

SYNOPSIS:

Jenny wants a baby and she will go to any lengths to get one.

REVIEW:

This one comes from the twisted minds of Australian brothers Robert and Chris Smellin, who wrote, produced and directed it. It tells the thrilling story of a crazy woman who is determined to have a baby and will go to any means necessary to do this. Sorry fellas – this time round it’s you who are the pieces of meat! I’m impressed that they actually managed to cram a sex scene into a 14 minute film, though this is a key event and perhaps the most disturbing aspect. Besides, what horror is complete without one?

There’s definitely a ‘Misery’ vibe going on here (by Stephen King), what with a man being kept in a bed by a deranged female until he produces what she wants. It makes me wonder whether there is any sort of feminist/anti-feminist message trying to be told using a rather nasty metaphor. But perhaps that is over thinking the matter. Though you can’t deny that it is always interesting to see typical gender roles reversed – this would have been just another run of the mill, boring, torture P*rn horror, had it been a girl tied to the bed instead. So I applaud the Smellin brothers on their willingness to break the mould and try something a little more thoughtful and unique.

It is described as an erotic thriller, though I would sincerely disagree with the erotic part (unless you’re into some serious pain, bondage and even rape). I think that both of the leading actors played their parts well, especially the woman (Wendy Bos) who gets the balance of being unstable yet sympathetic just right. I’d be curious to see more of a back story to her character, but that would really have been too much to squeeze into a short film. Perhaps a feature length should be on the cards though, in order to explore how this woman could descend so far into insanity. What is it exactly that drives her to want a baby so badly? What kind of mother will she end up being even?

 I personally think that the title credits looked a bit lame and basic, as well as some of the posters for it. However, it was shot very professionally with lots of close ups emphasizing the constricted, prisoner theme nicely. Overall, it is a good idea and pretty well done for an amateur short film. It’s been doing the rounds at film festivals and has certainly gone down a storm so far! I reckon the Smellin brothers will be one to keep your eye out for in the future, as there’s great potential there that’s for sure.