WATCH THE TRAILER HERE
First, the Recap:
The unsettling understanding that things sometimes lie below the surface, festering, waiting for that right time to arise. While this might sound overtly menacing, there is such a veritable reality to it when to comes to simply knowing people. While we would of course wish to entertain the notion that, ideally, everyone is aiming to be good to both themselves and others, it’s when this is proven otherwise that it becomes unnerving truth about what could be residing within. On a rural farm in Ireland, the early morning activities are being carried out by Michael (Stephen Hogan) while his wife Aine (Kate Nic Chonaonaigh), daughter Cait (Isabelle Connolly), and son Sean (Isaac Fitzgerald) eat breakfast. When an eerily strange and brutal accident occurs, Cait is the first to discover it, and to make a choice that will alter all their lives.
Next, my Mind:
Fueled by an shadowy atmosphere of ominous foreboding from the very beginning that brilliantly carries forward to an ultimately heart-wrenching, jarringly revealing finale assured to leave you aghast in pure shock yet surprisingly apropos and necessary relief, this uniquely executed, intelligently written, perfectly directed 15-minute Oscar qualified short film from writer/director/producer Jamie O’Rourke, producers Ronan Cassidy and Gregory Burrowes, executive producers Sinead Stimpfig and Andrew Byrne, plus associate producer Daniel Lloyd masterfully utilizes every single moment of its abbreviated runtime to continuously punch you in the gut with dark, bold, unflinching keenness. It’s one of the most deft mixes of drama and horror elements this critic has seen recently, and it honestly makes the film more than worthy to be considered for the industry’s highest award for “Best Live Action Short Film”.
Taking its blunt force narrative, which sees a disturbingly nasty accident occur on a small farm whose aftermath turns into a severely uneasy crisis of conscious for the family’s daughter, picks you up and never allows you a moment’s pause, the sheer magnitude of both haunting creepiness and jaw-dropping “I cannot believe what she’s choosing to do!” ambiance just pressing on you as you watch. The genius behind this approach really reminded this critic of the indie feature film “The Coffee Table” (reviewed here) that employed a similarly astute “We know, along with the lead character, what’s transpired, but no one else does…YET!” delivery which just unavoidably keeps your eyes one hundred percent glued to the screen, the abject disbelief lingering that what is unfolding can POSSIBLY lead to ANYTHING good or even a gratifying resolution of any sort.
All I will say leading out of THAT statement is this is where the consummately conveyed ending to the film arrives full force, not only explaining EVERYTHING, but doing so with yet another deeply sobering and chilling, but wholly, decisively influentially convincing revelation that, just like the film’s initial catalyst, WILL shake you to the core. There’s a very important statement being made here, and this is one of the most artistically creative manners in which I have seen it tackled. What becomes another surprise through all this beautifully controlled, quietly direful chaos is an underlying story about one of the family’s cows being ready to give birth. I felt this, too, lent a very compelling layer to things, as the calf is a living symbol of a new life being born into the world, and it at minimum felt like how the film’s finale gets presented parallels that grander concept.
The potency of secrets we keep, the high price paid for them by others, what lurks beneath the surface of seeming calmness and settledness, plus the equally weighty and despairing nature of silence over resolve and solace all get addressed here to very impactful degrees, even as you attempt to wrap your mind around what initially occurs in the story. Just plain outstanding filmmaking here, folks. Period. Connolly adeptly brings about an understated vulnerability, undeniably tangible sense of unease and guilty hesitation, plus a heartedly disquieting demeanor that belies the storm within through her role as Cait, a farming family’s daughter who has the unfortunate experience to discover an accident that’s happened one morning that leads her to make a terrifying decision. Attempting to maintain appearances, it will only be a matter of time before something could upend her choice…but could also uncover something far more sinister.
It’s a magnificent performance Connolly provides, especially in so skillfully portraying the kind of building concern and conscious-pricking disconcert paired with a startling level of discomforting calm the character exudes that befits the situation so well. Hogan excels as much as he’s able to given the story’s premise via his turn as Michael, the patriarch of the family whose morning routine gets very involuntarily interrupted to horrific ends. Chonaonaigh is a study in accessibility and relatability to a character through her performance as Aine, Michael’s wife who goes about her own daily routine during the morning in question, where things SEEM normal–until they are no longer. How her character learns of what is transpiring is palpably intense, and what follows is even more so. Fitzgerald plays the couple’s son Sean, who also, like his mother, remains in the dark about all that’s occurring until it is no longer hidden.
Additional supporting turns come from Peter Hayes as a trusted neighboring farmer Padraig, Mark de Carreau as a delivery driver who picks one whopper of a day to distract Cait from her ongoing mission of trying to maintain a dark secret, Ed Flannery, Barry O’Callaghan, Sean O’Reilly, Clodagh Byrnes, Pat Godfrey Ryan, and Róisín Annie Hanrahan. So, in total, “Calf” with its absolutely stunning storytelling prowess, atmospheric music score, strong performances, and exquisitely orchestrated core message, reverberates through your heart, mind, and soul as a superb testament to the continuing rise of the Emerald Isle’s cinema onto the world stage over the last several award seasons. With this effort, it shows NO signs of slowing down. All I can say IS “Watch out world. The Irish are HERE!”.
STAR RATING (out of 5):
As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
