WATCH THE TRAILER HERE
First, the Recap:
Ever come up with an idea that seems perfectly fine in the moment, but then inexplicably becomes tedious and not worth pursuing? Or, what if said notion maintains a certain level of consideration, yet those involved with the required actions suddenly experience cold feet? Married couple Fred (Steve Blackwood) and Eleanor (Pamela Jayne Morgan) now find themselves encountering said quandary upon deciding that it’s about time they put a little “zing” back into their love life. Of course, the method chosen to accomplish this involves a little black box with a red blinking light pointed at the upcoming act’s locality, which has suddenly caused a serious amount of undesired tension and pause between the two participants.
With the usual assessments arising as to who starts first and how to “perform” for the sake of the recording, followed by just plain awkwardness, over-the-top emoting when attempting to be “sexy”, and even some personal revelation about Eleanor’s inner thoughts, nothing proceeds as planned. However, in the midst of it all, the pair arrives at some unexpectedly deeper topics of conversation that bring a fresh, and perhaps necessary, perspective on their entire relationship, faults and all. Soon, Fred and Eleanor start to realize that sometimes, its best to just keep things clearly communicated, uncomplicated, and centered on the knowledge it’s best to talk things out and know genuine love for each other ultimately anchors their lives.
Amazing where a little honest chat can lead you, eh?
Next, my Mind:
Thanks to its playfully sincere intent in addressing the primary theme involved via utilizing understated candidness, totally accessible humor, and overall tongue-in-cheek execution, director Jeffrey Buchbinder and writer David Susman’s 12-minute ode to sex tapes carries itself in a manner most films having to do with this subject would not–with purposeful restraint and intelligence. Smartly written dialogue and the enactment of it by the film’s two leads causes the narrative to sail along in a much more engaging, surprisingly clean, funny, and decidedly non-offensive way than a viewer might expect, thus allowing the project to work even more effectively in delivering its messages without venturing into what could have been needlessly obscene content. That fact alone became a strong selling point for this reviewer personally.
Completely hilarious while also bringing that unanticipated level of heartfelt, bona fide drama to the depicted events, duo Blackwood and Morgan are just superb as the long-married couple whose concept of kick-starting their love life again might have been an exciting, spur-of-the-moment decision filled with nervousness and false starts, but then diverges into a tete-a-tete of much more overall significance. The two actors emote fantastically well, and given the initial, riotous attempts the characters make to initiate their intended recorded rendezvous, it only adds to the jocularity in watching facial expressions and body language as they embark on the quest for fulfillment only to find themselves being so overtly introspective instead.
In total, “Spice” is a seriously unforeseen winner among the indie short film ranks thanks to a director and writer being willing to explore its subject matter with grace, maturity, and joviality while doing it within a theme normally reserved for modern theatrical comedies that sink so quickly into undisguised, totally uninspired crudeness. With the additional success of having two well-cast actors to bring it all to life, this should remain a gem to watch out for on festival circuits and beyond.
As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
Thank you so much for the review, Kirk! We are forever grateful for the positive feedback and for your time. – Curtis Reid (Producer, Spice)