Dark Romance (2013) - USA - Dark Thriller - Not Rated (PG)
Independent Short Subject - 8mm Films - 8 Mins
Entrant in 48 Hour Film Project New York City 2013
Directed by Matthew Mahler
Written by Matthew Mahler & Ross Mahler
Starring Timothy J. Cox, Cameron Rankin, Tiffany Browne-Tavarez, Brian Shields
Early work by Matthew Mahler is a dark passage of obsession, even darkly comedic, showing the promise he has as a filmmaker.
Tim Cooper and Cam are modern day mad men developing ad campaigns for clients between their office cubicles and board room. But neither Tim nor Cam are truly the one who is mad as Tim becomes the recipient of a secret admirer's attentions, that start off innocently enough but soon turn dark and obsessive.
Dark Romance was made as part of the 48 Hour Film Project film festival in 2013, New York City location. This festival has filmmakers compete by being given 3 required elements their short film must contain and then having 48 hours to script, shoot, and edit their film. The required elements for this competition were: a character named Cam or Cat Dean who is an advertising executive, a prop of a trophy, and to include the line "when do you expect her?"
IMDb lists this as Matthew Mahler's first directed short film. I can only go on that as I don't know the extent of Mahler's work beyond what is listed on IMDb. There are obvious shortcomings with Dark Romance that are most likely because of what he had available equipment-wise. The sound has a constant hum early in the film, though this does not hamper the dialogue which is actually quite clear. Additionally the handheld camerawork is obvious in places, though most likely necessitated by the space in which they had to work. Though Mahler's creativity does shine through; creativity he will put to even greater use in his masterful To Be Alone, also starring Timothy J. Cox.
Technical issues aside, Dark Romance is well scripted telling a complete story; I make a point of this as in a 48 Hour Film Project a filmmaker has to go with what they have, complete or not. The cinematography makes good use of framing, focus, follow, and mood. The actors in this are excellent in their performances with Timothy J. Cox showing how well he can transition from the light to the dark in a role.
Originally I was leaning toward a rating of 3 Fingers to 3 Fingers Plus for Dark Romance. Writing this review reminds me to count what's most important in the film, that is how well done it is as a whole and not the limitations of what they had to work with. If anything, working with handheld equipment on a budget under $500 and in only 48 hours shows what they overcame to tell a complete story that hits its marks. My rating is therefore based on what they have accomplished in this film, and what they have accomplished is very good.
My Rating: 4 Fingers
You can watch Dark Romance on Vimeo and also check out Mahler's other work.
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