Directed by Bulent Ozdemir
Starring Andrew Dowbiggin and Joanna Howden
If you have 8 minutes and 21 seconds to spare, you have time to check out a short film by Bulent Ozdemir.
Here's the link.
Set Back is a psychological thriller which features a series of events leading to a murder. It opens by showing us a man walking down the street. He's carrying a brief case and looks as if he's on his way to work. A foreign tourist approaches him and says something unexpected. Did she really say it, or did he misunderstand what she said?
As we follow the man, he becomes more and more agitated, and each person he meets seems to increase the sense of unease for both him and us.
The film makes me think of Following and Memento, from Christopher Nolan, and also Videdrome (David Cronenberg) and Lost Highway (David Lynch). Director Bulent Ozmedir is almost certainly a fan of one or all of those mentioned, and employs similar techniques to both draw us in and make us uncomfortable.
Like Lost Highway, we are so attached to the main character that it seems as if the things being portrayed are happening to us. Surely we can't be responsible for the events which slowly unfold like a nightmare?
It's hard to accurately judge anyone's work after seeing just a few minutes of film, but it definitely held my interest and made me wonder how this story might be developed. It's worth checking out if you like short films or if you're an aspiring filmmaker yourself.
Overall score 3.5/5
You can also follow Bulent Ozdemir on Twitter: @RumbleGum
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