Justin is an intern in a PR department. His career looks to be taking off even though nobody can quite put a finger on what he has achieved, and he fits with his male peers well. One night though, he meets a girl, who penetrates him with a bottle of J******s' Whiskey, leaving him pregnant and with his life turned upside down.
There is a lot not to like about this film. I read about it on the Short of the Week site, and the crude description of the film's content put me off a bit. It opens with some so-so sound work, which is a bugbear for me; then it moves into a narrative which is all over the place in terms of start, middle, and end. During the delivery, it drops quite a few lines, aspects, and moments, which are far too on-the- nose and obvious in the message it is bringing. However, despite all this it works – and it works because it is consistent.
The consistency is in the tone. The film is erratic, but it is erratic in the understandable/predictable/consistent way that someone in a rage is – yes they are angry, but they are consistent in that anger. In the meantime some of their statements are outrageous, stupid, extreme, funny, and blunt – all of it steeped in annoyance, gallows humor, bitterness, and mockery. These are the aspects that make it work because they are so tangible, and creatively brought out. So yes it has its faults, it lacks nuance, and could have been something quite different – but it is hard to dislike it when there is so much raw energy, drive, and emotion behind it.
By sheer force of will, and experience, the film sells itself, and the flaws become a by-product of the strengths rather than standing out there on their own.
