Short Film: Final Days (2023)

• Directed by Joseph McDonagh
• Written by Joseph McDonagh
• Stars Danann McAleer, Naomi Richards, Ben Dalton, Danny Chase
• Run Time: 11:07
• Watch it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvPrU4M9Cr4

What Happens

Synopsis: When a family he used to know mysteriously disappears, A church Pastor helps detectives piece together the family’s last days.

We’re told that the Colton family’s car was found abandoned on the side of the road. There are bullets, a Satanic Bible, and a bunch of cash. We watch as the pastor tells his side of the story…

Commentary

It’s got very moody black-and-white visuals. What really makes this one stand out is that it’s essentially a silent film. It’s got dialog intertitles that appear instead of audible dialog, just like an old-timey silent film. 

The visuals are excellent, the story, as it’s told, moves by briskly enough. My only real complaint is that the choice of music is very monotonous and got annoying about halfway through the story. 

Still, it’s an interesting story, and it’s clear enough what happened even if it’s not all spelled out. Nice!