LAUNCH AT PARADISE ** USA 2022 Dir: Carrie Ann Quinn. 15 mins
This sci-fi short, revolving around the blurred lines between life and death for John when he takes the risk to live forever, is fine enough for what it is although there are some drawbacks to be had here. That’s really only relegated to the technical qualities on display as there’s a fine technical sheen that looks far more impressive than expected for this kind of student project including some fine transitions and hallucinogenic effects that look quite nice. As well, the technique for resurrection attempted here seems to be a unique spin on the formula that has some intriguing aspects with how it plays out. However, all of that is undone by the fact that there are endless shots of John trying and failing to resuscitate a patient on his operating table or just undergoing endless debates about the ethics surrounding the project that it drags on endlessly for something so short. This sort of preaching belongs in something with more time to the themes involved as everything here feels far too lived in to be shown such a brief glimpse that ends up with more questions than anything without the time to explore it. We don’t know the relationships about what’s going on or what’s the point of the project, how the process got examined or the point of the experiments so it’s all more questions about what’s going on. Again, it’s still fine for what it is but that’s not without some issues.
Review by Don Anelli
“Launch At Paradise” – Trailer from Night Maire on Vimeo.