The Robbery

I teach Film 101 and have shown this to every class. As the critic's review indicates, it's not very complex, but the acting is good, which makes it a great example for an intro level class, and dark comedy is always fun with freshmen. It also tests their powers of observation, because I don't tell them ahead of time that it was shot in one take.

We discuss things like the importance of the unexpected twist in a short film, pacing and keeping the audience invested, how character is revealed through conflict and emotion, and how much planning is involved in shooting something like this in a single shot.