User reviews

"The Bypass" is a beautifully shot short from India based on a simple premise. This dark tale of life in the desert takes no prisoners - life is shown as cheap and the director delivers an uncompromising story in a stylish manner.

A major achievement, this short uses no dialogue or subtitles, it relies instead on the performances of its small cast to deliver the story.

While short in length, this film is recommended viewing.

8 out of 10. With this short film under his belt, surely it's only a matter of time before we see another project from director Amit Kumar?

Two young people in love are making a trip through the desert and take the bypass round a town. On the bypass their car is ambushed by two men who kill them and take their possessions. The two men then make their way across the hills to get some food. However they are not the only corrupt people in the area and nobody in the area seems to be beyond violence and crime.

With no words in English and no subtitles, it was important that this short film be meaningful, easy to follow and clear. For a part of the film it the middle you are unsure of where it is going and it appears to wander a little bit, but it manages to end really well and mark itself out as a short film that focuses on a generally very violent and corrupt little area. The lack of meaningful dialogue wasn't really a problem as the film did enough to keep me involved in the story and the situation without the need for words. Of course the cast do a lot to help this and they are all pretty good - the standout being the first of the two criminals who has to carry a lot with looks and such.

On top of a good tale, the film's main attraction is that it looks great and is very professionally put together - this is not a student film or a short with a restrictive budget. The film looks very polished and the use of locations rather than studios or sets really helps. The film stock gives the film a further professional touch and it does look really very good considering the comparatively low budget that it was made on.

Overall, the short is based on a really enjoyable little tale, although you need patience and not to expect that tight a narrative. The lack of dialogue is not a problem and the film's main selling point is that it is very professional and looks like a great deal more money was spent on it than actually was.

What a beautiful film.

Shot on location in the deserts of India this little violent tale speaks volumes with hardly any dialogue. The cast are very impressive and employed because of their 'look'.

It deals with corruption and violence featuring characters from both sides of the law that are ready to rob and kill for money, food and sex. Superb cinematography. Can you go wrong in a desert? Characters ; The violent mute. The deadly con man. The Corrupt police man. The tainted woman. Beautiful landscape shots mixed with tight shots of the 'evil' in the mens eyes and actions. Great editing points. Amazing use of light.

Very well produced by the Bureau. It would be interesting to know what the budget was, i would say in excess of £30,000

All in all a razor edged tale of deception. Timeless folklore.

I look forward to a feature film by Amit Kumar.