"Absolution is Now Public" is a different sort of short film. It's the story of a disturbed young man, played with skill and authenticity by James Morris. His character is obsessed with the internet and with his former psychologist, a woman whose young daughter died from a mix up in prescription medicines. His infatuation and depression lead him to a tragic confrontation with the girl's pharmacist, played by Richard Dutcher.
Although well produced, the film was too dark for my personal taste. The writer-director Michael Christensen calls attention to a legitimate societal dilemma where an individual's unbalanced mental problems are aggravated by sleep deprivation and prolonged web exposure, but his movie ends without any real glimpse of possible solution or redemption. This leaves the audience with an attitude of thoughtful reflection -which is good- but it's missing something that I believe is even more important to include in a film
hope.
But then, that's just me. It will probably be popular on the festival circuit where some folks worship "edgy-ness" and equate darkness with "intelligence" in filmmaking. Mainstream audiences might find "Absolution is Now Public" a bit hard to take, but the artsy crowd will love it.
Robert Starling
