Right There (Short)
In terms of modern takes on silent film forms, I will take Nathan Suher’s lovely, painful short film, “Right There,” any day of the week over the Oscar-winning “The Artist.” While “The Artist” pays closer reverence to the era, it’s primarily an exercise in form rather than a great film in it’s own right. Not that I would necessarily say that “Right There” is a great film, but as a tribute to the silent era, it has more genuine affection and feels more like a film Buster Keaton or Charlie Chaplin would make back in the day; “The Artist” is just a gimmick. Silence is what makes “Right There” so heartbreaking to watch.
Suher’s story is one of the unrequited love three people have for one another. What connects them is a flower stand, where the owner of the stand (Andre Boudreau) lights up when a girl (Alexandra Cipolla) comes to his stand buying flowers. One day, a man (Ryan Hanley) is struck by the beauty of a woman (Lauren A. Kennedy) on a nearby bench, and buys a rose for her, but before he can give it to her, she leaves. The next day, he buys two roses, with the same result. Something always seems to get in the way of him showing his affection for this woman. One day, his dream is shattered, but that’s nothing compared to what we learn about the girl who makes the flower stand owner light up.
Hanley does some Chaplin-esque mugging in the lead role, but it doesn’t distract from how engaging the film is, but rather helps it sell the silent nature of it’s story. All of the performances are lovely and well-considered, and Suher keeps the film light and funny until he needs to really knee us in the groin with a painful realization we didn’t necessarily expect at the beginning. He understands the pain of love that goes unaccepted by another. “Right There” gets one of the toughest things any of us will ever experience in life, and conveys it in 10 short minutes in a powerful, and entertaining, manner.
Right There from Nathan Suher on Vimeo.
