Numb (Short)
The first time we see Astrid (Rebecca Martos), she is in a restaurant in Chinatown currently occupied by only one other customer. The guy is waiting for his wife to bring him the keys after he locks himself out of their home. Astrid has an direct question to ask him, “If I asked you to fuck me right now, would you?” Cut to another time, and we see Astrid at an addicts group, where she meets a first-time member, asking him if he needs a sponsor. Next thing we know, they’re in bed together. It’s obvious that Astrid is addicted to sex. The question is why. A conversation with a friend of hers in the apartment building gives us a hint.
Penelope Lawson leaves much unsaid in her 10-minute short film, “Numb,” but the feeling that permeates through it is one of detachment from life and meaningful interactions with others. Astrid is wallowing in her grief, and is not ready to let anyone in. Lawson’s film touches a nerve with someone who has felt plenty numb and unable to communicate their feelings with people over the years, and Martos’s performance captures that emotional distance perfectly in a film that doesn’t last long, but lingers long in the memory.
