The Jester (Short)
We start on the streets. It is on a Halloween night, which we can glean from the fact that people are in costume. A man (played by director Colin Krawchuk) is walking home. He’s dressed regular due to just getting off work, but he appreciates the costumes of the people he sees. As he walks, he comes across a man in a jester outfit (Michael Scheffield), and he plays the part to the nines. The man likes the attention to detail, and humors him for a bit, but also is anxious to get home after this encounter. But, the jester persists, and the longer it goes on, the more we feel the man’s anxiety. Personally, I would have headed the other way immediately. Colin Krawchuk sets up his film simply, but continues it in a riveting, terrifying manner for 10 minutes. We are transfixed by the situation unfolding in this film, and scared out of our wits by the terrific silent performance Scheffield delivers. “The Jester” is a slow-burn model of suspense, but it moves at a quick pace as the protagonist finds himself trapped in this situation. We feel trapped with him, and we don’t have an escape. His fate is sealed, and our nerves are shot. We aren’t comforted by the release of tension at the end, but scared for what could happen to the next person. It’s quite an accomplishment for Krawchuk.
