Widow Maker (2005) User Reviews

Western short most worthy of a view

[science-guy · 10/10 · 15 June 2005]

I saw this short film online at. I was impressed by the quality of the production in this movie especially given that the entire short was written, shot, and edited in just 72 hours! It is amazing to me that they accomplished such a feat. Wow! Nice work! I can certainly see why this production team won awards for "Best Costumes" as well as "Best Western" and I thought it was especially cool they received an extra fun award for "Best Shaving Incident". That shaving scene made me jump right out of my seat! In general, while the basic story line was relatively simple, the ending came as a complete surprise to me. You don't see many Western films or shorts these days and this one was a real treat to watch. I would like to mention in particular the outstanding performance by the actress who played the abused housewife, Glorinda Marie. Her performance stood out in my mind as full and I will definitely look forward to seeing more of her work in future films. I was so touched by her performance that I also ventured on to watch her 'actress Demo Reels' online from a clickable link at that Widow Maker site. I was surprised to see how much work in comedy she has already accomplished as well. What an extremely versatile actress! I am a new self proclaimed fan of this new up and coming actress as well as this novel short gem. I highly recommend viewers to see this little movie at least once. I think it could inspire other indie filmmakers to simply go for it! Thumbs way up for "Widow Maker"!

Very enjoyable short western

[osborntj · 10/10 · 29 October 2005]

Widow Maker is 7 minutes and 40 seconds of pure enjoyment. From the exciting opening scene to the gripping climax and the surprising ending, it will keep you on the edge of your saddle. This film was created as an entry in the National Film Challenge of 2004 and is the ultimate in teamwork by many members of the San Francisco IndieClub. The team of 24 crew and 11 cast members (plus animals that had to be wrangled) had only 72 hours to write the script, do preproduction, shoot the scenes, and complete post-production. The script is a demanding western period piece, with a climatic duel that is reminiscent of High Noon. Overall production values were kept very high, which is truly remarkable, given the compact schedule and limited resources available. The direction and cinematography are excellent. It has a touch of melodrama with its drama, but the crisp battle between good and evil appeals to all audiences. Watch for the extraordinary shaving scene at the start of the movie, which is superbly directed and performed. This suspenseful and rewarding film is not to be missed.