I saw this short at the Horror-on-Sea film festival in Southend-on- Sea in Essex - as a 'first timer' can I also say that it's a great festival with many films being debuted. 'The Widow' really stood out and I cannot believe Paul is a first time director - here's hoping there are more shorts and features from him and his team. Without giving too much away, the plot is engaging, and the acting of a very high standard, particularly the female and male leads (let's just say I wouldn't like to meet either of their characters in real life!) It's an atmospheric short where you have a feeling events might be about to take a sinister turn and you almost hope it's in the direction that you think it could be! It's clever when the audience are not quite sure who they should be rooting for, and there's then a very nice final shot 'twist'. It was great to be able to give our positive feedback to Paul and some of the cast at the time, and they were very humble in receiving it. Watch 'The Widow' and enjoy!
4 Reviews
One of my Top 3 Shorts from Horror-on-Sea 2015
deborahlane-5044216 March 2015
Horror-on-Sea is a three-day weekend festival held in January in Southend-on-Sea. All the films are independent, low-budget horrors of varying quality and sub-genres. As well as this there is a second weekend of additional films. Over the two weekends a total of 28 features and 28 shorts were shown, giving any true horror fan a run for their money, however, there were a few hardcore fans who made it through them all. I was one of them, and the short film The Widow came up in my top three of both weekends.
Having spoken to the director of this short prior to the screening, I was a little worried about what to say if I didn't like it, however, this was totally unnecessary as this was easily one of my favourites of the festival. The realism was very perceptive and a sense of empathy was created for the widow in a very poignant opening scene. The apparent naivety of the main character when faced with two nasty con artists posing as plumbing officials helped create the alarming nature of this short. A very realistic film with a good twist.
To create a film that not only has very high production values, good acting, a good script and storyline, and an interesting twist, but also stands out when screened alongside numerous other shorts is a very impressive achievement. Add to that the fact that this is director Paul Rodriguez' first film, then personally I will be very much looking forward to whatever he comes up with next.
Having spoken to the director of this short prior to the screening, I was a little worried about what to say if I didn't like it, however, this was totally unnecessary as this was easily one of my favourites of the festival. The realism was very perceptive and a sense of empathy was created for the widow in a very poignant opening scene. The apparent naivety of the main character when faced with two nasty con artists posing as plumbing officials helped create the alarming nature of this short. A very realistic film with a good twist.
To create a film that not only has very high production values, good acting, a good script and storyline, and an interesting twist, but also stands out when screened alongside numerous other shorts is a very impressive achievement. Add to that the fact that this is director Paul Rodriguez' first film, then personally I will be very much looking forward to whatever he comes up with next.
Horror on Sea - The Widow review
stephenmpriddy25 January 2015
I just saw The Widow on the last day of the horror on sea festival in Southend. It was my first time at the festival after many years of going to the London FrightFest and made for a good change! For me this was one of the best films so far including the main features. If you're interested the other films I really liked were The Opening Night of The Living Dead, based on an Edinburgh Festival play, and a short called I Am Monster.
Back to The Widow - if you like your horror of the dark comedy variety I think you'll like this. The acting is impressive from all of the cast, intelligent script, tight editing and very fitting soundtrack. I'm a big fan of the home invasion genre and this was a clever play on it.
Very impressive directorial debut showing a lot of potential and I look forward to seeing a full length film in the future. Congratulations!
Back to The Widow - if you like your horror of the dark comedy variety I think you'll like this. The acting is impressive from all of the cast, intelligent script, tight editing and very fitting soundtrack. I'm a big fan of the home invasion genre and this was a clever play on it.
Very impressive directorial debut showing a lot of potential and I look forward to seeing a full length film in the future. Congratulations!
A compelling story with a nail biting ending!
maddieioan11 August 2018
The plot/story line was incredibly well crafted from the comparatively banal opening through to the final (extreme!) surprise element. The character interactions and the imaginative way they evolved and were woven into the storyline made for an interesting and highly unsettling viewing experience, with the final "jump out of the seat" ending being a perfect finish to an attention-grabbing story that packed a serious punch. Essential viewing !
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