The Runaway

An unemployed Hamburg architect on the day of a job interview is way laid by a strange child at his door who wants him to take on parenting duties. He attempts to avoid the absurdity but the child wears him down and he is soon very much involved.

This short film about a mysterious child inveigling his way into a man's life one morning and disrupting his whole life in the process has a nice comic start due to the charm of the enigmatic child and the perplexed adult. After losing the job without getting an interview in the film's best scene the film bogs down in seriousness then dissipates into phantasmagoria to tie the loose ends together.

While it remains visually sharp throughout and is well acted the film's turn of events is too sharp and the story inevitably roles over on its side.