Stump the Guesser

20202020
19min

He works at the fairground as "Stump the Guesser", who can guess anything for a fee. But suddenly his tricks stop working. And then he unwittingly falls in love with his sister whom he belie... Read allHe works at the fairground as "Stump the Guesser", who can guess anything for a fee. But suddenly his tricks stop working. And then he unwittingly falls in love with his sister whom he believed to be lost. He sets out to scientifically disprove the theory of heredity and marry hi... Read allHe works at the fairground as "Stump the Guesser", who can guess anything for a fee. But suddenly his tricks stop working. And then he unwittingly falls in love with his sister whom he believed to be lost. He sets out to scientifically disprove the theory of heredity and marry his beloved as soon as possible. An absurdist firework of a silent film in black and white.

6.7/10

352

Directors
Writers
- Evan Johnson(Writer)
- Galen Johnson(Writer)
- Guy Maddin(Writer)
Stars

Top credits

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Awards
- 3 nominations

Directors
Writers
- Evan Johnson(Writer)
- Galen Johnson(Writer)
- Guy Maddin(Writer)
All cast & crew

See production, box office, & company info

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He works at the fairground as "Stump the Guesser", who can guess anything for a fee. But suddenly his tricks stop working. And then he unwittingly falls in love with his sister whom he believed to be lost. He sets out to scientifically disprove the theory of heredity and marry his beloved as soon as possible. An absurdist firework of a silent film in black and white.

Genres
Parents guide
- Add content advisory

Top review

9/10

Truly great!

This is great! A lovely short film, shot largely in black and white and presented in 4:3 with a dizzying layered composition. The Guesser (Adam Brooks) is a circus performer, guessing the correct answer to any question posed to him by the Victorian looking audience. He's the Night Guesser, there's another bloke covering the day shift and on one shift The Guesser discovers the other bloke has drank all his guessing milk, just when he needs it most! He's in trouble after an incorrect guess that bizarrely leads him to fall in love with his long lost sister and finds himself at the mercy of the Guessing Inspector who revokes his license. It's a wild ride, but really well put together. Silent aside the music, dialogue animated on screen as he moves through a dark world of shadows, Dutch angles and bizarre experiments to determine who is what to whom. The Guesser finds his guesses taking on more importance than mere circus entertainment. It's one of the best short films I've seen in some time. Playful and inventive, thought provoking, funny and brilliantly produced. The music and sound design is brilliant, the edit and animation perfect, the casting spot on. A fantastic piece of work.

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