"Welcome" is an American live action short film from 2007. this one runs for 13 minutes and it was the very first directorial effort by Golden Globe nominated actress Kirsten Dunst. One other short film followed and this year (2017), we get her first full feature work as a filmmaker. I truly hope this new film will be better than her work we have here. It's a really forgettable short film I must say and nothing too interesting or exciting. This is especially disappointing because she had 2-time Oscar nominee Winona Ryder and (then not yet) Oscar nominee John Hawkes at her disposal, so not just a fairly famous name directing this one, but also names in the cast that you usually don't find in most short films. But apart from the occasional jump scare (still fairly uninspired) and a solidly atmospheric take, there is nothing memorable in here. I give it a thumbs-down and like I said I hope that working with all these big names directors increased Dunst's vision as well for her upcoming Dakota Fanning movie.
2 Reviews
Welcome: See no Evil
mausar10 August 2009
This short and entertaining horror movie is a real rare jewel. You should have seen it on YouTube only in September 2007, when it was presented in Reel Moments contest. It's the debut of Kirsten Dunst as director, starring Winona Ryder. This work is not perfect, of course. The film contains some disappointing flaws, due to its short format.
(Spoilers)
Its sudden ending doesn't let us to understand the dynamics of the characters, their psychology and the motivations which let Winona Ryder to change completely her behaviour (I don't want to add spoilersÂ… so I can't explain other details!). But during the movie, you could be attracted by the rare atmosphere created by the dark scenes, the sounds of a semi-empty house (and no music at all), the camera which follows every character from a mysterious point of view. Kirsten Dunst is trying to recreate a suspense in which you see nothing but you fear to see something. And she reaches her scope perfectly, until the end of the short. Contrary to many other horror movies, this one reflects a real optimistic sense of life: respect and friendship are always possible, the unknown must not be feared. In this Dunst's movie, at least, we see no Evil.
(Spoilers)
Its sudden ending doesn't let us to understand the dynamics of the characters, their psychology and the motivations which let Winona Ryder to change completely her behaviour (I don't want to add spoilersÂ… so I can't explain other details!). But during the movie, you could be attracted by the rare atmosphere created by the dark scenes, the sounds of a semi-empty house (and no music at all), the camera which follows every character from a mysterious point of view. Kirsten Dunst is trying to recreate a suspense in which you see nothing but you fear to see something. And she reaches her scope perfectly, until the end of the short. Contrary to many other horror movies, this one reflects a real optimistic sense of life: respect and friendship are always possible, the unknown must not be feared. In this Dunst's movie, at least, we see no Evil.
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