Amelia and Michael (2007)

Don't listen to the Hype. It's awful

Boring, long, and too preachy.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

Short films can be tricky. On one hand, shorts are the perfect format for a director to show off a certain set of skills as a way of getting noticed. On the other hand, it's very easy for shorts to seem pretentious and too artsy for their own good with a director trying too hard to impress. Amelia and Michael avoids such problems by having a simple style, one that compliments the quiet and soft-spoken characters. Director Daniel Cormack does a nice job of keeping a steady pace and never allowing the film or its title characters (expertly played by Anthony Head and Natasha Powell) to go into over-the-top territory. The decision to keep the music as minimal as possible in order to have the focus to stay on the emotions is the best part of the film. Without the typical sappy music playing in the background, Cormack allows the story to seem more honest and realistic than what one might expect from a such a dramatic piece. Perhaps there could have been an ending with a bit more of a kick behind it, but for all of its short length, Amelia and Michael is a captivating watch. 9/10

Amelia and Michael (2007) *** 1/2 (out of 4) Extremely well-made short about an upper class married couple, Michael (Anthony Head) and Amelia (Natasha Powell), who appear to have everything but both are leading a secret life. When he's supposed to be on a business trip, Michael is in a hotel room with a prostitute while his wife is also with a lover except this one is in a hospital in a coma. I probably watch over two or three hundred short films a year and after a while they all pretty much bleed together so it can be hard finding one that's rather original. Back in the 20s, 30s and 40s major studios did a fantastic job with them because they were in high demand but in the past few decades it seems anyone can make a short and release it. The shocking thing about AMELIA AND MICHAEL is how incredibly well-made it is. I'm really not sure what the budget was but this every bit like an expensive studio film because the cinematography really brings everything to life. What really works so well here is the direction by Daniel Cormack because unlike so many young filmmakers he's not trying to make his film feel cool or something you'd catch on MTV but instead he really tries to tell a story and develop a couple characters. You might say big deal to that but it's very rare for so much to happen in just a 10-minute movie and I give the director credit for keeping the film at a slow pace, building up drama and most importantly building up the sadness in these two people's lives. I thought it was this overall sadness of the characters that really exploded out of the film and the slow pacing really helped this. I was very impressed with the two leads who brought a lot to their roles. Both really help bring the characters to life and it's not usual seeing such fine performances in a short like this. There's no question that the director has an eye to building up a story without feeling the need for silly fast cutting or constantly having the camera moving to try and build up some sort of style. The film certainly isn't a masterpiece but it's highly well-made and effective.

In London, the executive Michael (Anthony Head) and his wife Amelia (Natasha Powell) have successful upper class lifestyle, living in a comfortable house, having a fancy car with driver and showing a great respect and affection to each other. However, Amelia has a lover in coma in the hospital, and she frequently visits him and pays the expenses of his treatment. While traveling to Milan in a business trip, Michael has one night stand with an escort girl. Amelia receives a phone call, and when she arrives in the hospital, she realizes that her lover has died. When Michael returns from Milan, their lives return to their hypocrite routine."Amelia and Michael" has only 10 minutes running time, but director Daniel Cormack is able to perfectly compile and disclose the masks of the wasted relationships in his short. The tight and sharp screenplay uses ellipsis to unravel the hypocrite and accommodated relationship of a middle-aged couple, but unfortunately it is not possible to develop how their affective lives have become so shallow. I know the actor Anthony Head from Buffy series, and I really liked his performance in a dramatic role. Natasha Powell is unknown for me, but has also a great performance. The stylish cinematography and lighting are impressive for a low-budget short, and I liked the last scene with the reference of the motorcycle passing by Amelia's car indicating that their lives will remain the same. My vote is eight.Title (Brazil): Not Available

Amelia and Michael are a successful couple who outwardly have everything they could want. A good home. A classy car with a driver. High-flying careers. However their marriage is one of discrete politeness where once there would have been intimacy and both harbours secrets about the other.I was away for work recently and had access to broadband (which believe it or, this particular internet geek does not have in his home) and decided to take up an invitation to watch another film from Daniel Cormack. The first film I had seen from Daniel had not really impressed me much but I was curious to see more from him. This short film was a much better calling card for him as it showed much more style and skill with the camera than "Make Me A Tory" had done. It also shows a much more subtle touch as a story teller (although that would not be hard).The film has a recognisable couple in the middle. Their wealth and comfort is probably exaggerated a little beyond what I can relate to, but the emotional heart is there – or rather the lack of it. We see both partners together looking slick, being "content" and exchanging kisses on the cheek etc as the routine has had them doing for many years. Individually though they are both seeking something elsewhere. It is here where the film frustrated me a little but not allowing me to understand the "something" that well. I didn't get who the hospitalised man was to Amelia (if anyone) and I didn't get if the conclusion of the film was "more of the same" or "all fixed now"; I choose to take it as the former, as this would be more in keeping with the film I did find the lack of detail to be a bit of an appeal as well because it left the focus on this rather unfulfilling relationship and the way that played out for the two characters. However this effect could still have been achieved with a bit of detail being delivered as well. The cast seem to be suggesting this as well. I thought Head was good but his character seemed easier to understand – not only in terms of what was going on but also in terms of the "why". Powell didn't seem so assured about her character and she was less convincing as the wife in this dead relationship (and unfortunately I do know how one acts). The two did do an OK job of convincing as a couple, but lacked that chemistry that comes when chemistry exists but has just died from lack of trying (didn't describe that very well but you know what I mean). I'm not sure if Cormack failed to deliver this aspect of Betts' script or not but I'm guessing that a lot did fall to the former to draw out given how little dialogue there was. In this area he does OK but generally as director he is impressive, with good shots, good editing and clever use of film stock coming together to make a visually polished and impressive product.Touching in its own way then and I did like the way that it allows the emotions to be mostly played out in silence in the small things – just as they are in the marriage itself. However the lack of narrative was a bit frustrating and I did think that either the screenplay needed to have more in it for the actors to work off and deliver on screen. Pretty good short film, just left me feeling like it could have gone that extra bit further and been better for it.