Written and directed by JP Bradham, Consumed is a short movie set in the home of everyday couple Tammy and Michael. The story succeeds in showing, without telling, discussing the contemporary woes and allure of shopping and digital world living.

Consumed begins with Michael (Matthew Grondin) arriving home to find his partner Tammy (Georgina Reilly) surrounded by a mountain of unopened packages and in the middle of ordering yet more packages. After pleading with Tammy to stop ordering so much stuff, the couple separates for the evening, allowing Tammy to experience a nightmarish infomercial that causes her to rethink her habits.

Everything from the sound design to the framing felt very intentional and methodic, however not in a soulless way; in fact, quite the contrary. Bradham made smart directorial choices in her prominent sound effects and lighting, which often seemed more purposely reminiscent of technology than natural. The distance placed between the characters with their blocking were great touches that worked together to establish the movie’s theme of deadly consumerism and the sometimes disconnected nature of modern-day relationships. The couple was often in the same frame, but at different sizes and angles, symbolic of them not being on the same page with their spending habits and worldview.

The quality of the computer graphics reflected a low budget, but keeping that in mind, I appreciated their presence nonetheless. What’s more, I appreciated the performance by actress Georgina Reilly as Tammy, as Riley had to stretch her acting skills to connect the larger theme of deadly consumerism with the subplot of mourning her dead mother. Instead of coping by nurturing her relationship with her romantic partner, Tammy ends up turning to her phone and television, where we are introduced to a nightmare version of an infomercial presenter, who I also enjoyed as a character in this story. I most enjoyed the visual aspects of the film and Riley’s acting performance, and I enjoyed the story until its end, where the introduction of a slasher aspect seemed to be somewhat shoehorned in rather than being a natural fit to the rest of the story.

Overall I enjoyed Consumed and its attempt at wrangling big existential happenings of dealing with societal over-consumption, along with dealing with grief and unhealthy coping mechanisms. Though I did not feel that the end of the film was set up all that well by the rest of the story, the rest of the story was fun and, at times, grotesque to watch, and the character of Tammy was made wholly relatable thanks to a very human performance from Georgina Riley.

7.5 out of 10