In the arts, taking a concept and producing it to completion is never easy. No matter how experienced a creator may be, they’re bound to endure pitfalls and difficulties along the way, especially when their resources may be limited.
For many filmmakers, if they can look at their finished product and say that they gave it everything that they had, they can feel satisfied. Having the ability to look back on a project and objectively acknowledge the missteps is just as important, however. Hannah of the Dead , a horror short written and directed by Nicholas M. Garofolo is one example of this.
With a runtime of just 11 minutes, no time is wasted getting to the crux of the story, thankfully. After a heated argument, Hannah (Amanda LoCoco) is kicked out of her house by her mother (Sue Farina). Left with nowhere to go and desperate for a place to stay, she soon accepts an offer from a stranger she meets named Fred (played by Garofolo).
Fred’s intentions, unsurprisingly, are not honorable, and Hannah soon finds herself thrown into a life of prostitution, drugs, and alcohol. With this film being so short, revealing more of what transpires would be giving away too much of the plot. Suffice it to say, Hannah’s life continues to spiral until she’s left to seek revenge on those who have mistreated her.
Unfortunately, Hannah of the Dead is overburdened with a number of issues. The editing is choppy and erratic through the entirety of the movie, with cut scenes that are perplexing and inconsistent. There are several instances where the sound doesn’t match up with what’s happening in the scene or what the character is saying. There’s also a rock band soundtrack constantly running in the background during scenes that don’t need it, which only takes away from what’s happening with the characters. This gives the film an unfinished feel, as if it was thrown together with little regard to editorial polishing.
The dialogue and performances as a whole are also problematic, though Farina’s portrayal of the mother is by far the best of the entire cast.
From a writing perspective, this feels like a script that wanted to be a longer feature, but the creators did not have the funds or assets to execute it. By the time we get to the point of the story, it’s already almost over, which is an egregious error when working with such a tight timeframe.
Overall, this is a prime example of a crew who were too ambitious in their expectations, resulting in a delivery that does not land.
