SUNDANCE 2021 PREMIERE – While I *could* immediately & happily launch into my opinions on the scenario The Affected presents, my personal views don’t really have anything to do with the quality or watchability of this short film so I won’t take that bait. 

Instead I’ll focus on how successfully The Affected presents a hypothetical situation wherein the pilot of a commercial airliner gets drawn into other people’s passionate political beliefs (re: deportation) when he’s just trying to keep the flight schedule by taking off imminently.

From the pilot and his co-pilot to the crew as well as passengers, pretty much everyone/everything about The Affected seems like it could be lifted exactly as it is from real life. Nobody turns into an action hero nor does a huge event occur–there’s simply an issue to deal with before taking off with many uncertain how to proceed as they don’t want to look like the bad guy.

The direction by Rikke Gregerson has an energy and verve to it from the get-go with an aerial shot of people boarding the plane which manages to keep the sense of movement going once we’re confined to the fuselage. The performances are all rather complementary to the slice-of-life tone and by that I just mean everyone seems like actual people you might encounter in a given day.

I also appreciate how it manages to not feel like it’s taking any particular side, exactly, when all’s said and done. Several POVs get their moment in the sun and before you know it the credits are rolling with nothing really resolved, but I know I was left with a strong opinion on the matter so congrats on getting my blood boiling a little bit in just under 15 minutes! So, give The Affected a watch and see where you land on the topic at hand.

8 out of 10 Blood Boiling Flights