Wednesday, August 27, 2008

HELLO

A young boy uses a payphone at school to call his mother. But before the boy can ask his mother to pick him up, the phone disconnects. Fortunately the distraught boy will find solace in the kindness of a stranger.

HELLO is a short film directed by Lakpathy Wijesekara, produced by Thamindu Ranasinghe and the actors are Nilesh Narendran with Tharindu Jayakody.

This is the first short film critiqued upon the request of the director. Lakpathy Wijesekara is a 16 year old filmmaker based in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

The plot is straightforward yet effective. I assume that the younger and older boy both reside in the school boarding house. This is why the younger boy informs his mother via the payphone that he is well and studying hard. Meanwhile the older boy is talking to his girlfriend through his mobile phone. The conflict of the story arises when the money in the payphone runs out, before the younger boy can ask his mother to pick him up. Simultaneously the funds on the older boy's mobile phone depletes, resulting in him walking towards the payphone. The older boy observes the distress on the younger boy's face and decides to help him.
This is a touching story similar to the tale of the "Good Samaritan." The older boy's act of unselfishness is a simple but heartfelt message for the viewer. The opening credits sequence is attention-grabbing. Imaginative selection of the score music gives the short film a magical feel, like a Tim Burton film. Close-Ups and Wide-Shots are utilized appropriately to focus on key mannerisms and reactions. My only criticism is the shaky backward movement of the camera in the final scene. But all in all a fine effort by a future Sri Lankan filmmaker who displays attention to detail and a natural ability for storytelling.

For those interested in viewing HELLO, follow the link below.

http://www.youtube.com/lakpathy

S. V. Fernando

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

well i watched the film on youtube and i have to say that for a first time effort it was quite good. i loved the music, very "nightmare before christmas". i was disappointed in the choice to use english dialogue. the lines would probably have been delivered better if they were in the native tongue as it seemed a bit forced. because its the director's first time i understand the need for a simple story line but it is my hope that next time he will choose an orginal thought provoking story, something sri lankan cinema clearly lacks(don't believe me? check out the reviews of other sri lankan films.) overall a good effort and looking foward to seeing future projects.

Anonymous said...

for a young first time director, i can say the camera work is well done. The still shots were a nice touch, something most average directors are too lazy to bother with.

i do suggest that for your next film work a more interesting plot, even if it is short.

But overall good work