Author: Chris Richards
Three college students endure an icy Middlebury day in a film that intertwines their stories to explore relationships immersed in the awkward, alienating and quirky social world of a small liberal arts college.
Clever, subdued performances, striking use of color and images and a crafty script elevate this student film from the typical amateurish and clichÈ-ridden works of young filmmakers.
"February" is the debut film from Redux, the artistic production company behind plays including this fall's "The Stranger" and "Frank's Wild Years."
The 30-minute piece was written and directed by Alex Poe '03 and Joe Varca '02 and features a cast of Middlebury College students and recent alums.
While this film showcased the talent and intelligence of their theatrical work, it lacked the experimental and crisp professional execution that characterizes their previous projects. "February" avoids clichÈ and has some interesting touches to it, but it would have been interesting to see Redux push the envelope more with their first movie.
As the film opens, we encounter Andrew (smartly played by Poe), a student struggling in the winter of his discontent. The scene in which he meets with a college counselor ignores his essential problem of loneliness and unrequited love, and focuses on the counselor's diagnosis of seasonal affective disorder.
According to the counselor, the cure for Andrew's depression will be a sun lamp, rather than discussing the issues or making changes in his life. The film builds the idea of Andrew's life being dominated by artificial, manufactured objects as opposed to connections with the human or the organic.
Obsessing over a possible phone call from the girl he loves, Andrew checks his voice mail and basks in the intense glare of the sun lamp that will supposedly lift his spirits.
The ridiculousness of Andrew's phone tag and attempts at curing his melancholy through pseudo-intellectual parties and artificial light are integral to the strength of "February." Poe's portrayal of Andrew's excessive phone messages reeking of desperation and deadpan interactions with his would-be-philosopher classmates and college advisors are at once comic and cringe inducing.
The other two plot lines are more familiar, and perhaps too obvious. Shannon, played by Lily Balsen '06, finds herself forced into an awkward blind date by her friend, while Eric, portrayed by Varca, discovers that the relationship he has been in is unraveling due in part to lack of communication.
Eric and his girlfriend Claire, subtly acted by alum Susie Carter '02, go out to dinner and a semi-formal, and Eric learns that there is something lacking in his relationship.
Meanwhile, Shannon reluctantly drags herself out for the night, yet finds pleasure in meeting Aaron, played by Otter Nonsense's Toby Lawless '04.
These two plot lines in their portrayals of a first date and the end of a relationship take on well-trodden ground, but there are some interesting touches to these two stories, all the same.
Shannon's date is far from the idyllic first date, but instead is realistic in its depiction of a budding romance through tender moments and avoids the trite and overly sentimental territory of most romantic comedies.
Aaron, Shannon's blind date, confesses to her in a cold alleyway, "I really like you."
Yet the moment is undercut when he pauses and turns to announce that he is going to puke and promptly does so. The plot at its most rudimentary level may be banal, but the scenes are infused with wry humor and attention to detail.
Perry Blackshear's '05 cinematography and editing work enhance the intertwining stories. The script is written in such a way that the scenes indirectly comment on each other since each character goes through an identical night of going to dinner, partying and then returning to his or her dorm rooms.
These juxtapositions are both comic and bleak, as we see Eric's character uneasily creep back into bed with Claire after cheating on her, while Shannon cuddles up with Aaron in a moment that displays tremendous possibility and hope.
The specific images and colors used in the film help to elucidate the character's lives.
Eric is immersed in a cold blue light, enhancing his isolation and loneliness, Shannon's vivacious world is saturated with color and filled with rapid movements and energy, while Andrew's life is dominated by the contrast between artificial and real light.
While the filmmaking is strong, "February" was not free from some amateurish qualities.
At times continuity errors, poorly focused shots, and overdone performances distracted from the richness and subtlety of other scenes.
At the screening in Dana Auditorium, the actor's faces were obscured because of bad lighting during a few scenes, and the dialogue was occasionally difficult to hear.
Also, I wonder how the film would translate to a non-Middlebury audience since some moments succeeded on the level of inside jokes, rather than universally engaging touches.
However, this problem did not plague the whole film, as it exposes its audience to a specific world but also contains scenes that would speak to any college student's experiences.
Despite its shortcomings, as a student film, Poe and Varca's "February" demonstrates tremendous promise.
The superb cast, and in particular Freeman White's '03 portrayal of a Residential Advisor who just wants to be loved and Jesse Holland's turn as a pretentious student philosopher, were enthralling to watch.
The film's sharp performances, well-written script and incisive filmmaking create an experience that transcends the realm of student film and heralds the debut of Poe, Varca and Blackshear as three very talented young filmmakers.
'February' Marks Redux's First Foray into Film
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