Twice a year, you have to plop yourself into the dentist’s chair… for your own good. But can you resist the temptation to put it off for as long as you can? In M. Dara Alavi’s short film Bad Tooth, one such man fights tooth and nail to stop the pain.
Alex (Joshua Burge) lives a go-nowhere life with an ex-girlfriend (Nicole Nygaard) who wishes he were more present in the world. Making matters worse, he has a painful tooth but can’t afford the dental bills. Ironically, he’s found a gig as a tooth mascot for a TV dentist who offers not-so-affordable financing. Though he’s smiling on the outside, his tooth is rotting on the inside.
Alex screams in terror with blood running down his chin in Bad Tooth.
“Stressed out of his mind, Alex needs a good night’s sleep before a big job opportunity in the morning, but his mouth has other plans.”
Stressed out of his mind, Alex needs a good night’s sleep before a big job opportunity in the morning, but his mouth has other plans. The ache won’t stop, and as the night drags on, something begins to grow in his jaw.
I’ll admit it. I hate going to the dentist, and when an ache shows up, I avoid making an appointment. Money doesn’t have a lot to do with it. It’s all the jerking, poking, and yanking. In the end, you’ll do whatever it takes to make the pain go away.
Joshua Burge gives an incredible performance as Alex, a man hanging on to the last shred of his sanity. His facial expressions say everything about Alex. Tonally, it’s almost as if director M. Dara Alavi built the entire film around Burge. By the end, you’re going to want to rip your own tooth out right then and there.
"…you're going to want to rip your own tooth out..."
