In writer/director Harry Waldman’s Enter The Room, a young aspiring actor, Jeremy (Rich Holton), decides to crash at his brother Brian’s (Peter Mastne) apartment while he’s in town for an acting gig. Brian’s controlling and OCD personality clashes with Jeremy’s more relaxed demeanor, turning the apartment into a toxic environment.
Every single thing Jeremy does bothers Brian, and he doesn’t hold back, demanding that Jeremy follow his rules. Brian’s outbursts demand such unrealistic expectations that the two reach a breaking point, revealing something deeper is going on behind Brian’s madness—a familial tragedy that cannot remain buried any longer.
Enter The Room succeeds in making viewers uncomfortable as if you, too, were living with an aggravating roommate. Familial conflict is a relatable subject, and Waldman’s film will surely evoke an emotional response from those who watch it. It’s neither a pleasant watch nor enjoyable, which appears to be the point. So, in that way, it successfully tells a story of suppressed trauma and loss.
“…Jeremy decides to crash at his brother Brian’s…turning the apartment into a toxic environment.”
Its editing matches the erratic behavior of its main character, Brian, and in some instances, it will cause you to look away from its shaky, flashy surges of psychological hysteria. Harry Waldman’s style makes this familiar subject matter unique, but the big reveal at the end feels too out of left field, placing it in a lesser M. Night Shyamalan category that doesn’t feel earned.
There is such a detachment between Brian and the audience because of how unlikable he is that by the time we are supposed to feel sorry for him, not enough depth has been given to his character to fully sympathize.
It’s impressive to develop a 15-minute film that takes place in a single room, and for young filmmakers, Enter The Room is worth watching to get the wheels turning on how you can manipulate a single location through camera angles, lighting, props, dialogue, internal monologue, and story. It seems, however, that other short films taking place in a single location have done so much more with even less.
"…sure to evoke an emotional response…"
