In her short film The Man They Never Knew Juliana Rodriguez examines the distress of an older couple going through relationship troubles, taking the day at a remote lake. This is their anniversary, which the husband, Adam (Rick Edwards) has to be reminded of by his wife of 23 years, Louise (Karen Edwards). They are struggling with regret and bitterness over their life decisions. A strange man (Vincent Massi) encroaches on their space, and complains about their bickering. The man strips naked and goes in swimming, to their shock and alarm. Louise goes off on her own and meets a pregnant woman named Seline (Sheena Marie Crawley) who is suffering with a dilemma herself.
Selene tells Louse she must make a huge, emotionally charged, decision she is torn about, and it’s a situation that Louise had gone through early in her adult life. She is sympathetic to Selene’s situation. Louise invites her to come sit with them so she won’t be alone. When the nude man returns from his skinny dipping, things spiral out of control.
“… an older couple taking the day at a remote lake when things spiral out of control …”
The short is billed as a thriller / comedy, but it’s much more the former, and hardly any of the latter. The denouement is dark. The irony of the story is that sometimes the past isn’t done with you, even if you are done with it. People are connected in unexpected ways, and synchronicity can be a bitch. Rodriguez says in her notes that the film was shot in one day, and given that, the production is polished and professional.
"…People are connected in unexpected ways"
