Sometimes all it takes is one little thing to totally destroy your day. “Back Up, Please,” while a very suspenseful short film, exemplifies that “one little thing” and serves as a warning to people to avoid bad situations through the use of kindness and a little common sense. If you don’t practice those things, you can end up like the four people in this movie.
Will (Branden Morgan) and his pregnant wife, Jana (Light Wilder), are running late. Martin (Ron Gilbert) and his potential right hand man, Tim (Karl Bury), are going to a “job.” Tim has to show Martin that he’s a tough guy in order to be hired by him. When they get stuck in a construction area with Will and Jana, Tim finds the ideal situation to prove his manhood. Will’s pride doesn’t let him back down, and tensions between the two men escalate quickly and realistically, leading to an ending that hits viewers right between the eyes. By the time the credits roll around, you almost feel like you’ve been watching a Gaspar Noe film.
This is an incredibly gripping movie with a very talented cast, and the pacing is unlike anything I’ve seen yet this year. With the limited amount of time a short film has in which to work, “Back Up, Please” provides more jolt than a movie ten times its length, and that’s a testament to the skills of all the people involved. If you pass this one up, you’re doing yourself a disservice.
