B:<\/strong> Again, a little light on plot and purpose, but Adrian Garcia Bogliano does put forth a charmingly warped child\u2019s bedtime story that manages to stick even after poor little Xochitl\u2019s experience with the tale comes to an end.<\/p>\n C:<\/strong> A curious scenario, but poor pacing makes the piece far less suspenseful than it needs to be. With so little time to build the lead character, it\u2019s not concern for his safety that gives \u201cC\u201d momentum, but the story alone and it\u2019s just not pieced together effectively enough to make the viewer feel the threat. <\/p>\n D:<\/strong> As someone who cried her way through \u201cFrankenweenie,\u201d I should be entirely turned off by Marcel Sarmiento\u2019s \u201cDogfight,\u201d but the stunning slow motion visuals build towards such a wildly satisfying payoff that they justify the unpleasant subject matter.<\/p>\n E:<\/strong> A simple, cute one-on-one between a guy and a house spider turns into a far more alarming situation after the man thinks his unwanted houseguest is long gone. The build to the climax is on the weaker side, making Angels Bettis\u2019 entry less intense than it could have been, but the piece does make for one of the more entertaining watches, even if it\u2019s just a fleeting sensation.<\/p>\n F:<\/strong> Everyone\u2019s got boundaries when it comes to fart jokes and Noboru Iguchi\u2019s \u201cF\u201d certainly can be a bit too much for some. The piece is actually more fleshed out than most, but if you\u2019re easily perturbed by farting to excess, you might be too nauseated to appreciate the humor.<\/p>\n G:<\/strong> Andrew Traucki does a solid job of putting the audience in a surfer\u2019s position by using the found footage format, but the piece\u2019s grand finale is too weighty for this tiny short to handle, making it a bit of a downer.<\/p>\n H:<\/strong> There\u2019s really no appropriate way to sum up the entry for \u201cH,\u201d but the short\u2019s outrageously unique plot, unusual characters and vibrant set and costume design are all so absorbing, you\u2019re ready and excited to handle all the heightened madness Thomas Malling throws your way.<\/p>\n I:<\/strong> Between the slow pace, the overly artful narration, the grotesque imagery and incredibly grating background tone, \u201cI\u201d is a tough one to get through. Even worse, your patience and resolve isn\u2019t even rewarded as there\u2019s zero payoff at the short\u2019s conclusion and the letter reveal. <\/p>\n J:<\/strong> Yudai Yamaguchi\u2019s \u201cJ\u201d certainly has a unique sense of humor, but with little to no narrative, the gags just aren\u2019t funny enough for this warped display of a samurai execution to have a lasting impact.<\/p>\n K:<\/strong> Usually not one for gross-out poop jokes, I\u2019m shocked to say my favorite short of the bunch is an animated piece about a woman who can\u2019t manage to flush her poo down the toilet. \u201cK\u201d is loaded with laughs, comes with a dose of well-earned gore, and features – dare I say it? – the most adorable piece of sh*t I\u2019ve ever seen in my life.<\/p>\n L:<\/strong> Timo Tjahjanto squeezes an impressive amount of story into his piece, but you\u2019re either into that story or you\u2019re not. However, even if an excessive display of masturbation isn\u2019t your thing, \u201cL\u201d is still very clearly a well-conveyed tale and, overall, a well-made short.<\/p>\n M:<\/strong> Keeping in line with a good deal of his resume, Ti West dishes out a bloody scenario that hits hard, but without violence. The large majority of his short is curious yet unremarkable, but then West hits you with the letter reveal and it winds up being more of a smart, punch to the gut than most. <\/p>\n N:<\/strong> Banjong Pisanthanakun wins big by not taking his short too seriously. We\u2019ve got an emotional moment between a man and his girlfriend, but it\u2019s their charming pet bird that steals the spotlight courtesy of some innocently destructive behavior. <\/p>\n O:<\/strong> More of a montage than a story, Bruno Forzani and H\u00e9l\u00e9ne Cattet\u2019s submission for \u201cO\u201d feels more like a mindless intermission rather than a viable piece of the anthology.<\/p>\n P:<\/strong> Hands down the worst letter of \u201cThe ABC\u2019s of Death\u201d due to animal cruelty. Whereas \u201cD\u201d approaches its testy subject matter with a degree of aestheticism, \u201cP\u201d is so heartless and blunt, it\u2019s enraging.<\/p>\n Q:<\/strong> Adam Wingard and Simon Barrett get shafted with the letter \u201cQ,\u201d but the duo uses it to their advantage by making their short about just that. The piece\u2019s big finish is a little predicable, but Wingard and Barrett make for amusing leads and have no trouble entertaining from beginning to end.<\/p>\n R:<\/strong> Srdjan Spasojevic\u2019s \u201cR\u201d boasts a wildly intriguing main character and situation, but the plot fizzles out into a strange and confusing conclusion.<\/p>\n S:<\/strong> Jake West tries to keep things contained, concluding his grand scale desert car chase with an intimate twist, but by that point, your mind\u2019s wandered too much for it to have the intended effect. <\/p>\n T:<\/strong> \u201cThe ABCs of Death\u201d animation goes two for two. This is a horrific yet charming little tale about a boy forced to say goodbye to his potty, face his fears and use a proper toilet. <\/p>\n U:<\/strong> A run-of-the-mill shaky cam film. The fact that the POV belongs to the threat rather than victims should make the bit stand out, but with little to no narrative, \u201cU\u201d doesn\u2019t amount to much. <\/p>\n V:<\/strong> While this one does have the highest production value of the bunch, the futuristic tale about an officer tasked with eliminating illegal infants needs a much longer running time to earn such profound beats. <\/p>\n W:<\/strong> Jon Schnepp\u2019s portion of the film is downright ridiculous \u2013 just as it should be. Coming after Wingard and Barrett\u2019s Q, initially there\u2019s concern about going the aware director route yet again, but Schnepp and co. throw so much maniacal nonsense in your face, it\u2019s tough not to get some satisfaction from the title reveal.<\/p>\n X:<\/strong> Xavier Gens\u2019 entry sends a powerful message, but this short about an overweight woman haunted by a bikini commercial is too violently unpleasant to appreciate. <\/p>\n Y:<\/strong> \u201cHobo with a Shotgun\u201d director Jason Eisener makes an impression with a film about a junior high janitor being chased by a the head of a buck. The short plays like a music video, pounding to an 80s pop tune, helping to turn nauseating and grotesque material into something that\u2019s oddly enjoyable before delivering one of the more satisfying and well-earned title reveals.<\/p>\n Z:<\/strong> \u201cZ\u201d is loaded with vibrant imagery, but the story it\u2019s supporting is just absolutely nonsensical. There\u2019s a small dose of exposition delivered at the beginning, but it\u2019s not clear enough and the piece is just way too wacky to justify the oddball, bloody porno battle that follows.<\/p>\n If you tally up the ups and downs, the grand total is in the film\u2019s favor, but, even though \u201cThe ABCs of Death\u201d is a compellation of smaller films, it\u2019s still one feature in and of itself and in that sense, it also veers towards the positive side, suggesting the horror anthology format has potential. Clearly there are quite a few lulls, but because there\u2019s 26 shorts crammed into the 124-minute running time, those lulls come and go pretty fast. Whether you\u2019ve hit one of the film\u2019s highs or lows, after the screen bleeds to red and concludes each short with its title reveal, you can\u2019t help but to be excited and curious about what\u2019s up next.<\/p>\n Technical: B-<\/p>\n Acting: B<\/p>\n Story: B-<\/p>\n Overall: B<\/B><\/p>\n
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