Foet

I first saw this movie at the Tromadance film festival and was blown away.

What scares me is that this movie is about fetal skin purses and recently the news has been filled with abortion issues. The Lacy Peterson case brought up the questions about Fetuses (Feti?) and their rights.

While this movie is a satire (about NYC fashion), it is pretty scary how relevant and topical the themes explored in it are.

The director did a great job with the story and I bet we'll be seeing big things from him in the future.

Foet is very true to the original short story by F. Paul Wilson, one of my all time favorite authors. The short story was named Pelts, i believe, and this adaptation for the screen is faithful. Pelts on the other hand was not faithful at all, was annoying to watch and really without much in it to recommend (other than some good gratuitous nudity). Foet though is a great mini-film, a really nice introduction to Wilson's writings, which are thought provoking and entertaining all at the same time. In the end, both the film and the story remind us how quick we all are to sell out our souls for temporary pleasures. Also, look for Wilson in the restaurant scene (sitting behind the actress who holds the forbidden fruit!).

This film shows us at what lengths people will go to be in the elite circles. Good casting. Simply shot. Gets gross without really trying if you have an active imagination. Good job.

Of all the shorts at this year's NYCHFF, I was looking forward to seeing FOET the most. That might be why I came out slightly disappointed. The dream sequence sort of spoiled the entire film for me with its brightly gelled lighting and intentionally sub-par special effects. That sequence just seemed to turn the director's vision into something too humorous to be taken seriously (so instead of a witty comment on trendsetting, I ended up seeing a one-note joke taken to its limit).

Ian Fischer has great potential and I have absolutely no doubt that as he develops as a director, we'll begin to see great things from him. Make sure to see FOET if you want to see an example of talent-in-the-making.