Fused

I like 'Fused,' generally. It takes a couple concepts that have been explored in other stories and twists them together in a direction that's familiar, but different enough to hold my interest. I like composer Julian Bickford's simmering ambient music as it lends notable atmosphere to the short.

I admire the cinematic challenge of visualizing the inner conflict of a character. To be sure, many other movies - some very noteworthy and recognizable - have tried to depict such a dichotomy, to varying degrees of success. The effort especially relies, to one extent or another, on capable acting, directing, and editing. I think star Sarah McGuire does a fine job of portraying that crux of the short, even given the tonal limitations. Writer-director Patrick Rea, in his editing, thankfully declines to embellish the pivotal climactic scene with cuts (pursued to unfortunate effect in much bigger movies) that would both play down his actor's skills and cheapen the overall result.

With that measure of success in mind, it's also worth noting that I've found 'Fused' more enjoyable and engrossing the second time around compared to my first view. Even so, there's a part of me that wonders if it's not a concept better on paper than it is on film. I can picture this same tale, as a written short story, with details that flesh out the characters more, and the narrative generally, and make the central conflict more vivid and captivating. This feature isn't bad by any means, but there's an indescribable air of something missing.

And with that said, too, the primary issue I have is with how understated this is. Thinking on the short later, unable to immediately recall the title, I thought it was "Subdued." The story moseys along with a coherent flow, yet told with minimal sense of thrill, fright, or broad unease. It IS - and then what?

Ultimately, I think 'Fused' is reasonably well done, exploring ideas in a way that's sufficiently unique to keep me watching. I have difficulty wholly engaging with its somewhat quiet, restrained approach, but it obviously kept my curiosity enough to return for another round. At only 19 minutes, 'Fused' is no revelation, but it's a moderately worthy view if you come across it.