If you're looking for an out-of-this-world sort of feeling Boneyard Racers is the short film for you. It feels like it is set in a universe that is slightly adjacent to our own, and somewhat darker too.
I do find myself quite fond of movies that deftly navigate a sense of world-building without spending time building the world. This movie dives right in, with no set-up, no pretense, no external context, and yet, it instantly draws you in. It begins in the middle of a story, in a normal day in the life of people who live in a world that is normal to them, but unlike our own. It creates an instant sense of unease and uncanny, which I instantly fell in love with! Story aside, the entire style of the film itself was quite impressive!
It's in the subtleties: The pops of coloured lights that out-of-focus throughout the background, mostly a mix of red and blue. The factory and industrial looking buildings spanning the backdrop on the horizon. The use of fogger, haze, and cigarette smoke throughout certain areas. The stylized colour-grade, the sharp closeups, I could go on.
It's also in the less subtle things: The costumes! WOW the costumes! The make-up. Wow, what make-up! The set decoration. What an absolute creative design. All of this technical planning pulled together with some heavy stylized acting from actors who clearly know what they are doing makes it an unforgettable spectacle to watch.
My personal favourite part of the design is the icy coloured irises on Neil Chase's character, for some reason, they are very striking and add so much to the film as such a small detail. Gives the perfect kind of chill-down-the-spine feeling.
David Heacock as Chuck and Lindsay Christopher as Dee Dee really stuck out to me with the stylized, intense portrayals of their unique characters. Of course, the protagonist, Thomas Kassian as Sam and the antagonist, Neil Chase as Johnny both did a masterful job as well as they held the story with a palpable increase in tension between them.
I think the entire team did a spectacular job on this film, I have recommended it to several people since watching it. With a 13-minute run-time, it is an easy watch and, in my opinion, is extremely worth it. I would recommend it for Halloween, or any day in the month of October, or November, or any month in Autumn, or really, at any time at all.
