Gasman

I've never been a fan of short films for their 'art-school' and 'experimental' qualities. Simply being a product of those two is not enough. They are almost always too personal, too opaque, and too much obviously serving as 'stepping-stones'.

I was therefore happy to see Lynne Ramsay's short films as the chrysalis for her superb feature films. I was also impressed to learn that she won the Cannes short-film prize, *twice*. And now I can see what others saw in her, for _Gasman_ is the best short film I have ever seen.

Available on the Criterion DVD with _Small Deaths_ and the less good _Kill the Day_, _Gasman_ is a fully-fledged, visionary film that translates directly into the skill and grace of _Ratcatcher_.

_Gasman_ moves directly from the first piece of _Short Deaths_, with the distant father and Lynne Ramsay Jr. again taking centre screen. But _Gasman_ comes to a kind a fruition--a full story with many of the same themes and techniques of _Ratcatcher_: closely observed yet elliptical human behaviour, housing projects, slum-beauty, children's natures, a jumbled impressionistic world caught in partial body closeups and shots from behind people.

The film 'tells' nothing, but the story is dead clear and builds slowly to an emotional pitch that is almost unbearable.

This is a film of jaw-dropping beauty. Sounds trite, but that's how I feel. When the Da and two kids walk on the tracks, the camera is set to a partially closed iris which intensifies the available light and colour in an otherworldly sheen--one that is gone when they return on the same tracks at night, in disappointment. Beauty in service of story is the key.

This *is* the best short film I have ever seen.

When I was a child, I expected that some good things happens at Christmas every year like Christmas present, dinner or something like that. At a Christmas day, usually people have good memories, and at the day, people spend it gaily with someone or alone, but this movie betrays such rule, or expectation. The little girl also predicts such things like me, but she has to know that she can't monopolize her father, and has to face reality. One of the harshest and thing for human is to face reality like money, your looks, complicated human relationships and so on. When humans meet the point to face it, their life changes dramatically and clearly. Almost people, especially people who are used to watching a happy end movie can't understand the reason why directer made such black ending, but it is happy for the little girl, because she can go through reality in early day. People have to face it someday sooner or later, so if they meet it early, they can early get the ability to patient something harsh. I think, therefore, she is a lucky girl. Anyway, this movie is complicated and difficult to understand, but this movie tells everything without saying words, with visuals, so I recommend people who are tired of usual movie or boring ending to watch this movie.

This film deals with a matter in a family. There are some words during the movie, but it is difficult for me to understand the detail situation of the family. You can see four children, Father and Mother in the short. It is a Christmas season, but it is not a happy one for the family.

There is appropriate use of light and dark contrast when they are walking up the tracks. I feel sorrowful because the season of winter is added to the scene.

Some people will think this film is a dull one and I got mixed feelings. I do not watch it many times. However, this 15 minute short is a masterpiece. You should watch it.

Gasman is a proper short film - little plot, none of it told explicitly, but a larger story going on around the camera. Like most of Lynne Ramsey's stuff (Ratcatcher being the best and most enjoyable example, because it isn't a short)it feels like and probably is 1970s/80s East-end Glasgow, the struggling classes and a fairly grim outlook, but you see the little sparks of interest in real lives, and being a small story told very much from a child's point of view, it's much more hopeful, interesting and happy than it could have been. The characters, so few, and so little seen in the short still have immense believability and completeness. Most people will find this dull, but if you're the kind of person who knows how to get hold of a copy, you're probably the type of person who'd enjoy it. Arty, but not impenetrable, simple but thought-provoking.

"Gasman" is a short film which is about a girl's life changing point. One day, the girl goes out with her father and her brother, and she meets a little girl who looks very similar to her. I like this film's introduction. In the house, the girl polishes her shoes and puts her cute dress on. Her mother cares about the girl, and the boy plays with his toy car. We can't understand why she polishes her shoes and wears a dress, so we can guess the destination. And it makes us very excited. The last scene is also one that I like. We can consider her feeling and her thoughts from now on as we like. This film is not bright, but I think this film has something attractive. When you finish watching this film, you may bask in the afterglow of this film. I don't like thisk ind of dark film usually, but this movie is interesting. So, if you like dark films, you should watch it, and even if you don't like dark films, you should try to watch it.