The only premiering Tribeca film initially viewable from Europe was, perhaps ironically, European. The Irish director, Thomas Hefferon, delivered ‘The Heist’ alongside his competing short film ‘Switch’. Hefferon has before been selected for the Festival competition with his short film ‘The Confession’ and had ‘The Pool’ premiere at Tribeca last year. The Heist had the privilege of serving as a global sneak peak for the online Tribeca audience just before the actual event kicked off.

The movie is a 9 minute short comedy shot mainly from the insides of a parked car. Three amateur bank-robbers are making a last run-through of their plan, but quickly realize that the robbing business is a complicated affair.

The leader is Francis, played by Sean Flanagan, whose feeble leading skills are seriously strained as he attempts to reason with the other two characters. It seems obvious that Francis is far from intelligent, but at least he stands out as the most sensible in the group. Nicky, the guy on the left played by Donal Gallery, reminds you of every skinny bloke with the backbone of an earthworm ever to be portrayed in modern cinema. He comes off as simpleminded; almost childish, with a distinct feminine inclination for sulking. However, he is not the one causing the most problems in the tiny vehicle; that would be Dave.

Like my boyfriend use to say; “there’s always a Dave.” In this case, Dave is a Neanderthal of a man, clearly failing to realize the seriousness of the act he is about to commit, and with a serious case of the munchies. Within the feature’s 9 minute time frame, Dave manages to fizzle the momentum for the gang repeatedly with his outrageous requests.

The movie got plenty of positive feedback in the comment section while it was still viewable. Those in favor found the ‘verbal slapstick’ – exaggerated idiocy exceeding the boundaries of common sense, highly entertaining, and enjoyed the failure of the gang to pull off a ‘proper’ heist. I personally have to join the haters. Though it is clearly meant as a lighthearted take on bank robbers, having watched movies such as The Town, nominated at this years Academy Awards, you probably have no problem imagining that being victimized in a robbery is no picnic. What bothers me, however, is neither the crime nor the pending human consequences – it’s the characters.

For a character-driven short film, this is a problem. Why the writer chose to make the characters as shallow as the bottom of a water bottle I don’t know, but the result left me with a strange feeling of defeat, and funny enough, recognition. First of all, even when we agree that the collected IQ of the car come closest to 150, it is hard for me to believe that empathy is a foreign country to men of their un-profession. On the other hand, if we agree to relinquish their moral scruples, surely they must have fears and doubts about their impending action. But this is left untouched, denying the introduction of interesting characters. Secondly, as a native Dane, I found the dialogue oddly familiar. Tar-black humor that relishes in illogical, yet conceivable problematics. My research confirms that the writer is a Dane named Troels Jacob Hundtofte, and my guess is that he’s no stranger to modern Danish action comedy. He seems, however, a stranger to the fact that direct adaptation often ruins the intension. Being stranded on the beaches of an average cast, the already hampered dialogue is left to fend for itself and ends up being forced and uncomfortable. Since Hefferon obviously has drawn inspiration from the work of British gangster prodigy, Guy Richie, The Heist ends up as the awkward child of two offbeat genres.

Overall, the story was tame and uninteresting and could have been dealt with in a 5-lined joke. My only thumps-up is for the technical achievements – the film is well shot, well editing and the setup itself works. But in the end, what was meant as comic relief didn’t move me beyond thinking that I could be doing something else with my day.

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The TFF is over but as of April 29, five of this year’s short films became available to viewers for free, and without geo-restrictions, on YouTube. The selected shorts have been chosen from the 60 shorts screened at the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival, and first on the list is the 10 minute film Mr. Stache by director Jac Schaeffer. This story is the winner of the American Express contest called “My Movie Pitch” which aims to bring unique independent movie ideas to the screen. The writer John Nash’s idea was picked from over 2000 entries.

The short is a narrative about a man who grows a mustache in order to change his life. But as the facial hair grows, so does the question: How much does it take to wear your inner mustache on the outside, where it makes way more sense, and still be accepted?

Several things are working extremely well for this short. First of all, the narration is a comfortable break from ordinary dialogue and fits perfectly with the format. It reminded me of Marc Forster’s Stranger Than Fiction, only in a much more concentrated dosage. On one hand with hints within the storyline, but most obviously with the narrator’s ‘stream-of-thought’, filling the void of actual conversation perfectly. The story is still able to stand on its own though, as the mans dilemma leads to the girl, and then resolves in a ‘very serious situation’ of a climax.

Second of all, on the actors front, the lack of character dialogue is beautifully compensated by impeccable acting. Rich Sommer plays our main protagonist, the man who meets the girl, played by Amy Smart, in a very romantic ‘love-at-first-sight’ moment. Without actually uttering more than a few lines in total (I believe the only spoken line was the girl’s), our mustached hero and his heroine succeed in visually interpreting all the drama of their characters. In fact, so well that you end up being incredibly intimate with their emotions.

I need to say that I absolutely loved it. The story is funny and carries a wonderful message about realizing your true self and loving others for the same reason. You completely understand why it won the movie pitch contest. It’s uplifting and, despite its unusual obsession with facial hair, it carries a heartfelt message. The progression of the narrative has a feel of a children’s story to it, emphasizing details and the ‘very serious drama’, but it deals with universal, existential issues that I’m guessing most viewers will be able to relate to.

As a piece of craftsmanship, the short is equally excelling; the cinematography and editing is intimate when needed and expressive when wanted, giving you a good sense right away of the personality and emotional state of the characters throughout the story. The changes in location, wardrobe, and extras indicate either a proper budget or a creative production, but I’m learning towards the first. With American Express and Tribeca as backers, it would be bad publicity otherwise. Thus, the final product beams of well-polished quality and experience while sporting a vibrant, quirky 70s atmosphere. You wouldn’t achieve this without money.

Jac Schaeffer’s work is definitely worth a look and you can still find Mr. Stache, along with the four other brilliant shorts, online at Tribeca Film Festival 2011 YouTube Screening Room. Enjoy.

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