A Fitting Tribute

Perhaps best described as a short film version of a Twilight Zone episode, Daniel Cormack's A Fitting Tribute is certainly anything but conventional. Tonally different than one might expect from the title, the short is not nearly as dramatic as the opening shots suggest and nowhere as out there as the plot summary may seem. While some may argue that the tone shifts rather abruptly, I found the transition rather smooth considering how forced it could have been in lesser hands. The first half is the more darkly humorous portion with Sally Bretton's enjoyable portrayal of the cynical journalist that only cares about getting a good story. As with some of Cormack's other short films, the use of silence over background music that drowns out the dialogue in these scenes is a major plus. The music that kicks in towards the second half of the short, particularly during the part where Niall eats a bowl of soup, is a bit more offbeat than I would have liked yet it doesn't destroy the overall film in any way. Heightening the emotion in the second half is the effective close-ups on the actors' faces, which is always something that runs the risk of being over-used but ends up working perfectly here. There's a fair amount of story and detail for a 13-minute short so there's the potential for some audience members to miss a few things if the film is not being viewed with complete attention. The twist at the end is one that I personally saw coming but it was still effective nonetheless. Overall, A Fitting Tribute is ambitious to say the least and worth checking out, though the ending will definitely be a deciding factor in how one feels about it. 8/10