I recently attended a screening of a short film that, by all accounts, defies description. Thexus : The Last Man is, in actuality, a mostly silent film that reflects the brilliance and insanity of Charlie Chaplin at the height of his presence and power. While there is some brief dialog in this short film, it comes in the form of narration from a "forest spirit" and also one brief scene with a talking lizard.
Thexus is a young and, to be perfectly honest, very stupid young man who almost unknowingly embarks on a hero's journey. His quest: to find a mysterious idol called the Dragon's Tear before the evil Vanir Raider, Veldar, gets his hands on it. Yup, that's it the entire story. So, why do I recommend this particular short? Because, there is an element of brilliance in a very simple piece of work. The film was shot on a home digital camera for virtually no money. It had a one-man crew, non-actors and no clear script or story. What is does have is the fledgling seed of a young director who may very well come into his own in years to come. The director, Ryan Heppe, is also the editor, cameraman, director of photography, writer
and he even does the lizard's voice-over! I honestly believe with a bit more money, a solid film crew and better actors, this could have been a great piece of work.
I met the director at a Q&A and he explained to me that Thexus was an experimental film. That the story was created in the editing room and that there was no script while they were filming. Just an idea. He also made it clear that he planned to develop a full screenplay (whether this means feature length or just a short fully realized screenplay, I have no idea) and that he planned to re-shoot the project with more money and better special effects.
Most first-time directors attempt simple stories. People talking. Witty dialog. A twist ending. Here, we have a director who has given us no dialog, no twist ending, a fantasy tale laced with comedy (Douglas Adams would be pleased) and action. If this film is remade I, for one, will be thrilled to see it. But, for now, check it out at the festival. I promise, you won't be disappointed.