Total Performance – A Short Film Review
There are many, many shorts out there that attempt to portray characters with conflicting interests and use these as their twist in the tale or moral in the story. Total Performance has mastered this art in one of the best takes on this premise I have seen in a long time.
Tory Berner plays Cori, a struggling actor whose day job consists of rehearsing arguments with real people for practice in real life situations, what Cori describes as a ‘sparring dummy’. Tim, played by Steven Conroy, is on a date with Cori and is intrigued by her day job but wonders if the real life arguing affects her. Things quickly get out of hand when Tim uses the agency Cori works for, Total Performance, and is surprised to find it is Cori who comes to ‘spar’ with him. Can Cori keep things professional, especially when she discovers what Tim has hired her for?
Writer, director and producer Sean Meehan does an excellent job of pacing and developing this story. This subject matter could have quite easily turned comical but Meehan manages to keep a slightly dark feel to it. He brings you in enough to like the characters before mixing it up in the closing scenes. Plenty of the character give us lighter notes to smile about but you are left asking the question “Do you bring your work home with you?”. The writing is very well done with a solid direction from the start Meehan knows exactly where he is taking us and plots the best course to ensure we get to exactly where we need to be.
Tory Berner is excellent as Cori. She plays the confident would-be actor with ease but excels when she is suffering from her conflicting emotions and shows an underlining vulnerability with closing moments being some of her best.
Steven Conroy as Tim is a likable character who you begin rooting for until his character takes a big shift then he finds himself no longer on your side. The solid supporting cast only help enhance this short. Timothy J. Cox plays a CEO who must fire his partner and takes it in his stride with a solid performance. Paul Locke also puts in an equally good performance as the mentally drained Bruce who hires Cori to help confront his cheating wife.
Total Performance is an extremely well crafted piece of Short Film. An intelligent and enjoyable story, well played out and executed.
Watch the movie yourself here.
