The Boy With A Thorn In His Side is a powerful and intricate short film. Packed into just over four minutes of time, this movie by young film makers The Rest (Alex Motlhabane and Lewis Levi) was inspired by the terrible Woolwich murder of Soldier Lee Rigby earlier this year. What The Boy with a Thorn in His Side does is capture the racial tension that lives in people we know and are close too.
Utilising this everyday occurrence, the film sets a tough yet realistic tone with their short movie. While it doesn’t linger too much on villainizing our racist character, there is enough vile coming from the central figure’s mouth (at an age that should be more accepting) for us to want to look away. As his friend tries in vain to contradict what he says, the tension between the pair builds to the shocking crescendo of a movie. It is beautifully shot, with some highly intelligent film making that saturates this brutally honest movie in such impressive cinematography. All the while asking: how far would you go to stop abuse and hate?
Winning The Judges award at Film Northants Short Film competition this year, The Rest and The Boy With A Thorn In His Side have already made a startling impact. Highlighting the controversies within us, the torn views that nearly all of us have, this short movie is a clever and strong piece. It will pierce through your skin and hook uncomfortably for long after it has finished. To pack that sort impact into such a short time is an incredible accomplishment and The Boy With A Thorn In His Side is one of the best movies of this year.
The Boy With The Thorn In His Side (Short Film) from The Rest on Vimeo.
