Knock Knock
By John Oak Dalton • Jul 10th, 2007 • Category: Comedy, ReviewsA comedian with a hot online following is served up a dish of cold reality when an old girlfriend appears in Knock Knock, the latest dramatic short from director Amir Motlagh.
I am a fan of Motlagh’s work, and believe he is one of a group of talented young microcinema directors (S. Tyler Wilson and Matt Meindl among them) whose artistic vision will hopefully eventually be brought to a wider audience, perhaps through the completion of a first feature.
In the meantime, we have more of Motlagh’s deliberately meandering storytelling and obtuse characters, complimented by Motlagh’s sometimes playful shooting and editing and a naturalistic script.
On that score, I noted that Motlagh’s technical skills have improved tremendously over previous work, showcasing two well-crafted performances from Chris Manz and Keaton Shyler. An interesting location and an engaging soundtrack add value.
Knock Knock is a nicely-rendered short, a slice of life from the contemporary dating scene.
Three and a half stars.
- Director: Amir Motlagh
- Writer: Chris Manz
- Cast: Chris Manz, Keaton Shyler, Lene Pederson
- Running Time: Approximately 20 minutes
- Score:*** 1/2
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John Oak Dalton is a Community Television Station Manager by day, and a DIY acolyte by night. In the 80s he made Super-8 movies and his own basement mix tapes. In the 90s he hosted a cable-access show and made his own zines and minicomics. In the 21st Century he began working with grassroots video and microcinema and writing b-movies, and has more than a dozen projects on the shelf, on screen, in development, or in production.
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