The Moths Will Eat Them Up Review
The Australian short film has a big impact, despite its small budget.
A woman boards a train, for what should be a standard journey home after work. But it turns into a terrifying game of cat and mouse, as a predator makes a clear beeline for her. At least, she can see that; the oblivious men around here dismiss her concerns. Her ride becomes more and more perilous, until an unforeseen force is summoned. The short film is a psychological thriller that exposes the terror of gendered violence against women, and how some men choose to be bystanders - ignoring other men’s violence as ‘none of their business’. The themes of hope and collective strength also emerge, seen metaphorically in the story as an omnipresent collective women’s spirit of protection and justice.
The Moths Will Eat Them Up is a beautifully shot, perfectly paced piece of short filmmaking that drives tension from the very beginning. With a soundscape resplendent with buzzing insects and equally buzzing fluorescents, the film pierces the consciousness with immediate effect; opening the viewer up to what ultimately becomes quite the journey.
Ling Cooper Tang is the standout here from a performance perspective. Her subtle work at the beginning of the piece contrasts nicely with her ability to go big by the end, and she fully sells the tensions and traumas of the piece.
It’s also a gorgeous film. The limited locations are used to their utmost, and cinematographer Julian Panetta crafts a blue-hued Fincher-esque fairytale out of this single train carriage. For many short films, the budgetary constraints can impede the ambition and the vision, particularly when it comes to CGI. Not so here - the scope of the ambition when it comes to the moths is only matched by the talent with which they are rendered, not taking you out of the piece for a minute.
Ultimately, however, its the direction and editing that sell this short. The action on display here for the most part is very subtle, but the pacing of the script, and the editing, manages to make this feel tense throughout, deserving of its full runtime, and leaves you wanting more. For aspiring filmmakers, this is a fantastic example of how to make compelling short films that tell a message but also entrance an audience, and for the general viewing public, this is a tremendously tense, thrilling film that will grip you from the off.
