1. Comedy – Lena Tsodykovskaya Luisa and Anna’s ‘First Fight’ - Lena Tsodykovskaya
https://www.shortoftheweek.com/2019/09/30/luisa-and-annas-first-fight/
Comedy – One-Minute Time Machine – Devon Avery
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBkBS4O3yvY
This short comedy follows the narrative of two high-school ‘nobodies’ searching for a much
talked-about fight. Throughout the course of the film, one of the girls spreads rumors about the
both of them, trying to give them ‘street-cred’, as it were, and heighten their status among their
peers at school. Alternatively, the narrative of Devon Avery’s ‘One-Minute Time Machine, is
essentially one about a man trying to impress a woman. Fortunately, he is in the unique position
of being in possession of a time machine that takes him back one minute in time, so that he can
perfect that way in which he creates his first impression with Regina, the female lead, and love
interest.
The story of ‘First Fight’ is linear, but laced with subtle expository detail that allows the plot to
be subconsciously developed in the minds of the audience. This film also heavily features ellipsis
to make it seem fast paced and action-packed. The film’s narrative is unrestricted which, again,
makes the film full of information that you barely have time to process because the next piece is
thrown at you. Arguably, the film has elements of Todorov’s theory present as the film begins
with the girls being seemingly inbetweeners in social standards (setting the equilibrium), and
ending up infamous high-school girls who cause, and get in to fights (ending the film with a
different equilibrium).
One-Minute Time Machine is again, a film which starts on an equilibrium, as we have no idea
what is going to happen when the two characters first meet. As the narrative progresses, we find
out that Regina is also proficient in knowledge of the quantum science used in order to create the
time machine. Ironically, this film is very linear in structure as the events happen
chronologically, in real terms, apart from a few flashback shots of the repercussions of using the
time machine so frequently. The film ends on an infinitely unbalanced equilibrium as infinite
copies of the characters are set free in their universes, free to kill themselves and re-create
themselves for all time.
The characters in Fist Fight include: the two girls – Luisa and Anna, and some miscellaneous
high school students that the girls interact with. There are many of these characters, which is
important for the open narrative that the film has adopted. Some themes that are explored
include: social status, violence, teenage society, and friendship. Friendship is ultimately the most
important theme as the two girls find a way to cope with the daunting world of high school with
the help of each other's company. The non-diegetic music used in this film is helpful in
conveying the tone of the piece, as it is upbeat, in a major key, and clearly aimed at a teenage
audience. The colour used in this film attempts to give it a vintage effect, like a memory. This is
because it is precisely that, Tsodyskovkaya wrote a short film about a memory of hers from
when she was that age, and likely filmed in with an old camera to replicate the technology that
would have been available to her when she was that age.
2. The iconography used is almost exclusively relevant to the motif of quantum mechanics, such as
the time machine, and the book about quantic physics and time travel. The James wears a semi-
formal shirt, unbuttoned, with a black undershirt, and his sleeves rolled up. This indicates a laid
back, and callous character who is not bothered about the impression he has on Regina. Which of
course is both true, and untrue – and certainly a joke about quantum physics. Regina wears the
kind of clothes you would expect a teacher to wear. Conservative, unbranded, and very un-
memorable. She also wears her hair up, in a messy, un-styled way, which illustrates her devoting
to academia and disregard for anything that isn't her subject of interest. They are the only two
characters in the film, but they have many different versions of themselves, so you could argue
that there is an infinite amount of characters, as the film ends unresolved with Regina pressing
the button to send her back in time – a behavior that they have made clear will lead to a copy of
yourself being made, and the other killed.
The setting of ‘Fist Fight’ is presumably set in L.A., as the L.A. river is present and is used as a
portal to other locations within the film. This is a good setting for a coming of age film because
L.A. is famously seen as the place where dreams are made, but also crushed. This is indicative of
the narrative, as both girls stumble through the film accidentally becoming ‘popular’ and by the
end, both of them just brush it off as another one of their wacky adventures that they’ve
presumably had lots of. This could be Tsodykovskaya’s way of presenting her idea of America to
us. That it is fast paced, and dangerous, but seemingly without consequence.
The setting – which took me a second viewing to understand – appears to be a university
campus. At first, one may think it is a park, naturally, but when taking in to account the facts that
both are enthusiastic and knowledgeable about quantum science, Regina is a doctor of quantum
mechanics, and there appears to be multiple academic looking buildings within this ‘park’, it is
clear that the film is set in a higher education facility. As I mentioned, this films style lends itself
well to multiple viewings, due to the nature of the content. However, aside from narrative, the
style of this film is very reminiscent of ‘The Good Place’, in terms of music, camera positioning,
colour, and humor. By this, I mean that the camera rarely moves, and when it does, the balance
of the two characters is off in a sense of dialogue. Even the way in which the characters interact,
and the themes are very similar to ‘The Good Place’, and it is clear that the director was
influenced hugely by this. Again, the genre is difficult to decide, but I think that comedy suits it
best, as science fiction - I think – requires more interaction with fictional creatures, and a less
conceivable plot.
In conclusion, genre does not seem to affect the way in which a film is made. It is purely there as
a stylistic choice by the writer/director, and holds no real validity when dealing with the
apparently more important matters, such as narrative, and plot. These two films, if categorised by
genre, could sit next to eachother, but in every other sense, they have very little in common. This
goes to show that genre as a concept is rapidly becoming obsolete and ambivalent towards itself.
