MEDUSA ALEXA

“Gillet’ performance is unfiltered and raw, giving a real sense of the character’s isolation.”

Justin, a young professional, leads a rather solitary, hyper-connected city life, although he is full of digital interactions with the outside world. One day, however, he feels a gaze on the back of his neck while he is alone at home.

The ingredients for a good thriller is that of suspense, intrigue and drama, which director Mark Marcel’ short film Medusa Alexa certainly has! It’s a bold choice to focus your film on one single character and location with very little dialogue, but it all works with the story Marcel is telling.

From the very beginning, we can tell something is not quite right with where the film is going and it puts you right on the edge of your seat. The choice of location is ideal and was a solid choice by Marcel as there is a lot to work with visually.

The character of Justin played by the talented Jeremy Gillet is so captivating that we can’t help but root for him. Gillet’ performance is unfiltered and raw, giving a real sense of the character’s isolation in his own home. The paranoia in the character gradually starts to grow and isn’t overstated by Gillet, instead he deals with it in a way that feels more realistic considering his isolated nature. The use of digital attachments to him is a great touch at creating a real world theme that many people suffer with today.

The film relies on a strong sound design and score to help set the tone and create the more sinister moments that really grab your attention. The lighting is strong and gives the film a wide palette of colours to establish a more modern take on the story that’s in keeping with the character’s job role. It also allows for some stunning cinematography, in particular the scene with Justin dancing.

The use of camerawork in the film is fully maximised for the single location and doesn’t feel repetitive in the slightest. If anything it helped the filmmakers come up with more unique angles to avoid any similar shots and it paid off. But the POV element of the camerawork is strong and certainly gives you the experience of being in the apartment with Justin.

Marcel has clearly spent a lot of time to refine this film and it’s core message, allowing for more abstract and creative methods of telling it. This goes a long way at setting this film apart and making it memorable…

— APEX Film Awards