Did you enjoy watching How to Get Rid of A Guy in 10 Days? Well, you may enjoy watching how to get rid of a roommate in one night. Poker is a short comedy directed by first time filmmaker Christopher Leong. The story follows snapshots of a night owl’s life. The modern dating rogue spending each night with a different woman. He plays poker with one of them, which is an interesting element on the Leong’s part as a writer. The poker symbolizes Louie’s (the main character) gamble on dealing with so many cards in his hand. His mindset is self-centred, a man of debauchery and lust. This is portrayed in the lighting of the film, as the couple of girls he sees throughout the beginning of the film are scenes lit with bright colours of blue and red. Vintage soundtracks give the film a fun edge, tunes permeating the vagabond lifestyle. The film, for the most part, is in black and white. This is a fun choice, as Louie’s life outside of the social night scene seems to be void. The only part when colour is involved is at night, when Louie is enjoying his dating escapades. His roommate, Troy, is neglected by him. He eats Troy’s sandwich, he bumps into him in the hallway—he is an overall annoying roommate. This is until Troy takes out a wall pin, and he finds Louie’s condoms. The rest is history, let your imaginations do the work for you.
Understanding that this is Christopher Leong’s first filmmaking experience, we can be forgiving towards titled frames and certain irregularities. It is a safe choice for a first-time filmmaker with a lo-budget project to forego sound. As a matter of fact, no sound is better than bad sound. And this was a wise decision on Leong’s directorial approach. Vintage tracks over the visuals helped shape the up and down atmospheres of the film from beginning to end. Black and White is also a safe go-to visual scheme for first time filmmakers. It covers a lot of lighting deficiencies and helps structure the piece visually to give it continuity easier than shooting in colour would. Kudos to Leong for understanding his capabilities and working within his production means to get the project up on its feet.
The film was shot on a smartphone, which is becoming a regular trend in the independent film industry. A lack of funding structures for emerging filmmakers, and the expensive production models on hand for a “professional” scale production leads many aspiring filmmakers to pursue other career avenues. For those extremely passionate and creative, funding will never be the ultimate obstacle. As Leong and many other emerging filmmakers are proving, one needs a good story more than one needs a professional camera. It’s apparent that this was a hustle project by Leong, using any means to get his message across.
What is the message? It is ultimately up to as viewers to decipher what’s hidden beneath the subtext. It could be a take on modern day dating standards and the ritual of one-night stands. Individualism in wanting more and more, without thinking of emotional consequences burdened on the shoulders of the others you are playing with. That is, after all, the essence of what a ‘player’ is. He skips from one partner to the next without cause, a persona non-grata unwilling to commit to his actions only to feed a burning desire of gluttony in lust. At an age of dating online and constant one night stands and meaningless hookups, Poker may have something to say in this regard—what goes around comes around, pun intended.
The film was an official selection at Altest New York, New Filmmakers New York, Young Filmmakers New York, and the Miami Independent Film Festival. It participated in the Paris Lift-Off Film Festival, and received a Certificate of Achievement from the Los Angeles International Film Festival. The best recognition it received was a nomination for Best Mobile Short by the Indie Short Fest. Mobile films are on the rise, and festivals are slowly catching up with this specific production trend. Don’t be surprised if Poker comes out with a couple of mobile film awards by the end of 2020.
By: Darida Rose
© 2020. UniversalCinema Mag.