Directed by Brad Watson, 108 Hours Missing is about Ariana (Anna Abrami), who is an illegal immigrant that is seemingly involved with a human trafficking ring, and is out to find her missing daughter. Along her way, she is captured and interrogated by US Detective Olivia Fox (Samantha Schnitzler), but it’s during this process, the threads begin to unravel and all is not what it appears to be. At the centre of this short film is the topic of human trafficking and how far one person would go to protect the ones they love, and that is shown on both sides of the fence here as the story nears its end.
Writer Emily Fairweather does a fairly solid job at taking that subject matter and turn it into this almost psychological mind game between Ariana and Olivia so when you think the interrogation is going one way, it ends up going the other way, and the short pulls the rug out from under you. This is complemented by the film’s look, which is very atmospheric and foreboding, plus Watson also contributes to the musical score and it helps produce some unnerving tension. Both Anna Abrami and Samantha Schnitzler give incredibly solid performances, nailing the emotional nuances, and the fact that both actresses produced the film together with Watson goes to show how committed they are to the film and their characters, which totally shows.
Overall, 108 Hours Missing is a film that is solidly well-structured, intriguingly suspenseful, perfectly acted by its minimalist cast, and delivers on its big twist. This is a story where the tables get turned and you don’t even know where things end up even after the story has finished. Its ambiguous nature might leave some frustrated, but the end result is nevertheless a remarkable one. It may not be the greatest short film ever made, but it’s still worth the watch when you are able to.
108 HOURS MISSING / CERT: TBC / DIRECTOR: BRAD WATSON / SCREENPLAY: EMILY FAIRWEATHER / STARRING: ANNA ABRAMI, SAMANTHA SCHNITZLER, TOMMY ROCA, ANTHONY SOMERS / RELEASE DATE: TBC
