At some point in their lives, nearly every kid has a phase that involves a lot of obsessing about monsters. Most of us outgrow this; the rest get into the horror movie game, one way or another. Of course, the big problem most kids face is convincing the grownups in their lives that the monsters are real. In the short film Slapface, however, one boy (Joshua Kaufman) faces a slightly different dilemma.
For one thing, he seeks out the monster (Lukas Hassel) that lurks in the woods where he lives with his widowed father (Nick Gregory), when usually kids do everything they can to avoid said monster. Possibly he’s trying to prove his bravery, but equally possibly he finds playing with monsters preferable to going home. Let’s just say that his father has some strange ideas about what makes good parenting, and his definition of a game isn’t at all like mine.
It’s often hard to tell where the real danger lies in this film, and trying to figure it out will more than hold your attention. The relationship between father and son is complicated, to say the least, and the addition of a monster to the mix won’t make things any easier. As often happens with short films, there isn’t enough time to explore all the questions the movie raises, but the questions alone are fascinating. Writer-director Jeremiah Kipp handles the movie and its undertones deftly, creating something much more than just a monster movie, and I look forward to seeing more of his work.