Скачать или смотреть IT'S A DOG | Omeleto Comedy

A man argues.


A man and his girlfriend, Anna, are on their way to a funeral. But as the boyfriend gets ready, he develops anxiety about his thinning hair. Though Anna tries to assure him she thinks bald is "cute," he is in denial about what's happening to him.

They argue over whether or not he's bald or "going bald." The argument spirals the man into insecurity, derailing their plans as the man frantically canvasses people on the street about his hair status, intent to prove once and for all that he's not bald.

Directed by Eli Shapiro from a script by David Rosenberg, who also stars as the balding boyfriend, this comedy short derives its humor from its pitch-perfect, incisive characterizations as one man confronts his hair loss, launching him into a confrontation with both his ego and the onward march of mortality. Capturing his tailspin when confronted with his baldness, he sets out to prove to himself and his girlfriend, that he's not bald -- much to the detriment of their plans, and perhaps his relationship.

The film has a very naturalistic, New York feel, with its urbane settings, a muted, low-key autumnal color palette, loose camerawork and cleverly freewheeling dialogue, evoking the work of filmmakers like Woody Allen or Whit Stillman. It opens with Anna's musings on mortality as her boyfriend worriedly tries to tend to his hair to little satisfaction. He's not quite listening to her because he's too preoccupied with his appearance, a preoccupation that turns into an obsession to prove that he's not bald.

Being a comedy, this desire is pushed to increasingly neurotic heights, becoming a public event as the man asks random passersby their opinion on his hair. It's funny, and also an enjoyable opportunity to portray the wide range of people in New York. But as the man becomes increasingly desperate, and his girlfriend increasingly exasperated, the storytelling never loses sight of its relatability, thanks in part to the performances of Rosenberg and actor Molly Carden, who play the couple with a keen comic timing that doesn't come at the expense of a grounded emotional reality.

Witty, enjoyable and deftly told, IT'S A DOG is not just about hair loss, but what it represents to some, personally and culturally: aging, loss of vitality and social status and mortality, bringing viewers back full circle to Anna's musings in the beginning. One final opinion with a prophetic character finally hammers home that existential angle for both the man and Anna, ending the film on a wry, ironic note. The road to resignation and acceptance of life's inevitable changes is a long and hard one, and not without its casualties.


IT'S A DOG. Courtesy of Eli Shapiro at https://eli-shapiro.com.