It's Chico - wait, I mean blogging time!

I can do this. Headache, you shall not phase me! Crick in my neck, you will not stop me! I will complete this blog, I will do it! I will be a real boy! ...I mean, write a...real...blog? Sure, that sounded natural, you believed it right? Awesome.

Hello! Bonjour! Guten Tag! Hello! I am finally delivering the much anticipated "Actual Blog", aren't you happy? You are, aren't you. I can tell. I'm like that, it's like a seventh sense with me. And no, I don't mean a sixth sense, that one is my ability to sense when someone is about to drop a Werther's Original onto the carpet. It's a truly remarkable power, a force to be reckoned with. I sometimes feel I should do more good with it...

Anyway. The blog. Yes. Well since I watched it the other day, this is going to be about the short film 'Butterfly' by Corin Hardy. Most of you might recognise it from the video for 'Bedshaped' by Keane; some of the film plays during the video, while the band are superimposed onto walls and things. It's actually a really good music video in it's own right, but I'm going to talk about the short film.

It's surprisingly tricky to track down as well mind you, though don't let that put you off. You can buy it for £1.49 from iTunes, and believe me it's well worth it for about 29 minutes of beauty. But I'd recently come across the Keane video again, and it got me on the hunt. After a little while searching on Google I tracked it down, at www.mysteriouscat.com, Corin Hardy's website. Turns out the world Butterfly is used in a lot of short films...some of them are a tad creepy it seems. But this one isn't...well it is, but it's good creepy.

It's a stop-motion animation film that took Corin Hardy about five years to make, so you should do him justice by watching it, I can't stress this enough! Essentially the plot follows a young man who is the lowest of the low, and is almost quite literally at the bottom of the barrel. Without giving too much away, we are introduced with him telling us how his brother died, and how his family fell apart causing him to cascade in a seeimingly neverending downward spiral. When we first lay eyes on him, he emerges naked from a cardboard box, holding a wine bottle. At first this seemed odd, as anatomy is very accurately represented...but it's all part of the art of the film, showing his character development. You'll understand more if you watch and see when he gets clothes.

Talking of art, the style of the entire film is exquisite. The characters and scenery are almost cartoonish in their appearance, hauntingly crafted and very unreal, but this simply adds to the effect of the film. Which is quite gruesome and haunting in it's own right, to the say the least. Everything is presented in a way that both stands out and yet also shocks you, in the form of macabre depictions of the life of a man struggling with alcoholism and mental health issues. Adding to this is the way the film is narrated, the fantasticly chosen words complimenting the grisly scene unfolding before us while also stirring up a variety of emotions.

And with all of these fantastic points in mind, it's a shame there are only one or two minor things which stand out as being wrong with the film. The theme of something good coming out of something bad is fairly obvious throughout, especially given the title, but this is fine; simple can be good. However, while the revalation at the end is definitely interesting, it is in some aspects a little predictable, and the ending itself leaves something to be desired. I personally feel it could have been handled better, it sort of feels like a bit of a cop-out, but that might just be my opinion. That aside, the film is absolutely brilliant, and I urge you all to watch it!

Sorry for the somewhat lengthy review, but I feel this film deserves a lot of attention, and not enough people know of it. To finish, here is a thought: did you know, Corin Hardy also made the video for Prodigy's 'Omen'? You do now. At least, I think that's what the song is called...

~ Toby