Brilliant, hysterical and truly original. "Boundaries" is one of the few shorts I have ever seen that probably has as much gut appeal to a child as to a seasoned intellectual. I was not surprised to learn that this short film won a boatload of festival prizes. I know the short story (by Fernando Sorrentino)on which the film is based, and I find the film version to be a wonderfully innovative, not to mention hilarious, adaptation of the writer´s work. The filmmaker has added a secondary narrative about a woman trapped in Mexico that gives the central metaphor of Sorrentino´s story even more resonance. The film spins endless variations on a single ludicrous image, that of a mute trombonist clunking a hapless woman on the head with his trombone slide. In the hands of a lesser director, this could quickly become tedious; but here it is always original and somehow surprising. I will not spoil the ending, but I will say the filmmaker does the writer one better in devising his conclusion. Both principle actors do a commendable job with this potentially difficult material, and the cinematography, while at times slightly inconsistent, has its primary strength in the striking originality and relevance of the shot compositions, especially in the Mexico scenes. "Boundaries" operates in the best tradition of absurdist/surrealist comedy. A profoundly thoughtful short film that is mightily entertaining.
Review of Boundaries
