A desert camping trip turns deadly when one of the campers returns to the group to find herself sitting at the campfire.
In my nearly 40 years as an independent filmmaker, I have learned that short movies can sometimes pack more of an emotional punch than any feature film out there. If the story, acting and directing are top-notch and the film leaves you wanting more once the closing credits begin to roll, then the filmmakers have done their jobs.
And boy, does writer-director Cody Mobley know how to do his job. In his directorial debut, Mr. Mobley presents a film precisely five minutes in length that, once over, left me yearning for more. THAT, is how you make a movie, whetting the audience’s appetites, leaving them hungry for more.
On a camping trip in the desert, five friends, Grant, Nevin, Duke, Lindsey, and Mallory, sit around a campfire, enjoying the tranquil evening. When Mallory goes to her car to grab something, she returns to the group and is shocked to see herself sitting exactly where she was moments earlier. The others look at her inquisitively and then slowly turn back to the other version of her. It opens its eyes and lets out a horrendous, bloodcurdling scream, sending everyone in different directions. As the last two survivors, Mallory and Grant, hide underneath one of their cars, listening to the death screams of their friends in the distance, they realize they must make a decision; stay hidden and hope they’re not found or try to escape.
Five minutes is not enough time to conjure up a premise and hook your audience, but Cody Mobley successfully achieves that almost impossible feat and does so triumphantly. Is the other being an alien? A demon? The story never tells us, which is why it intrigues; we demand to know more, but more isn’t always the answer. Mr. Mobley infuses his film with echoes of John Carpenter’s “The Thing”; the being perfectly assimilating Mallory’s form and its otherwordly, nightmarish screeches and shrieks. Mr. Mobley states that “CIMIM” is the first 5 minutes of a feature-length screenplay that he is currently writing, and after watching this fantastic short, I hope he manages to turn it into a feature-length film; I, for one, will be eager to see how it plays out.
“CIMIM” recently had its Los Angeles Premiere at the 2022 Screamfest Horror Film Festival
