Review of “God Came ‘Round”

Even though “God Came ‘Round” was based on the song and has the purpose of illustrating it, the image is so strong and carries such narrative that sometimes it even takes the spotlight from the song. Everyone involved in this project did a fantastic job and created a unique piece.

God Came ‘Round
God Came ‘Round

Directed by Derek Frey (USA)

ISA award-winning filmmaker Derek Frey gives life to the song “God Came ‘Round” by Trever Veilleux cleverly and beautifully. While Frey plays with the appearance of God, aliens, and ghosts and creates a fantastic supernatural atmosphere, it is clear the influence of his past productions with Tim Burton Productions. At some point, “God Came ‘Round” can even be interpreted as a satire to all the clichés in romantic comedies.

It tells the story of a flower seller (Deep Roy) that makes a connection with the girl of his dreams, but God gets in the way and doesn’t let this two interact. Then it shows the seller trying to cope with the heartbreak, that it is shot and performed in a way that makes it hilarious. Roy’s performance is very impressive. Through his facial expressions, he tells everything the character is feeling. It is always a significant challenge to perform without any dialogues, but Roy does it amazingly. Perhaps it is a contrast between the performance and the song that makes it so funny, but it sure is hard to do what he did.

The cinematography is something that should be highlighted as well, especially when the seller has the first encounter with an alien. The lighting is breathtaking, as well as the shot composition. The fog in the background adds to all the alien tropes in movies, forcing the idea that this piece is a satire of the clichés. It is done subtly, that at the moment it might not even be noticeable, but it is the small details that make it so extraordinary.

Even though “God Came ‘Round” was based on the song and has the purpose of illustrating it, the image is so strong and carries such narrative that sometimes it even takes the spotlight from the song. As the viewer, the performances are so incredible and the story so engaging that leaves a certain curiosity in the air to know what is going to happen next, making it drift away from the lyrics of the song (not saying that the song is not as amazing as the video, because it indeed is excellent).

Everyone involved in this project did a fantastic job and created a unique piece. It is hard to make an audience laugh, but with “God Came ‘Round” it’s even harder not to laugh.

SE/Independent Shorts Awards 2018 © All Rights Reserved

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