SHORT REVIEW | Unbreaking Up, by Boris Kievsky

UNBREAKING UP (2009, Inmoo.com, short, duration: 13:31, director: Boris Kievsky, watch the trailer here):

We’ve all been there before: manipulative, agonizing, hair-tearing relationships. We all have our share of battle scars, don’t we?

Unbreaking Up is the story of how Alex (Holt Boggs) and Sasha (Nina Avetisova) have dealt with theirs.

Alex, computer programmer by day and art enthusiast by night, is seeking to rekindle his flame with Sasha — an art student in her own right and Alex’s former partner. He thinks that by enjoying a local art exhibit together, they can put the past behind them. As Alex anxiously awaits the final quarter-hour to elapse before Sasha waltzes in the door — knocking back more than a few snifters of moonshine — he contemplates the umpteen ways he might launch into his heartfelt apology.

Iterating like a computer subroutine, our man visualizes the many avenues he might go down in order to correct his many wrongs. Alex seems committed to beseeching Sasha’s forgiveness and reconciling, and his anxiety proves it.

But none of the apologies he envisions are plausible. Alex knows only too well that Sasha is likely going to see through them all. So he “erases” and “restarts” after each failed attempt, confident that in the frantic moments left he’ll land on just the right words.

Alex’s vivid imaginings become full-blown daydream-like hallucinations; the deeper he delves into his thoughts, the faster his heart thumps. In the sedateness of our art gallery, Alex is starting to become a nuisance to the remaining patrons. Man, does this guy have a ton of issues! But which issues? As the plot thickens, we’re beginning to get a better idea…

As he hacks through his angst in the time remaining, Alex rehashes his and Sasha’s would-be reunion to the point where he actually intimidates himself. Frightened at the likely outcome of this ploy, Alex freaks out, just as the flesh and blood — not imagined — Sasha arrives at the venue…

What I enjoyed most about this short:

• casting: Kudos to Boris Kievsky for pairing these two talents together who, I felt, shared tremendous on-screen chemistry. Yum! Avetisova and Boggs will almost make you regret that Unnbreaking Up didn’t last longer than its sub-15 minutes, only to be there in the room when Alex and Sasha’s iron walls come crashing down and reality spills forth. The actors looked marvelous opposite each other and I encourage Kievsky to bring them back for a longer project. Avetisova to Kievsky as Thurman is to Tarantino, kinda thing. Odd thing was that I thought Holt Boggs was actually Kievsky at the start, and — scratching my head — I was complimenting Boggs in his mind on his flawless American accent. Wow! Imagine if Boggs worked on his Russian accent? A film opposite Avetisova in her native tongue with Kievsky at the helm? Hey, sports fans, it ain’t impossible! Cute character names, too: Sasha (for both males and females) is actually the diminutive for Alexander/Alexandar in Russian, Serbian, Czech, Bulgarian, Slovakian, etc. and all the Slavic saints, baby. Like I said, Alex and Sasha were two sides of a coin in more ways that one.

• dialogue as authentic as it gets: these lines could have been uttered by anyone. What Alex was regretting and what Sasha was traumatized about were as authentic a bunch of emotions as any. We really have it in for Alex by the end of this short. And we feel Sasha’s pain as well. Not easy to do in under fifteen minutes, friends.
• creative editing and CG effects: Schasine Valentine‘s crisp edit was unique for a film of such minuscule duration. You’ll enjoy when Alex “restarts” his various apologies, and how Nina Avetisova seems to appear out of thin air during each go. Also, the clock ticks in a novel way in Unbreaking Up. Check it out in the trailer.

Programmer Alex regrets breaking up with dancer Sasha. He’s invited her to an art show with every intention of winning her back. Showing up for their ‘just friends’ date 15 minutes early, Alex is determined to debug the situation and figure out what he has to say to undo their breakup. What he’s not prepared for is dealing with the issues underneath his actions. Can he admit his true faults, deal with his issues and figure out that conversation to ‘unbreak up’ all in 15 minutes, or will he have to abort his plan?

Short film by Boris Kievsky starring Holt Boggs, Nina Avetisova, Konstantin Lavysh, Yuri Lowenthal, Tara Platt
(c) Matter Door, 2008