Thorn, Thank You for Coming
“Thorn, Thank You for Coming” is a great short film that’s driven by dry humor and revolves around a man who only wants to watch Soylent Green, the only Charlton Heston film he hasn’t seen, when the world is coming to an end.
From the start we get what kind of guy, Sean, the main character is. His truck pulls in and he rushes out, literally leaving the door open to his vehicle, all just to get to the package on his front doorstep; Soylent Green. He finds out the world is ending and makes watching the film his last effort. He keeps getting interrupted by family, a friend, the neighbor, a family dinner event, and a chore to mow his grandmother’s lawn. Throughout the short he keeps trying to find ways to watch it in every given situation that he’s thrown in. Those moments really make the piece entertaining.
To build off of those situations, each scenario introduces a new character. What I really love about this short is the fact none of the characters we are introduced to are taking the event of the world ending in a serious manner. They go about their daily routines while chaos ensues in the background. We don’t see how chaotic it is, but we hear how chaotic the world has become with gunfires, people rioting, cars screeching, police sirens, and constant alarm bells. With all that chaos around them, they don’t even budge to make a last effort to survive. That’s unique and makes them stand out. The dialogue and actions of the characters are so dry and so funny. Those are the things that really drive the short forward and make it super interesting to watch.
It does help that the camera acts as a tool of observation. It’s nothing too flashy or in your face. It’s just there. Sitting. Watching the characters, just like we are. It doesn’t feel intrusive in the slightest. Which really allows the acting to come through and bring these characters to life. The editing wasn’t anything extreme either, which really helped this short feel what these characters are feeling: routinal. If the camera and editing were anything else in this short, it would have made me feel like I was supposed to follow the chaos that’s going on in the rest of the world. I love that it never forces us to follow what’s going on in the outer regions. I mean, the fact we follow a character who needs to mow a lawn during the apocalypse makes me giggle. It’s so simple, but so well done. There are even scenes with the sky changing color, enough so that it should make anybody super worried, and he goes along like it’s no big deal – just as long as he gets to watch his movie.
There’s a lot of fun moments in this short. The fact they make a lot of Heston jokes (which I didn’t think would ever be possible) really added to the uniqueness of it. Who has ever watched every single one of Charlton Heston’s movies? I’m sure there are people who have, but it’s so odd, so unique, and so amusing to watch somebody try and find a way to watch the only movie he hasn’t seen of Heston’s, just as the world is about to end. I loved it. And the last shot really made me appreciate the character’s ambition and journey to watch this film as a last hoorah.
