Trust
Director: Alan Mulligan
Rating: N/A
Country: Ireland

Ally (Sarah Carroll) logs into a dating website to find a man for some late-night fun. However, the man she chooses, Richard (Richard Wall), is a married man. Or perhaps this was all part of her plan? While at first reluctant and hesitant at the prospect of a discreet, casual encounter, Richard relents. Of course, nothing is ever as easy as it seems online.

Trust takes a minor twist to create more drama in its plot, but it feels kind of uninspired. Ally, wracked by the memories of a failed relationship, is driven to prey on Richard (and others, it's implied) because of this sense of revenge. Though thin and one-dimensional, this exposition helps to at least shape Ally's character, which is more than what can be said about Richard.

By all accounts, Richard seems to have just been caught in a web of sex and shenanigans. Really, outside of his general hesitance to comply with Ally's sexual advances, there isn't much to say about who he is as a character. However, given that Trust is a short film, that's not especially needed. In any other format, Trust wouldn't be as interesting.

The film is stripped down to the basics of plot, antagonist/protagonist conflict, and fine cinematography. As I've said in the past, the best short films are well-written and full of nuance, where every single sentence/frame is important. Trust is simple, sure, but writer/director Alan Mulligan looks to be on the right track for any future projects he'll head.