This
is yet another reason why texting and driving is such a bad idea. When a man
receives a troubling message, he pulls off the road to indulge the impulse to
hurl away his phone. That will take him on a slightly surreal detour through
the desert in Will Blank’s short film, Limbo
(trailer
here),
which releases today on digital VOD platforms.
Limbo represents the
sort of comic book/graphic novel adaptation that the major studios have largely
foregone. It also might be the most faithful adaptation ever, considering how
little Blank and co-screenwriter Richard Kaponas deviate from the words and spirit
of Marion Churchland’s graphic novella, originally published in the Meathaüs anthology. Through interior monologue,
the film and its source novella address themes of regret and compassion, making
it ill-suited for a prospective tent-pole franchise, so unlike Green Lantern, Elektra, and Jonah Hex.
While
we never learn the details, it seems clear the man has had a falling out with
his girlfriend that was probably his fault entirely. He certainly regrets it
now, just like he regrets throwing his cell phone at the strange, Gatsby-worthy billboard. Like a slightly
mad Jodorowsky character, he ventures into the desert, where he stumbles across
a dying dog. After mercifully slaking its thirst, the expiring canine offers to
grant the man one wish.
Even
though the poor dog is dying, we can hear the authority and character in his
voice, because he is dubbed by Sam Elliott, the hero, Lee Hayden himself. The deep
resonance of his voice is pitch-perfect for the fantastical beast—and should be
good karma for The Hero during awards
season, especially considering Limbo is
kind of about karma.
Don’t
worry, no animals were hurt during the making of Limbo. The eerie-looking dog was actually rendered through puppetry
and practical effects. However, it looks real enough to send PETA off on a PR
rampage. Visually, it is a really impressive production, well worth checking
out when Limbo releases today on VOD
including Vimeo on demand.
