Kings (1999)

Niva Dorell's 20 minute short may be intended as a resume piece to get a feature film made, but it functions on it's own as a delicate, thoughtful and thought provoking look at a black man trying to rectify his present tense and his past life.

Michael Jace is exceptional as a black man functioning in a stuffy, ultra-white-collar world. When a friend from his past (Ricky Harris), looking very urban and very black, shows up at his office space, where he works as a corporate attorney, Jace is quick to usher him out of the view of his coworkers. The tension is obvious because Dorell does her work so perfectly here. Her images, her script (co-written by Anita Cal) and, most importantly, her pacing, thread us through the eye of the needle so assuredly and we understand exactly why Jace's character is so nervous. This is a man whose past (one which he has obviously left far behind) is about to catch up with him.

In just 20 minutes, Jace opens up a film that question where we come from and who we are (not relevant to only a black man, anybody who has tried to succeed in the business world can relate to this). It also explores the tenuous nature between the worlds of modern blacks and whites. It forces us to understand so much about a black man trying to survive in a white man's world and it does so in so little time. It's truly a perfect and consummate work. Dorell weaves us into the tapestry of a story so intricate and so tenuous that we begin to glean almost every nuance of the story. It's wonderful.

Dorell also uses music well in the film. While black hip-hop and jazz mingle in the piece, it is Curt Sobel's wonderful score that draws us into the film by underlining Dorell's pacing so perfectly.

The lighting, the score, the story and the actors playing surprisingly well drawn characters, all work together like fine alchemy here. And the final product is a short film that is riveting and poignant.

Notes:

In the Q&A Dorell said she is trying to work the film into a feature and hopes to be able to get it produced. She is currently working, presumably with Cal, on the script. One of the plot lines she mentioned for the feature included the duo, the attorney and his old friend, becoming involved in a murder case. This seems like an error to me. It is not necessary to go to such an extreme to make the film work as a feature.

Dorell is a USC grad and this is her thesis film. She was "mentored" by John Singleton and Robert Zemeckis.

The film has won numerous awards.

Report Card

Script: A+

Acting: A+

Cinematography\Lighting: A+

Special Effects\Make Up: A+

Music: A+

Final Grade: A+