Kitchen Sink (1989)

Directed by:

Allison Maclean

This original, creepy, award-winning 14 minute short centers around a reclusive, possibly unstable young woman (Theresa Healey) who discovers something strange and horrific one day while she's cleaning out her kitchen sink and starts pulling on what she believes to be a simple hair caught in the drain. The less said by me the better here, but it's very well photographed (in black-and-white), has an effectively eerie music score (by The Headless Chickens), several surprises and is ambiguous enough to provoke thought. To me, it seemed to be about a woman looking for connection in a world of order and suburban alienation, though others have their own interpretations. Thanks in part to the success of this short (which won several awards in its home country New Zealand and was nominated for the Golden Palm at Cannes), Maclean was able to move on to a successful film (CRUSH, JESUS' SON, etc.), TV and music video career. It can be viewed either on YouTube or on the Strand Releasing CRUSH DVD.

★★★