“They’re a solid 10, but…”
Complete that sentence with anything that’s a little off-putting but won’t be a deal-breaker when you are looking to date somebody. If the internet is to be believed, that’s what you’d call a “beige flag”, which unlike a “red flag”, is a trait that might not be desirable but is tolerable. Now, imagine living in a society where everybody is officially assigned a rating right from birth, with 10 being the perfect score. The mere thought of it might make some queasy, and director Vasco Alexandre manages to unsettle viewers by bringing this imagined scenario to life in the short film ‘Ten With a Flag’.
Based on a story by American author Joseph Paul Haines, the film is set in a dystopian world where governments can accurately predict the intellectual capacity of newborns while they are still in the womb. So when a couple Gemma (Julie Martis) & Jack (Bryan Moriarty) learns their baby is going to be a ten, they are thrilled, but then they are informed that it comes with a “flag”. What comes next is a life the couple isn’t prepared for.
The film opens with Gemma and Jack heading for a meeting with ‘human services’, where an enthusiastic officer (Julia Winwood) receives them and walks them through what it means to be parents of a potential genius. Julia Winwood exudes an eerie, cheery energy akin to that of Professor Dolores Umbridge from Harry Potter; so she looks like she’d treat you to muffins, but would instead bleed you out. Julie Martie and Bryan Moriarty, on the other hand, embody their characters, both rated 6, portraying middling, shifty individuals symbolizing common citizens passively complicit in oppressive regimes.
With a crisp 15-minute runtime, “Ten with a Flag” may seem slightly confusing at first glance, but it ultimately unfolds as a story about how governments use obfuscation to keep their citizens in line. The cinematography is stark and striking, with some shots featuring aesthetic symmetry, adding to a subtle sense of terror throughout the tale. Joseph Paul Haines carefully curates all audio-visual elements, including a small interlude of a stunning ballet performance. All this perfection creates an anticipation that something is bound to go wrong; it’s foreshadowing done well. The climax is open-ended and teasingly tragic, leaving viewers with plenty of food for thought.
Add the film to your list, especially if you are a dystopian fiction fan.
Read Next: Kaala Paani Review – Dystopian Getaway
Also Read: ‘The Plague’ by Albert Camus – Book Review (Audio Version Below)