Inspired by the 1944 novel of the same name, Dangling Man is described as “a visual poem’, exploring loneliness and what’s just beyond our reach if we take the leap.
Sometimes art makes you think, and this short film certainly does. Certainly a grower, this surrealist piece begins feeling too pretentious for its own good, and that’s the point, I think. Our central character Joseph, lost in his monotonous life, suddenly spies a small hole in his ceiling. He climbs through, and enters a Wonderland-esque world where he is entranced by his three “neighbours”.
Uncomfortably quirky, but by the end of the film you are charmed as if you yourself have been hypnotised by the “neighbours” yourself. While at times the vignettes feel like a confusing life insurance advert, the gimmick of the black-gloved hands works well, and Jack Parris (Joseph) is wonderfully expressive as the everyday man. Perhaps too high concept and cerebral to feel fully satisfying, but the high-quality production and soundtrack elevate the piece to something well worth watching.
