SHARP SHOCK SHORT: SILK

SILK (2014)

Dir: Rob Himebaugh

Starring: Puya Abbassi, Elle Alexandra, Justin Beahm, Benjamin Pollack

There has been a massive amount of hyperbole last week about what some people are calling the most terrifying short film ever. Rob Himebaugh’s film was funded by a successful Kickstarter campaign and has won plenty of awards. But could it possibly match my expectations?

SUMMARY: This is a short, so I won’t spoil too much. Two CIA agents based in Afghanistan (Alexandra and Beahm) meet with a Bedouin about a way of funding an insurgent group. His request is for an unfeasibly high amount — but then he offers a bargaining chip. A jar of the rarest silk, spun by an equally rare and deadly spider, worth millions to the right collector. They skeptically take the jar, then they are revealed to be lovers who can’t wait to escape their tense and dangerous line of work. As they both sleep, the jar is revealed to contain more than silk — with horrifying consequences…

WHY IT WORKS: There are two things guaranteed to gross out and terrify in equal measure — body horror and spiders. Silk gives you a massive great dollop of both.

If you head to the film’s imdb page, the summary of the film completely spoils the plot. This is a film where not knowing what comes next adds so much more to the story. Do not go there until you've watched it!

The film is masterfully shot, with long, slow tracking shots reminiscent of Hitchcock and Polanski, building the mounting claustrophobia and desperation of Kelly’s situation with astute camerawork. Sometimes the over the top ominous soundtrack proves a little distracting, but that is a small price to pay.

The effects are genuinely excellent and of a par with big budget Hollywood productions. Tremendous job there!

The acting is not amazing, but does the job — however, this whole short hangs on two key scenes. One is earlier on and legitimately unsettling, the other is the film’s climax. The climax is, quite simply, the sort of thing that will haunt you forever. If you are not scared of spiders, it will terrify you. If you are, well, I suspect you may well require therapy after witnessing THAT final shot.

SO WHERE’S IT AT? Get yourself over to Vimeo where the film’s creators have been kind enough to let us watch it for free! BE warned though, it is definitely NSFW.

Also be sure to check out the short’s official Facebook page and give them lots of love. I’m sure they’d appreciate some feedback for disturbing you forever.

10 WORD WRAP UP: Artfully shot arachnophobe’s nightmare will leave you afraid to sleep

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