Sunday, January 26, 2014

Trey Chavez - Step 4

The goal of this short is to cause the viewer to consider the extent to which plants are in tune with the happenings of the universe.

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The short begins with our main character, Irwin, sitting on an examination table in a doctor's office. A doctor nonchalantly informs him that he has an advanced form of cancer. Irwin shows only mild discomfort at this news. The doctor tells Irwin to consider himself lucky - that a mere ten years ago his case would have been fatal. He then gives Irwin a prescription, telling him that he should make a full recovery within a few weeks.

The next scene takes place in the early evening at Irwin's apartment. Irwin enters the front door, removes his coat and greets his cat. Plants fill the apartment. Irwin opens a prescription bottle and examines one of the pills. It is small and dark, like an apple seed. He swallows it and then falls asleep watching television on the sofa.

This is followed by a dream sequence. Irwin awakes in the middle of the night to find a potted plant on the seat next to him. He is confused, and lifts it up to examine it. The TV is displaying footage of trees. He enters the kitchen for a midnight snack and faint whispering can be heard, which gets louder as he approaches the fridge. Opening the fridge, he finds that it is full of vibrating plant life.
Irwin suddenly wakes up. He is still on the couch, but his time he's not dreaming. There is no potted plant beside him and the TV is displaying a normal broadcast. He moves to the bedroom.

The next scene begins as Irwin flicks on the light in a flower shop. It is early morning, and he is preparing the shop for business. His cat accompanies him. As Irwin ties the straps of his apron, more whispering can be heard. Eventually sentences become discernible. The voices seem to be predicting the future, such as when Irwin is urged to move out of the way just before his cat knocks over a watering can above his head. Many similar events occur throughout the day, and Irwin is convinced his medication has given him psychic abilities.

Later, Irwin prepares to clip the stem of a potted flower to be added to a bouquet. As his scissors close in on the flower's stem, a small voice says "please don't." Irwin glances towards the door, expecting to see a customer. No one is present. Shrugging it off, he tries again. "I don't want to die," says the voice. At this Irwin leaps backward - he is visibly distressed. He brings his face very close to the flower and examines it. As he brushes its leaves with his hands, he hears a small sigh. Many whispering voices can be heard and the man looks all around the shop at the different plants. The whispering becomes louder until it comes to an abrupt stop when the door chimes and a customer enters.
The customer is a sleazy business man who asks for a bouquet of flowers. Irwin selects a bouquet and is about to hand it over, but the many voices return and advise against this. Irwin retracts his hand. The business man is briefly confused and then quickly grows impatient, demanding that Irwin relinquish the bouquet. Irwin refuses. Eventually the business man snatches the flowers from Irwin's hand and storms out of the shop. The camera lingers on a group of plants near the door as the businessman exits, and the sounds of a car crash are heard. After a moment's hesitation, Irwin exits his shop to see what has happened, and stares in shock, along with several passersby, at what has just occurred. Cellophane and flower petals flutter through the air. The camera zooms in on Irwin's face, who is trembling as realization sets in. As he turns around to face the shop, we see Irwin through the front window with the camera looking "over the shoulders" of the plants inside the store, as if to suggest they are also watching what has just happened. Sirens are heard in the distance. Cut to black.

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