Before the screening of The Hunting Ground, I thought The Ninth Girl was such powerful short film. One of the best parts of the film was knowing that is was a short film, I did not know when it was going to end and what cliffhangers it was going to leave for the audience. Another aspect I really loved about the film was the choice to have no dialogue in the film and have the ongoing sound of a heartbeat. Therefore, throughout the film I didn’t know what was going to happen next and due to the intensity of the scene, I felt my heart beating fast like the sound playing. Although a fictional short, it could very might as well be a true story to someone, which is the reason why such a short film like this is so powerful in meaning.
I also really thought this short film did a great job of opening the eyes of the viewer. I felt uncomfortable by the film from the beginning, but what really aggravated me was the way that the old man watering his yard looks at her with such judgement. This is the face that women all over the world who have been sexually assaulted have been confronted with when people don’t believe they are telling the truth. It makes women not feel safe coming out against their predators and the fact that we live in a society where women can’t express being raped by a man is a serious issue
One of the most impressive things about this film, to me, was the fact that there was no dialogue. It was amazing to me how much emotion this film evoked without any words. It really felt like we were there inside the young woman’s head as she was trying to gather her things and leave. Another powerful part of this film was when she unknowingly took the wrong phone and looked at it once she got outside the apartment/house. Seeing the disrespectful texts about her that her assailant was receiving made the whole thing so much more painful.
Another ingenious aspect of the film, in my opinion, was how the story was slowly pieced together step by step. The narrative and plot structure, if you will, was synchronous with what the woman herself must have been going through. We experienced the story just as she was experiencing it, a narrative style I believe has a particular potency concerning the impression it leaves upon the viewer. The introduction of the single shoe, the cell phone…..the timing of each of these items and their corollary additions to the short film was spot on.
Yes, I really thought this film did an excellent job in its cinematography as well. With very fast, shaky camera movements with a lot of close-ups, I felt a sense of panic and claustrophobia as the girl got her stuff together. I also thought it was interesting how he had close-up of her feet with one shoe on, to show how disgruntled the girl is at the moment.
I think it puts you in the moment of time. It is a piece of art that makes you uncomfortable and more aware. It was brilliantly cut and filmed. It is very realistic making it more horrifying. I think it was very creative and would be a good opening to Kirby Dicks movie. Although his intro scene was good, it would create suspense and bring the audience into the topic.
One thing I loved about this short before the film is that there was no solution. She ended up just walking away without any consequences for the guy. It showed the audience that Sexual assault is an ongoing problem and there has not been a solution to stop it. I thought it was very powerful and had a strong message.