Charlotte Hamblin, UK 2023

This eccentric, but endearing short film is a semi-autobiographical story from writer-director Charlotte Hamblin about a woman who is plagued by chronic death anxiety–the belief that she has killed anyone she has ever gotten close to. Mara, played by Tanya Reynolds (Sex Education) with quick wit, is in a therapy session at which she warns her therapist that she has “the power to kill,” as she says. The therapist is unfazed by this and helps Mara talk through her anxieties as they are reenacted in a stylized and somewhat absurdist manner. The dark subject matter is handled quite brilliantly and hilariously through Hamblin’s sharp dialogue and Reynolds’ pitch-perfect performance, which makes the film hopeful and uplifting even when grappling with the fear of death. (KL)