A good short does exactly what it sets out to do: provide its audiences with a capable, coherent storyline that leaves the viewer wanting to explore its themes in a feature length format. Kinks does exactly that.
Australian horror short Kinks opens with a leggy call girl explaining to an ailing relative that no matter what the cost of the life-saving medicine, she’ll make the money happen. That paycheck comes in the form of two wealthy aristocrats willing to pay 15K for just 8 hrs of her life. Contracts are signed and the trio make their way to a factory where the next 8 hours are allegedly going to consist of some light bondage and few harmless scares. Well, it wouldn’t be a horror movie if things didn’t take a wrong turn somewhere and soon our heroine is running for her life, trying to escape her pursuers.
I’ve always been fascinated by films like Hostel, an idea that represents what a little money can do to propel the devious to being downright sinister. Kinks carries on that tradition and apples a whole lot of style to where the short is sometimes lacking in substance. Solid acting, great production design and a good DP make director Jayden Creighton’s Kinks a worthwhile short that deserves a feature length continuation. RECOMMENDED.
