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Short Film Research: Party to Murder

 The mystery short film I watched was Party to Murder by Strobie Studios. The actors gathered together at this old style mansion to play a game of murder mystery while at a masked party. Will they play a harmless game or is the reality of death knocking on their front door? The director included a plot twist which is what ultimately made the short film a good watch. At the beginning of the film the director used upbeat music and close up angles of a couple dressed in fancy attire. The upbeat music explained the mood of the couple, as they were laughing and excited for their upcoming party. However as the car approached the home the music took a turn for the dark. The music began to speed up and the musical notes selection became very ominous. A big tactic used in mysteries especially murder mysteries in plot twists. Plot twists leave the audience highly surprised making it the best way to recapture a viewer's attention. Nobody wants to sit through a movie where every scene is easily predictable. The author used multiple different angles in the film which helped establish nervous feelings in the audience. One example of an angle used multiple times throughout the short film was the close up. The close up allowed the director to present a clear shot of the actors current emotions, whether its fear, anger or agony. One of my favorite aspects of a murder mystery is the feeling of being completely confused. When so many perplexed thoughts appear that your brain is clouded it gives a sensationally yet odd feeling. I feel that if the director leaves the audience confused or jaw droppingly shocked they have made an excellent movie. One thing I hate about mystery films is when the plot twist is used in so many different movies. For example when the actor is suffering from some sort of mental illness and they didn’t actually witness a murder. There are many aspects of mystery that we like as a group. For example, plot twists. Don’t be suppressed if you see one or two plot twists just be surprised by them!

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