Why Watch? A troubled man stares down at the portrait of a beautiful young woman before tearing into the bedsheets, attacking a dirt-covered bathroom and nervously clearing the carnage in the kitchen. It’s not clear what’s going on, but it seems like he’ll be in deep shit if he doesn’t get his work done in time. Built by an atmospheric drone of music, overexposed whites and editing meant to keep the viewer off-balance, this short from Alexander van Walsum is a strong example of creating the kind of unease that makes you scratch at your neck like an addict, in spite of (or because of) narrative uncertainty. It’s also a lesson in dramatic expectations and a payoff that comes when our only human entry point takes great care in placing a heavily-wrapped object into his second garbage bag and drags the pair toward the apartment door. It’s a pulse check with a wink and a great story told very, very quickly. What will it cost you? Only 2 minutes. Skip work. Watch more short films.  

Why Watch? Because every so often, you want a high concept premise that gets you into a car that’s going very, very fast. While it won’t win any dramatic awards, this short delivers some sleek visuals thanks to strong CGI, and it fulfills your need for speed. What Will It Cost? Just 5 minutes of your time. Does it get better any better than that? Check out Deadline for yourself:

On to another month of This Week in Blu-ray, we charge into a magical December filled with Terminators, Basterds, gangsters and teenage wizards. And that’s just what I have to deal with before I ever sit down to watch any Blu-rays.

Rob Hunter loves movies. He also loves working as a documentary filmmaker who follows Asian girls around to document their love lives. These two joys come together in the form of cash money payments that he receives every week and immediately uses to buy more DVDs.

An attractive, traumatized girl in a big, spooky, empty Victorian home all by herself, investigating some sort of tragedy while she avoids her own personal dangers. Sounds like fun, if you ask me…