To Dust (2023) - Short Film Review

Ilan believes his dreams have the power to create. He believes his wife is a product of his own imagination. To keep her from turning to dust, he locks her in their bedroom and obsessively protects her from the outside world.

Based on a concept by Ilan Muallem and co-written, directed and edited by Eliana Ghen, both star in this intense suspense drama that questions both characters' perception of reality. With such a simple premise, the story is carried effortlessly by its realistic script and strong chemistry between its three leads.

Despite delving into supernatural and horror themes, the film refuses to fall into familiar tropes that audiences have seen many times before. Instead, director of photography Alex Tacter keeps the camerawork focused solely on the characters, which grounds the story in a much more effective way. The atmosphere is foreshadowed in the colouring of the sets and costumes. The contrast of bright lavender and morbid grey highlights the internal and external conflict between the two leads.

Skylar (Ghen) has been locked in a room by her husband, who believes he's struggling with the aftermath of his mother's death and the revelation he's not been taking prescribed medication due to his inability to sleep. As she tries to calm Ilan (Muallem) down and be rational, but Ilan persists with his story. Skylar has died, and his grief has manifested her back into existence, but if anyone sees what his mind has conjured, that object or person turns to dust - hence the title.

As both characters insist that their version of the last five years is the accurate timeline, both are written with nuance and layers that keep the audience engaged. You realise what has happened only at the end of the film, but the twist is worth the wait. As the short focuses on an intense and emotionally complex relationship, there's a slight reprieve with the introduction of the couple's mutual friend David (played by Tacher). David brings a glimpse of the normality of the outside world, especially as our two leads are trapped in one room for the majority of the short.

The claustrophobic nature of the film adds to the story's suspense; not a single minute of screen time is wasted. The premise of this film has the groundwork to be adapted into a feature-length movie, with a perfect depiction of trauma told through a supernatural narrative.

The eventual reveal that Skylar has indeed passed away and everything she remembers is a figment of her husband's imagination is perfectly portrayed by Ghen. The inner turmoil of these characters is effortlessly visualised in the silent moments of this film. Quite often, screenwriters will rely a bit too heavily on dialogue to convey the characters' emotions. To Dust subverts those familiar writing tools and allows the characters to live in these sad and uncomfortable moments.

I really enjoyed this film, and I am definitely going to be watching more of this trio's individual and collaborative projects. Personally, I would love to see an expansion of the To Dust universe. What caused this supernatural resurrection? Who were Skylar and Ilan before the tragic accident? Has this happened to other unknown characters? There's so much to unpack, and the tiny plot threads could easily be explored through a sequel or spinoff.

It was only while I was writing this review did I learn that this short film was written, filmed and edited with no budget. With the quality of the production, you really wouldn’t have thought that. I cannot wait to see what this team produces with a budget to back up their imaginative and creative ideas.

My rating for To Dust (2023) is ★★★★½.

The full short film is available to watch on YouTube here!