A short film that made me say, 'That's all?!'

The Detective (2021)
Starring: Alex Perri
Director: Alex Perri
Rating: Nine of Ten Stars

Late at night, a hardboiled detective (Perri) sits down to write a report. But something is amiss...

I have only two negative things to say about this excellent homage to the hardboiled film noir detectives and their cinematic vehicles of the 1940s and 1950s--because Alex Perri pretty much gets everything right in the minute-and-a-half run-time of "The Detective".

First, the narration provided by the title character is a too much. I understand that Perri was trying to fit all the standard elements of a film noir mystery into a very brief space, but it was so intense that it was bordering on parody. It wasn't bad, just a little over the top.

Second, despite my complaint above, I was drawn into the situation that is set up here... and when the end title card appeared, my reaction was: "That's all?! What happens next?! What about--argh!"

So, my second complaint about "The Detective" is that wanted more than what's here. What Perri delivered was so good and so engaging that I was taken aback when it ended. My complaint, therefore, is that this is vignette is so good that I want MORE! I want to know the story that's unfolding around this tiny glimpse into the shadowy world in which this nameless detective lives. 

Basically, my complaint is actually the highest praise I can give to any bit of creative story-telling that I come across: I enjoyed it so much that I didn't want it to end.

How about you? Check out "The Detective" by clicking below and let me know if you like it as much as I do!