Directed by Anghus Houvouras
Written by Anghus Houvouras
Starring – Karen Labbe, Justin Smith, Adrian Monte and Renee Plante
SYNOPSIS
Eleanor (Karen Labbe) and Andrew (Justin Smith) represent two different perspectives on A Civilised World. Perspectives are one thing, but the real question is whether apathy should be punishable by death.
There is a tangible intelligence behind this short film which dissects the arguments on both sides regarding social conformity. Writer director Anghus Houvouras has such a potent authorial voice, that it is hard to take sides in this densely scripted two hander. Over the course of forty minutes, he broaches the subject of productivity within our culture, by offering up a decidedly terminal solution. Both distinctive and persuasive in equal measure, it is held together by Karen Labbe and Justin Smith.
As the accused and the inquisitor respectively, Eleanor and Andrew seem diametrically opposed to begin with. One is defined by non-conformity, restricted by no perceived boundaries and lives her life accordingly. Choices have been made, laws broken and rehabilitation remains temporary. Opposite Eleanor sits a product of social constraints, who exists within those perimeters only to serve. A corporate cog who is deemed capable of determining the worth of an individual life.
With two chairs and a warehouse space Anghus Houvouras is able to achieve more than most films with bigger budgets. There are no distracting special effects, no extraneous sub-plots and certainly no fat to trim. This is pure social commentary levelled at a contemporary culture with nowhere left to hide.
Both Karen Labbe and Justin Smith work hard carving out distinctive personas for themselves with minimal window dressing. Moral and ethical debates are played out, ramifications considered and arguments made on both sides in terms of long-term implications. That being said, Anghus Houvouras is savvy enough to keep the conclusions open ended, in an effort to promote conversation afterwards.
Discussions around the death sentence might seem like entertainment Kryptonite, but within the context of A Civilised World it becomes a riveting piece of theatre. To consider apathy as a capital crime might seem an overreaction, but it all feeds back into the need for success. It calls into the question society’s answer to succeeding which comes down to ‘playing the game’. Not only an outmoded concept in contemporary terms, but a definition which is perpetually in flux.
In this world those who choose to buck the system are not only admonished for a lack of ambition, but eradicated in a pious act of legislation designed to weed out dead wood. Whichever side of the line audiences come down on, there is no ignoring the voice behind this film. Syllables are brandished with intention and applied with considerable force, turning this delicate two hander into a call to arms for those who still see film as a means to shape public opinion.
A Civilised World is screening at the Tribeca Film Centre, as part of the 2021 Downtown Urban Arts Festival in New York City, September 24th.