3 Review

3 is a 2021 short film written and directed by Peter Koevari.

A touch of The Hunger Games mixed with a bit of Gamer, 3 delivers on high octane moments that surpass its indie origins but loses a touch of the momentum in trying to provide explanations for what is going on underneath the surface.

Where this piece hits a stride is really in the opening moments of the film. We are given some great gunplay and action heavy moments that easily surpass the small crew/cast behind the project. Nothing here feels forces or as if anyone is unfamiliar with the weapons or combat styles to utilize.

It is natural in a story like this to provide a context for what is going on, so the necessity to transplant us outside of the simulation is almost a forlorn conclusion. However, this is where things do, of course, slow down a bit. This is not an inherent issue but providing some more concrete explanations or sympathies for the scientist behind what is going on might have helped make for a grayer area for this program.

Even with this, though the interactions we are shown are still strong and the entire cast is committed to their roles here. It is by no means a slog at all, in fact there is a lot to be said for how each character feels like they have a unique personality. You can feel that there is a lot of world-building underneath the shorter length of the film as a whole.

This is a certainly a short film with a sizeable amount of ambition and we are given a unique take on a formula that may seem like it has nothing left to offer.

There was a lot of strong direction in making 3 and while the high-octane introduction can’t carry the whole film, it certainly makes for a hell of a start. This is a story that begs to be built out from and with an even higher production budget it will be really great to see what this team can come up with in the future.

To follow on social media: Film Facebook, Production Facebook and IMDB.

Cheers!

Daniel Hess

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