CineQ: Something in the Closet (Dir. Nosa Eke, 2019)

After sharing an experience with a girl in her closet, Madi starts to hear noises and wonders what else is living in there

Filmed in a handheld style, we become part of Madi’s world as she learns about herself and the monsters in her world. Switching between classic horror tropes and dreamlike sequences, the soundscape and editing style really do an amazing job at keeping us hooked to Madi’s story and going on this rollercoaster of emotions with her. Madi is played by Demi Lee Walker, someone who appears strong but who can also show a breakdown of emotions in a way that makes the audience want to stop and question how they’ve treated everyone in their life. Kids do play dumb games and say silly things, but to really get into the head of someone who is being hurt by it all really takes power. I really loved seeing this starring performance, as I think she did a spectacular job at capturing our hearts and taking control of her own.

Directed by Nosa Eke, who also co-wrote the short with Alexandra Kessie, this film touches on “coming out of the closet” in a way that I haven’t seen done before. Instead of being comical, or extremely dramatic, it simply looked at how young people face their feelings. It can be lonely and scary, and the way this film came together showed brilliantly how there are ups and downs, but things can be done to sort it out. I loved the character of Camille, played by Sophie Lovett, who plays the love interest for Madi. Instead of going along with the typical mean girls, she stayed understanding, even if it was in private. Having her character act how she did shows young people that we need to be there for our friends, and not make fun of them. Even if it’s tough, we’ve got to stick up for the people we care about. I think this film is the sort of thing that could be shown in schools or youth groups, to really get this message across that it doesn’t matter who we love, as long as we support each other.

Accepting who we love can be a difficult thing, especially if we don’t understand it or grow up thinking that it’s wrong, but it’s films like this that are so important. People need to grow up knowing that they’re not wrong to not match the typical relationships in teen movies, that they can like more than just the opposite gender. For me, this film tackled the subject in a fresh and unique way, and I’ll definitely be recommending it.

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