Icarus (2017)

Story: The premise is simple. A young gay couple comes at a cross-roads upon graduation. They have opposing ambitions: one wants to be a pastor, and the other wants to be a soccer player, but neither wants to give up their dreams for their relationship to work.

Actors: Not too shabby portrayal of two boys who are supposedly in love, but conflicted.

Music: The religious hymns brought back memories when I studied at a Christian school. I was surprised that I even remembered some of the lyrics. Not sure if that's a good or a bad thing.

Rewatch value: Only to figure out what really happened at the end.

Overall impression: After watching this short, I found that the more important part of the boy's relationship is that neither of them communicated to each other what they were planning to do with their future. They had to find out from their mutual friend about it. And then after they confronted each other about the possibility of one going into a seminary and the other going abroad to play soccer, they had to rethink what is more important to them.

At one point, when they tried to dissuade their partner from going through their plans, it seemed like they were bitter that their partner wouldn't compromise and support their own respective dreams. Kai's excuse was that his father wouldn't have approved his lifestyle choice since he came from a very traditional, religious background. Jay, on the other hand, thought that the opportunity to study abroad is hard to come by, and therefore, he had more potential to go further.

Actually, what surprises me about this film are the secondary characters, in the form of that mutual friend who served as a catalyst between Kai and Jay. She's the mediator in their relationship, like a voice of reason. Kai's father also wasn't as restrictive as he was presumed to be. Although he might not know the exact nature of Kai's relationship with Jay, the dad instinctively knew that there's something troubling his son, and Kai's decision to apply for the seminary might be misguided.

With this new revelation, you would have thought that the boys would have made different choices, but it goes to show that the thing you thought you might want, might not be the thing that you need. Would you give up on your dreams to have a chance at love, or would you abandon your partner to pursue your chosen career? This is dilemma that this short film is trying to address, and some people may choose differently than others.

Read More