Generally these short fan films offer up a certain formula; introduce Jason, introduce victims, kill them. It's pretty rare that we have character development or even a viable plot other than putting the victims in situations where they can die fast and with the least amount of special effects.The Storm is a simple film, however it is a well-done simple film. The plot introduces two females enjoying a midday swim. One of the girls notices that her friend just upped and left and heads back home in frustration where she is then joined by her sister and an annoying guy-friend as well as her stern cop father. Her father leaves her alone and when a thunderstorm hits the lights go out and Jason strikes killing them all- some in very familiar fashion- one by one.
The great thing abo
ut this fan film is that it was forced to follow that formula by default-- being a short, but don't let that deter you. The Storm did a lot of things that other short fan films did not, or simply could not. First off, the thing that sticks out the most is the beautiful HD cinematography. Right off the bat you know that this film was made by professionals and not just fans with a DV camera. Steady shots, close ups with an actual depth of field that we generally get with 35mm cameras. All of that aside, this movie had me constantly saying 'whoa'! The director Joe Patnaud really rolled the dice with this short film and we see that within the first minute we see a flash of T&A.