Written and directed by Gerard Vidal Barrena, in a basement-turned boy cave, a band rehearsal spirals into chaos as creative tensions and personal drama push four teenage musicians to the brink. Starring: Isaías Badilla, Leo Blumenfield, Nii Adu Clerk and Archer Carr-Engler.
If you’re pining for the days of garage bands, then you’ve found yourself the right short film in B for Boys. It’s well timed as the garage (or basement in this case) band seems to be making a comeback, except now it’s blasted all over social media to play to strangers, rather than simply playing to their parents’ and siblings’ disdain. It’s a great choice to capture that vibe of the 2000s but also remain in the present. The cinematography from Rong Hu is strong and does a nice job of setting the tone quickly, in order for Gerard Vidal Barrena’s direction to create something youthful but thoughtful.
That’s really a key element of B for Boys, taking the feeling of the past but giving the characters modern personalities with more emotional awareness. Still bringing in that hormonally driven masculinity of teenagers, but letting go of the old gross, misogynistic, sexually obsessed jokes and jibes of the past. It’s a nice update and it moves well, particularly in the delivery of the dialogue, there’s a great, quick back and forth, which Barrena’s directorial style and editing embraces as well to bring through some solid tension.
Another big part of B for Boys’ success is making it authentic and that’s in no small part thanks to the performances from this quartet of Isaías Badilla, Leo Blumenfield, Nii Adu Clerk and Archer Carr-Engler. They provide a modern, non-problematic version of boys being boys, they’re going to do and say some dumb stuff, that’s inevitable but they can also recognise it after the fact and make amends. They’re a great ensemble, they strike the right tone with all their performances, they create convincing friendships and individual personalities. They also don’t make for a bad band which is helpful.
The way Barrena uses music here was another great choice, it’s a balancing act of making it not terrible so it doesn’t throw off the tone of the film, but not too good as to make it look like they’re actually professionals. It works really well, the songs are not perfect but catchy, they have that rookie feel, that maybe there’s a little talent in there, but they need to work at it. Those choices definitely help solidify the genuine feel to the short.
B for Boys is basically exactly what you want from a modern film following teen boys. They’re messy and argumentative and passionate, but they can also be a little bit sensitive and very supportive, it’s a wonderful balance. There’s a strong aesthetic at work, Gerard Vidal Barrena’s direction moves really well within that basement setting, never feeling claustrophobic and adding plenty of energy. It has a great cast, it’s entertaining, youthful and surprisingly sweet.
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