Midlands Review of Bodybuilders and Rule Book from Five Pence Productions

Bodybuilders

Directed by Nisaro Karim

2020

Five Pence Productions’ latest short film is directed by and starring Midlands Movies Awards 2019 best supporting actor Nisaro Karim. Alongside Karim is Joe Egan, a respected ex-boxer who’s acting experience includes parts in both of Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes adaptations.

Bodybuilders follows Karim’s character and his intimidating yet encouraging personal trainer, Big Jon (Joe Egan), on their journey to the gym. Big Jon controls the conversation with Karim only mumbling one word responses. It becomes clear why this is later in the short.

Many of the laughs in this short come from Karim’s character’s minimal dialogue, replaced with his amusing visual acting and Big Jon’s obliviousness to the fact that his trainee doesn’t even speak English. The vulgar woman in the classic old lady crossing the road slowly sequence is also a humorous highlight.

I would have appreciated a slightly more distinguished narrative as the short does seem to rely on Joe Egan’s dependable, but typical, tough guy persona, rather than the barely there story. There is unfortunately not enough that actually happens in the film to impress me. However, it is comical to see such a larger than life personality in such a confined and restricting space.

Despite this Bodybuilders is an easy to watch, reasonably entertaining short film. It’s respectable acting and amusing jokes make it a worthy addition to Five Pence Productions and Nisaro Karim’s ever reliable filmography

Rule Book

Directed by Gurjant Singh

2020

Rule Book is directed by Gurjant Singh and is headed by West Midlands based production company Five Pence Productions.

The simple yet effective plot focuses around Nisaro Karim’s character’s inner battle between his culture and his heart. The conflict lies in his finding of what he deems love with a woman older than him, who has a child of her own. His relationship with her would unfortunately be looked down upon by many in his culture.

Karim’s pained monologue to his friend (Debora Rodrigues) comes across as very heartfelt and convincing, inviting you to resonate with his anguish. He speaks about his relationship with this woman, how they match each other perfectly, yet his fear of his families opinion has restricted him from exploring this to any deeper level. She has shown him vulnerability yet he feels he can’t yet reciprocate this.

The intertwining shots of the conversation between friends and of his blossoming relationship are beautifully framed and seamlessly edited. Despite its short runtime, the film does a commendable job of conveying the potential for these two characters to find love with each other. The narrative and characters engrossed me so much that I was left disappointed by the unresolved ending.

Rule Book is a notable and earnest story of forbidden love.

It feels like a very personable story and touches on a conflict that I’m sure many have experienced. The tagline “Not everyone loves in the traditional way” provides a just sentiment that hopefully audiences will carry with them after seeing this thoughtful short film.

Jake Evans

Twitter @Jake_Evans1609