Eulogy

Directed by Olly Poulter

2026

Daylight Moon Films

Eulogy is a new Midlands-made flick exploring an Al Palliative care robot called ‘PAL’ set in the not too distant future.

Strangely, our second review of a Midlands film called Eulogy in 2 weeks, this takes a distinctively different angle with its roots in science fiction and the unsteady progress of future technology.

We are introduced to Noah (Barry Smith), a music teacher who shares the bad news that he is terminally ill with his son Luke. Unable to be physically present to help, Luke promises he will do all he can and before too long a large wooden box is posted to Noah’s home.

Inside is a robot PAL. As Noah becomes increasingly debilitated, his one escape is a tape of Clair de Lune by Debussy that mentally takes him to a calmer place. After activating PAL, the robot explains how it will help during this difficult time with reminders and medications.

However, PAL’s monotone voice is at odds with his supposed care. And its comparison with HAL, the murderous AI from Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey is front and centre.

Eulogy is an interesting piece from the outset. A unique idea is set up well with no fuss and some great editing to get to its central dissection of automation and the human condition. The deftly-written script from Ben Thomas and Rory Rawson highlights Luke’s absence without ever over-explaining, or over-egging, its messages.

Noah’s ‘calm place’ of meditation soon has the dark clouds rolling in and we begin to see the disconnect between the loving care he so desperately craves and the cold unfeeling nature of PAL.

One small area of improvement that could have been made is PAL himself. Obvious budgetary constraints means we’re not getting Hollywood CGI here but the Daft Punk head feels the only mechanical feature in a body suit that looks, well, like a body suit. Perhaps a few more Cosplay style fake mechanical additions in foam would have added a little more to the costume to avoid the Elon Musk “android” man-in-a-onesie look.

That said, actor Rory Rawson does a good Peter ‘Robocop’ Weller performance given the constraints. And I suppose you could argue the outfit does kind of underpin the central theme of human-like automation. Nicholas Alder's uninflected tones a good addition as the voice of the robot and Barry Smith emotional performance as the dying man is a great blend of coping and fear.

As we jump months ahead and Noah’s health is failing, the need for a eulogy with his impending death approaching is farmed out to PAL as Luke becomes entirely unavailable. And a religious (and Star Trek-infused) farewell rounds off the film in a satisfying way.

I really enjoyed Eulogy. Olly Poulter has done a top-class job with this 20-minute short and the fascinating narrative is delivered incredibly artfully with some outstanding editing and visuals to boot.

With impressive cinematic construction and an engrossing plot, Eulogy is a grand accomplishment. And we hope our own written tribute to this memorable piece captures the film’s splendid skill and wonderful story that questions technology, morality and dignity.

★★★★★

5 / 5

Michael Sales

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