Not Quite SXSW Review: Between Floors

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Have you ever been stuck in an elevator? You can probably see the comedy in that, right? And the drama? Imagine five stuck-elevator scenarios, and you can imagine Austinite Jen White's award-winning feature Between Floors.

Five very different stories play out in five separate elevators. Often funny and sometimes poignant, the tales include a lone business man, a man with a video camera, a family on their way to a party, a bloodied man and someone in a bad gorilla-in-drag suit ... and one very over-capacity elevator. The stress of being trapped and blind to any efforts to rescue them, the veneer of composure breaks down in sometimes unexpected ways.

White cuts between the elevators as each of the stories in Between Floors unfolds. With the tagline of "Sometimes getting stuck is the only way to break free," each elevator contains a different dynamic forcing the occupants to let go of some harbored anger. Ironically, the most diffuse story concerns the overcapacity crowd, but with so many potential stories, it has to be. Instead of wasting time developing those stories, White focuses on group dynamics of strangers, with amusing and insightful results. The two solo occupants do not get a chance to explain their stories, but they are still interesting to watch, one with hilarious results and the other heartwrenching.

The remaining two elevators contain people who have the opportunity to interact -- or not -- revealing just enough of their stories to make you want more.  The timing between the gorilla-in-drag and the bloodied man (Ryan Wickerham) kept setting off laughter during the screening I attended, in part because of the absurdity and in part because of excellent timing. How Wickerham kept a straight face opposite Brent Smiga in that wonderfully ridiculous suit, I'll never know.  The last elevator, with Anika Kunik (The Happy Poet) and Michael D. Conway (Temple Grandin) and a bickering wealthy couple, and Kathryn MaGill as their daughter is where the most drama occurs. MaGill deserves recognition for  the longest (and effective) non-speaking role so close to a camera I've seen in years. 

Nothing is really resolved in Between Floors, but that's part of its charm. Lives are certainly changed in at least two of the elevators, but with a P.T. Barnum-esque tease, White leaves the audience wanting more, even as they recognize themselves and people they know in those elevators. 

While there's a lot of material within each story, Between Floors falters by extending the cutaways one round too long. It's not enough to ruin the film, just enough to make at least one person aware of the time passing as the final round of cutaways started. Still, it's not enough to deter anyone from seeing it. 

If at all possible, see Between Floors in a theater, as the universal experience of being stuck in an elevator will make it a communal experience.  Each of the stories in Between Floors is worthy of a stand-alone short, but together they provide an entertaining peek into the secret lives of elevators. 

Austin Connection: Shot entirely in elevators, you may not recognize them, but they are all elevators in Austin and San Marcos. Writer/director Jen White is a native Austinite, which means Slackerwood will definitely be keeping an eye on her career. 

Between Floors screened during SXSW but was not part of the festival. The film is still on the festival/special screening circuit, with nine screenings scheduled in seven states in the next few weeks.