“Shigara” (2005)

Okay. I’m trying not to be too harsh, because this was a first-time short film from an aspiring Eritrean filmmaker on a shoestring budget. But this was bad. Really bad. The dialogue (or at least the translation from Tigrinya to English) is atrocious. The acting is awful. The films tells a lot more than it shows. And the message of the evils of smoking is ham-fisted. Also, there’s this weird segment in the middle in which the main character essentially tries to force this girl into being his girlfriend… or something. I don’t know, it was just weird and I don’t know why it’s in the film. There’s some okay editing and camera shots, but I can only be so generous.

Rating: 1.5/5