Christine Celozzi — who gave you the right to make this spectacular short?! I am in awe. Flabergasted, if you will. Frankslist is a trip and a half — let me explain why…
Meg just wanted a job. What she got was…Frankslist.
Frankslist, IMDB
It wasn’t that long ago that I had been let go from my job and was incessantly submitting my resume to every and any job listing website. Thank god I didn’t come across Frankslist, because I don’t know if I would make it past the front door. Meg (played by Celozzi) is on her last few dollars when she shows up to a sketchy interview location. She almost leaves for fear for her safety, but after a barrage of texts asking to repay some loaned money, she goes in. What she finds inside is a crazy cast of characters and bizarre situations that test her boundaries and desperation as she prepares for the interview of her life.
Bizarre is just one of the words I’d use to describe Frankslist, but I think the key phrase is “gut-busting fun.” The setting, the characters, and Meg’s mix of emotions are so on-point that this incredibly unbelievable situation became totally customary. I was with it all the way! The dank waiting room was questionable. The secretary and janitor-to-be were legendary in their performances. The tension throughout made me gasp, laugh, and lean forward in my chair just to get that much closer to the action. The ending was the cherry on top — leaving me to rethink everything up until this point and speculate how Meg would continue forward. Even writing this now, I have a huge smile on my face.
Frankslist is the sweet spot for a lot of things. Firstly, it sits at 14 minutes, which is a great length for a fully-fleshed out, yet not too long horror short. If this gets made into a feature, great; if not, it’s perfect as-is.
This short film is also great at balancing many aspects of horror. Frankslist keeps the scares and comedy proportional while also ramping them up to 11. While the setting reads Saw, the comedy is straight Stepbrothers. It is wild and crazy, but doesn’t forget that it’s still a horror film. On top of that, it’s female-led, adding another banger to the world of women in the genre.
Frankslist is a cautionary tale for some, but a godsend for others. For me, it was perfect and one I’ll keep on hand when I want to introduce someone to short horror. 10 stars (plus a bomb in the toilet)!
Keep up with Frankslist with writer/director Christine Celozzi on Instagram and her website!
