Short Film Review: "N.U.N.S. with Nunchuks" (2021)
N.U.N.S. with Nunchuks Short Film Review
Written by Stuart D. Monroe
Released by Canux Pictures via Vimeo
Directed by Lorenzo “Eightball” Gutiérrez
Written by Lorenzo “Eightball” Gutiérrez and Vincenzo Nappi
2021, 13 minutes and 14 seconds, Not Rated
Released on April 24th, 2021 at the Flamingo Film Festival
Starring:
Patty Keach as Jean Versacon
Natasha Perry-Fagant as Betty Powell
Alejandra Jiménez as Freda Davis
Denis Moreno as Ernesto Murciélago III
Jasmine Winter as Lucille Nero
Vincenzo Nappi as Freddie Ginlock
Picardy Jean-Pierre as Deacon Eddie LeLoup
Review:
I like tag lines. They’re fun. One short sentence or two will tell you what to expect out of a film. They look really cool on posters, too, and they’re often one of the most memorable parts of a film’s marketing campaign. N.U.N.S. with Nunchuks has one of the best tag lines you’re likely to ever hear: Oppression? Racism? Nationalism? The N.U.N.S. are having nun of it!
Yep. It’s going to be that kind of ride, and I was deeply intrigued based on the poster alone. When you throw out social issues and ass-kicking nuns as bait, I’m going to bite ten times out of five.
In an unspecified distant future, Quebec is in the midst of social strife on a provincial scale. Freda Davis (Alejandra Jiménez) and Lucille Nero (Jasmine Winter; Filtered) are agents for the National Union of National Spies (N.U.N.S.). Their mission is to take out the evil leader of the Catholic Association of Quebec (C.A.Q.), Jean Versacon (Patty Keach; Moving Past… Goodbye). To that end, they recruit professional wrestler Betty Powell (Natasha Perry-Fagant). She wants no part of it until her beloved manager is beaten to death by a goon of the C.A.Q. Now Betty is out for blood and the far-right scum better beware the N.U.N.S. as they fight for tolerance while dressed as weapon-wielding, wimple-wearing women of God! And did we mention that Lucille has X-ray vision?
Your first introduction to this alternate reality (in the capital city of Los Mutantes, Quebec in the neo-Gregorian Year 29) is a wrinkled out housewife in a kimono and a blingy eye patch pedaling hate speech over an old-timey microphone. It’s weird as hell, but it also nails the grainy grindhouse aesthetic and refreshingly old-school patina that drive-in mutants drink up like the nectar of the gods.
N.U.N.S. with Nunchuks utilizes title cards and graphics to clever advantage when a little quick exposition is needed to keep it moving while filling out the story in only 13 minutes. The entire character arc of Freddie Ginlock (writer Vincenzo Nappi) is conveyed by title card while Freddie himself is only seen once (for a few seconds) covered in blood and packing peanuts inside a shipping crate. It’s efficient but still uses smart sound cues and camera work to make it a complete plot point. They’re also used for character introduction with Ernesto Murielago III (Denis Moreno) and a fairly in-depth character backstory for the film’s “big bad”, Jean Versacon. There are enough easter eggs and character details left open to allow for more of the story to unfold, as it appears there is more to say in the story of Quebec’s own version of Charlie’s Angels.
Also, I’m still dying from laughter fits over Jean Versacon’s opening monologue of hate spew. How can hate spew be funny, you may ask with shock? With lines like, “Effective immediately…in 48 hours…”, you know you’re listening to a Canuck Karen taken to toxic levels of Trump-esque bigotry in what is actually one hell of a biting bit of satire.
N.U.N.S. with Nunchuks is like an late 19th-early 20th century political cartoon come to life at the hands of a director with a deft hand for balancing style and substance thanks to excellent collaborative writing. The fact that they want to continue telling this tale is just icing on the cake. Now I need answers to the other burning questions- did Betty ultimately lose her title? Who the hell is Big Marv? Will there be a rematch against The Eagle? Where can I watch clone baseball? And what is the deal with Lucille’s X-ray eyes?
I told you there was a lot going on here in Los Mutantes.
Grade:
4.0 out of 5.0 stars
