A bright little gem of a short film, Rebecca Demeter’s Hey Alexa, gives us an inventive look into what is in that little box. Stevie Lynn Jones shines through with her engaging performance.
Who is Alexa? She’s a friend; she’s helpful, funny, kind…whatever you need, she’s there for you. Let’s take you through a day with Alexa. She has ups and downs and busy times. She has odd questions and conversations. She’s up for any and all of it.
If, like me, you have ever wondered what it would be like for an Alexa or any other virtual assistant to actually exist in human form and still deliver the answers you ask her daily, then filmmaker Rebecca Demeter’s film Hey Alexa is right up your alley.
From a production standpoint, Rebecca Demeter and production designer and writer Xochi Blymyer have conjured up something quite extraordinary for a short film set in one room. For those 10 minutes, Alexa must run around and get every random item to use as her research to deliver her item. The room is positively packed with stuff, and you can see how much care and attention has had to go into that room to make it all work as smoothly as the film does. You have to really appreciate how particular the positioning has to be to make it work. It is quite a marvel how they pulled it off.
Ece Muniroglu’s score is lovely here, too, with specific characters who contact Alexa, getting their own little pieces. For the majority of Hey Alexa, there is a great warmth to the score that allows us to enjoy Alexa’s day. Though there are nuances, such as when Gramps comes up, that warmth is still there, but a slight tinge of sadness is also present. When the family leave him after visiting, you feel his sadness even though you never see him.
Of course, Hey Alexa only works as well as it does, thanks to the charismatic Stevie Lynn Jones; she is pitch-perfect in this role, carrying the jovial charm through in spades. What you appreciate about her performance is that she doesn’t act entirely like how the voice Alexa would. When she can’t quite find a route that has been requested, it takes a little time, and we see her becoming exasperated when she is asked questions that do not help a person. Such as personal ones, there is a change in her, a small touch, sure, but one that works for the character.
As Hey Alexa goes on, we, of course, get the utter weirdos and maybe even deranged people who ask Alexa where it is best to bury a body. Alexa keeps it straight and says that she does not understand the question, and after their interaction, there is a fantastic inclusion that will bring a good chuckle to the audience.
That, in truth, is what makes Demeter’s film work as well as it does, an accumulation of the small moments that combine in such a wonderfully creative manner that you wholly admire the piece.
★★★★
The 19th HollyShorts Film Festival is running between 10th – 20th August with in person and digital screenings available through the 10th to 27th August.
For more information go to www.hollyshorts.com
Coverage of HollyShorts Film Festival 2023:
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