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Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
Former US Marine-turned-filmmaker Kyle Perritt heads to the Tribeca Film Festival this month with his short film, Robbie Ain’t Right No More. As my second film seen at the event, this eighteen-minute narrative is a horror-thriller that follows a young adult at home and her older brother who returns from war. Perritt produces, writes, and directs his own experiences with being on tour overseas and delivers a heavy story that speaks for the effects of the United States as a military superpower.
In this article, I will review Kyle Perritt’s Robbie Ain’t Right No More. As the title suggests, there will be no spoilers here.
Robbie Ain’t Right No More Synopsis (Tribeca)
According to Seamless Pictures, here is the synopsis for Robbie Ain’t Right No More.
Sarah (Madeleine McGraw – THE BLACK PHONE, OUTCAST) was close with her older brother Robbie (Jadon Cal – LAST OF THE GRADS) before he went off to war. But now he’s cold and distant. He doesn’t seem quite right anymore. When Sarah refuses to let him slip away, she discovers something horrific that he brought home with him.
Seamless Pictures
Discussion
Robbie Ain’t Right No More has subject matter that may not hit home for everyone. Post-traumatic stress is one of a whole array of outcomes of the West taking its people to other countries and other parts of the world, participating in a war that only fans the flames tied to entire histories of animosity. Given Perritt’s background, the short does fulfill its ethos, or the credibility to persuade the audience. The filmmaker has a way with words that could be easy to miss initially.
The short film does not exactly contain a concrete conflict or resolution. Sure, Robbie’s (Jadon Cal) internally inflicted, yet the problems with his psyche are a synecdoche, perhaps even a metonymy, of a much larger issue. This issue, of course, concerns the elephant in the room, or rather an elephant that never gets addressed properly. When it comes to the imperialism of the United States, it appears difficult to articulate just why society as a collective praises it so much. One character, Andy (Walker Trull) speaks of “shithole” places overseas, and immediately, viewers can tell how certain Americans react and respond to the rest of the world.
Simply put, Perritt’s screenwriting is smart. He alludes to Robbie’s fate as if an otherworldly force of nature has taken hold of him. It does not help the main character anymore when a minor character credited as “Pale Rider” (Greg Wilson) appears by the end. This points to the Biblical figure in the Book of Revelation known as the Horseman of Death. The entirety of the final scene is a shocker, but it also leaves the door open to questions and possibilities.
Control
Next to trauma, this Tribeca short focuses on a theme of control, whether it’s the patriarch Vernon (Jason Davis), whatever has taken hold of Robbie, or the United States government. There are layers that Perritt does not directly address here, and why should he? Robbie Ain’t Right No More features cinematic elements that bear some similarities to a John Carpenter flick. It even gives special thanks to David Gordon Green, who has directed three films in Carpenter’s Halloween franchise.
In terms of control, the filmmaker crafts a narrative around what a young woman is told by her father about her older brother. What feels clever about everything is Robbie’s “illness” and its ties to his being enlisted in the Marine Corps. However, knowing is just half the battle, and so the real task is comprehending every piece of the puzzle.
The Crew Behind Robbie Ain’t Right No More
Producer Owen Hamilton serves as the director of photography.
The film’s original score is composed by Dylan Dawkins.
Kimberly Wistedt serves as the casting director.
Rachel Wilkin (One Tree Hill, Mr. Mercedes, The Righteous Gemstones) serves as the production designer. Sal Giuseppe is the set decorator.
Producer Emmie Holmes is the costume designer.
The creature and makeup effects are done by Bearded Skulls MUFX Group. Tony Rosen serves as the creature designer and puppeteer.
Rick Pour (The Crow, Piranha 3DD, Mr. Mercedes, Swamp Thing, The Black Phone, Scream) serves as the makeup effects supervisor. Matt Barrett is the makeup effects artist & fabricator.
Rosa Martinez is the makeup department head. Serenity Pearson is the key makeup artist.
Chelsea Newcomb is the hair department head. Hillary Parker is the key hairstylist.
David Gordon Green is named in the “special thanks” credits.
The Cast of Robbie Ain’t Right No More
Madeleine McGraw (Outcast, The Black Phone) stars as the Tribeca short film’s protagonist, Sarah. Jadon Cal portrays the titular character, Robbie.
Jason Davis (Prison Break, The Staircase) plays Sarah and Robbie’s father, Vernon. Mary Emily Deal plays Sarah and Robbie’s mother/ Vernon’s wife, Peggy.
Walker Trull plays Andy. Revell Carpenter plays Andy’s wife and member of the family, Lindsay.
Greg Wilson portrays the “Pale Rider”. Terrance Little and Isaac Vickers play soldiers.
Korey Smith plays “The One Who Takes”.
Performances and Character Developments
Out of all the secondary characters, Davis’s Vernon delivers a tremendous performance. His grasp on the household crumbles at the return of his son, and matters at the dinner table are not the usual matters but a war over peace. Vernon loses a sense of harmony upon learning of what happened to Robbie. He consequently takes this out on his own daughter instead of the true culprit, whom I believe is Andy.
Like Vernon, Cal’s Robbie is another character who struggles for control over his being. The character finds solace in the fact that his sibling, Sarah (Madeleine McGraw), shares the same sentiments about living under others as he does. Their best scene might be when they discuss this for several moments and bond over the notion that they are probably powerless after all. Cal performs best when he plays along to the music and reveals Robbie’s scars. Meanwhile, McGraw has a terrific moment towards the end of the dinner table scene when she strongly defends her brother and the experiences he has endured.
Final Thoughts on Robbie Ain’t Right No More
Robbie Ain’t Right No More is an intriguing take on post-traumatic stress under the guise of a horror-thriller. Cinematographer Owen Hamilton deserves his roses for capturing the different shots of the family inside their home, their residential property, and the barn. However, that would not prove a success without production designer Rachel Wilkin putting the household together. As a pair, Hamilton and Wilkin exhibit the uncertainty of a family’s well-being, such as in the 90-degree angle as Sarah’s face pans to the front door.
4.5/5 stars
Kyle Perritt’s Robbie Ain’t Right No More screens at the Tribeca Film Festival starting Friday, June 14th!
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Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
