SouthSide (2003) Online

The format of the short film is one that offers potential for snappy, stylish storytelling, yet often little room for emotional investment with it's characters, yet Southside manages to combine both, despite its sprightly running time.

The films opening credit sequence plays out like a visual photo album and it is through these sepia toned images that the sense of the character Billy Shears is already established. The innocence of youth gives way to the graffiti streets of modern life and the dilemma that Billy faces. Due to his enforced relocation down to London,the Manchester misfit strikes up an unlikely union with a homeless man named Charlie. Their bond is formed by their current circumstances and the narrative then concerns itself with recalling how they got to this point in time, through a series of incidental moments.

Through these episodic flashbacks, the variety of stylistic devices Southside uses, comes into fruition. Techniques such as re-focusing in camera, increasing the film's speed rate, adopting frames with over-exposure and striking shot composition, give Southside a vibrant, multi-textual feel. In particular, the Job Centre sequence is wrapped in an obtrusive, clinical glow and the use of extreme close-ups, gives the scene an effective sense of how it often feels in situations such as that. Although it is slightly undermined by the inclusion of a receptionist whose hands on approach to job seekers seems OTT.

The two main characters are played convincingly by the actors, with Billy Shears being a foolish yet likable lead, he appears a down on your luck loser at first but his insistence on helping his new friend, towards the end of the film, reveals a little more depth.

Stephen Lockwood excels as the homeless Charlie, capturing a vagabond charm within his limited screen time. He is a convincing lively character with whom you empathise with (it is impossible not to squirm during the beer bottle/dog mess scene) and rally for when he (aided by Billy) takes his last stand. If there is room for criticism, it would be that the actual story is a somewhat well worn treatment yet it is with the delivery of the narrative excels the film, managing to present the material in a fresh, interesting manner. The short film category can often restrict the filmmaker to connect enough with the audience yet Southside does this with aplomb, providing a promising showcase for it's writer/director and creating an amusing yet credible story that is brimming with technical competence and creative flourishes.

This was one of the first short films I'd ever seen, and It was wonderful short film.

A very entertaining, funny and lighthearted little story about an unlikely friendship between a dizzy Mancunian twit and a charismatic Irish Tramp.

It's told in a none linear structure with flashbacks and fast paced, snappy editing that always keeps your attention as it moves from one person's story to the others.

It starts off quite chilled and nostalgic before letting rip into a series of unfortunate events between the 3 main characters. The guy who plays the tramp is fantastic, a really convincing performance.

It cracked me up on a number of occasions, and ended in an unexpected, yet mature manner - I loved it.

The first thing that struck me on beginning to watch Southside was the music. The melancholy guitar effectively set the tone for the rest of the film. I too often find the use of contemporary music quite distracting and sometimes detached from the imagery and narrative, but this soundtrack suited well and didn't overwhelm. As the film starts the style is confidently established, a simple fish out of water story that effortlessly also serves as an urban adventure that one can relate to and a glimpse into an unlikely friendship, be it fleeting or potentially long term.

The opening scenes, and recurring scenes between the 2 leads, make great use of a small space, the camera was nicely intimate and innovative with short nervy shots that suit the nature of the initially uncomfortable encounter.

The atmosphere of how a crowded city like London is ultimately very isolating and lonely for an individual is captured instantly in the 2 lead characters brief but telling stories of how they both came to be there. I always appreciate a film, especially a short that makes the most of London, and it being such a sprawling location I like how Southside closes in, avoiding the temptation to stray and focus on big buildings and long high streets that we see all too often in city set shorts.

With it's subtle humour ,and not so subtle in one funny yet unattractive instance, the film maker here understands the distinction between making light of a bleak situation and in a typically British tradition smartly drawing comedy out of everyday misery. It also doesn't stray into what some call gritty territory, seems most can do gritty but fewer can do satisfyingly funny yet natural and intimate. The 2 leads are strong and likable, both portraying naivety and weariness in their contrasting ways, never forcing their dialogue. The supporting cast could be a little less exaggerated and don't appear natural enough in their few lines, but this doesn't particularly hurt the overall film. I would've perhaps liked to have seen the film end a little closer to the final action, but I am one for open endings in shorts as opposed to ones that tie scenarios unrealistically neat and quick.

I definitely recommend watching Southside especially to those interested in British and short film. It's strengths lie in the perfecting of the basics, such as characters, dialogue, impact, original visuals and entertainment, which so many overlook.

M.J. McMahon's short film Southside is a frenetic take on one of the oldest fictional yarns: the meeting of two strangers in a strange land. The strangers in question this time are Billy Sheers, a naive young northerner, and Charlie, a middle-aged homeless man, who happen upon each other behind a derelict building on Clapham Common and swap experiences of their time in the Capital; neither is a native of their immediate environment and so a friendship is forged, born out of a mutual recognition of the 'outsider'.

We join the film with both characters hiding from their troubles. Billy has fled south to escape the wrath of his girlfriend's father after getting her 'up the duff', and Charlie has recently given a gang of youths the slip and is using the building as a refuge (the building could also be seen as protecting the characters, especially Billy, from facing up to their responsibilities and the choice of music that plays over the opening sequence is akin to "The Green, Green Grass of Home" which re-enforces this theory by suggesting a yearning to return to the halcyon days when life was simpler).

When both characters realise that they have more in common than just their outsider status, they are forced to confront the problem and meet their fate. So, tooled up they leave the film in the manner in which they possibly entered: screaming and shouting (the very first image of the film is a sepia still of a boisterous newborn baby that could be either/or).

Although both Billy and Charlie are stock characters (a Mancunian NED and an Irish drunk) we are still given enough to sympathise with them; they may be stereotypes (possibly why the lad has been named Billy Sheers i.e. "The act you've known for all these years") but they are believable stereotypes, with both principles turning in impressive performances.

I think the film works best when it allows the viewer to become immersed in it. The constant re-framing/snap focusing that McMahon employs is effective and adds to the tension and uncertainty of some of the set-pieces - although the speeding up of certain portions, accompanied by dramatic sound effects that are used in Billy's flashbacks seems to interrupt the flow and take the viewer out of the film. It may be there to help us share Billy's experience and state of mind, but for me it seems out of step with the rest of the film and there purely to disguise a less-interesting sequence.

All in all, Southside amuses, intrigues and delivers. M.J. McMahon's ability to get across a story quickly and concisely should be applauded and stand him in good stead for the future.

Perhaps drawing inspiration from Mike Leigh's 'Naked', McMahon's intention with Southside seems to be to capture one of those multitudes of moments where the lives of two people intersect for no other reason than to comment upon each other's chosen path. Preferring the streets of London to those of Manchester after fleeing his pregnant girlfriend's somewhat irate father, Billy finds the south side no more inviting than the north. Broke, jobless and without direction, he stills has more going for him than Charley, the destitute vagrant drunk upon whom Billy stumbles behind a rundown outhouse on Clapham Common. Swapping anecdotes about how they each ended up at that spot at that exact time, much of Southside's brisk running time is devoted to a series of episodic flashbacks. And it is here that Southside's credentials lie: a montage of tightly edited vignettes which provides a showcase for some highly creative post production work.

Southside's story perhaps ties itself in too neat a knot, with both Billy and Charley having encountered the same short-tempered wide boy and his back-up crew of pubescent-era wasters. On the run from them for no more a reason than getting in their way at a cash machine, Charley was actually in hiding behind the outhouse, only for Billy to unknowingly give away his position to the chasing pack. Having been cornered by their quarry, Billy and Charley emerge armed, kicking and screaming as Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid. But it isn't the story here which gains the plaudits: rather McMahon's ability to condense time in the incidental flashbacks, rendering them almost as a series of isolated low-comedy sketches.

Veering between voice-over and diagetic dialogue, it is these scenes that reveal the promise of McMahon as a filmmaker. Foregoing most conventional rules of editing, lighting and camera-work, he creates his own palette of tricks to serve his story. Over-exposure, jump-cuts, time-lapse, and gritty colour schemes are all employed to maintain the edginess of Southside's largely urban setting, while unprompted zooms, in-camera re-framing and snap focussing all serve to maintain a sense of technical momentum, and reveal McMahon as a post-production perfectionist. But while all this works to the film's benefit in the flashback scenes, I feel it was almost in danger of over-indulgence in the here-and-now scenes between Billy and Charley.

Perhaps another impressive aspect to Southside, stemming from McMahon's screenplay, was the speed with which the film draws its characters. The tempo of the film is such that the audience is forced to keep up with the events or risk missing something of value. The editing is brisk and economical to extremes, and Southside wastes not a frame in its fifteen minute duration. The opening sequence of old home video footage is possibly there as a framing device, perhaps placing the two characters' plight in context when compared to the freedom and optimism of their early 8mm lives.

But Southside's thumbnail sketch of two wandering souls down on their luck, who share more in common than they'll ever know, is tack-sharp, off-kilter edgy and engagingly bold, and showcases a calling card for McMahon's promising future.

I really enjoyed this short Film and am looking forward to this directors next film. For me STeven Lockwood's tramp ,a truly superb performance.This film contained a pace and comedic style that I have not seen in a short film for decades.All the characters work, and well acted .This film works as the cast are mostly unknown and they give a great depth to their performances.An example of this in the chase scene across the common ,one of the actors, Verge ,trips and the cast just go with it. I hope it gets a wider audience.....Far to often ,young filmmakers,cast and crew do not get the support from either government or regional film commission offices that they need to pursue their talent,I do hope that will not be the case with the crew of Southside.

This film started off with a great title sequence and establishes good character depth right from the off, with great original music opening the film which continues throughout the rest of it as well as being perfectly suited to the tone of the film. We get an good insight into the central character 'Billy Shears' life right away. We understand his background and where he has come from and why he is in the situation he is currently in when we join him in his story. Which enables you to sympathise with him even though he is a bit of a fool.

The stand out scene for me was interaction between Billy and Norris Morris (Job centre manager) during a job interview at the local Job Centre. The story moves along very quickly and involves a large number of characters which makes this short film standout from others.

Usually I'm not a fan of short films, but this one had great characters, good storyline, lots of dialogue, unfortunately crammed into a very short space of time. The climax of the story is dealt with very well and does not leave you with a cop out ending.

The film goes by so quickly I felt like I would have liked to seen more of 'Billy Shears' story. The overall feeling I got from this short film was that it had great atmosphere, very cinematic and very entertaining to watch.

Where do i start? i really don't know, i saw this on some cheap cable TV channel a couple of weeks ago and cannot believe they have it listed on here, on top of that they have a website for this pathetic c**p!! oh my god the director really is shameless if he thinks anyone would be dumb enough to check that out. i notice the reviews on this page come from family friends by the surnames and it doesn't surprise me at all.the director Mcmahon really needs to go to film school or if he has been he needs to phone them right now and get a refund because he clearly hasn't got a clue how to make a film. please do yourself a favour Mr and never ever write or direct again please...i beg you, life's too short for rubbish like this.