Middle Watch (2022)
As World War Two draws to a close, a sailor aboard ship in the Indian Ocean must do his duty. Watch must be kept, the horizon scanned for enemy craft and the bubble trails of deadly torpedoes fired from stealthy submarines. Haunted and scarred by conflict and the loss of fellow shipmates, our sailor's task is the Middle Watch, or the graveyard watch, as old mariners call it. But, as he goes about his duties, in the small hours of the morning, his routine is shattered by an encounter that could tip the balance of his delicate state of mind.
- John Stevenson
- Aiesha Penwarden
Rating: 6.7/10 by 3 users
Alternative Title:
Country:
Czech Republic
United Kingdom
Language:
English
Runtime: 00 hour 12 minutes
Budget: $0
Revenue: $0
Plot Keyword: war ship, trauma, war, animation
Based on a true report from a sailor in the Indian Ocean, this short animated feature quite cleverly illustrates the tasks facing a watchman onboard ship in the middle of the night during WWII. Whether it be Nazi U-boats or giant sea creatures, we get a sense of the peril and emotional isolation caused by the environment, and of the loneliness of this "graveyard" watch - as well as an indication as to the traumatic effects suffered by survivors who are continually reliving not just their memories of past events, but enduring the risks that it could happen again - to them, now. The animation is simple and effective with an solid score underpinning the story that is peppered by only the briefest "hello mate" degree of dialogue. It's all about solitude - physical and mental, this - and it works well.
