120 Seconds to Get Elected (Denis Villeneuve, 2006, Canada)

120 Seconds to Get Elected is a 2006 short film by Denis Villeneuve. The film, shot in black and white, opens with an image of a crowd. A politician is making a speech, and in the speech, he states that everybody wants a job, so everybody can have money, and that money buys happiness. He tells the crowd that if they elect him, they will get work, but this is met with some boos. "But not too much work," he assures them. He then promises to cut the taxes, which generates cheers. The images of these ideas - "MONEY," "TAXES," "HAPPINESS," etc. appear in bold letters across the screen.

The politician then tells the crowd he will ban poverty, and that poverty will be illegal. He tells them he will put the poor in work camps, so they can become rich, but not too rich - because if they do, there will be no poor anymore. "And without poor, who will be rich." The politician tells the crowd that to protect them from the danger of poverty, he will invest their money in the army. We don't want to invest in education, he claims, because education brings questions, and we already have the "ANSWER."

"Nature is the only thing that doesn't need money!" This two-minute short shows a different side from Villeneuve, who is not particularly known for his comic side, or his satirical side. It was made in the period in the first decade of the 2000s, when Villeneuve was not particularly productive from a creative standpoint. The film is humorous, but not particularly exceptional, and seems to have been made for television. It is worth seeking out for Villeneuve completists, but others will probably not find it exceptional. Villeneuve thankfully went on to do better things.

5/10