Short Film Review of "Fetish" by The Headless Critic

Fetish – 2018



A mild mannered librarian who looks a little odd and isn’t the best at talking to women meets the girl of his dreams at a birthday party. Clark (David Lee Hess) isn’t the most handsome man. He’s getting older, going bald and his life as a librarian isn’t exactly wowing with its finances. As he walks the library isles his life of solitude has manifested in a fetish for women’s feet. He hates himself for having an uncontrollable nasty “fetish” and has sought help in fixing that through his therapist Bill (Bill Wise).

While at a friend Kelly’s (Erica Heidepriem) birthday party Clark catches the eye of the much younger, much prettier Carrie (Ashley Spillers). Luckily for Clark Carrie likes older men and isn’t shy about asking for dates. It’s a match made of love. Carrie is so special Clark is able to repress his sexual fetish he’s so ashamed of. As they two grow closer to being intimate Clark wants a deeper connection, possibly even to confess his nasty little secret. The closer Clark gets, the more Carrie withdraws from her own intimacy issues. You can only repress who you are for so long before it finds a way to get out.

A twenty minute short that’s masterfully done, Fetish is a love story at heart with an all-consuming desire lurking below the surface. The lighthearted storytelling from David Lee Hess, co-directed by Richard H. Perry tells a not so simple story of boy meets girl. Ashley Spillers keeps an almost comical note to her performance playing well off the almost loathing portrayal of Clark of David Lee Hess. The first twenty minutes is captivating, the last thirty seconds is just amazing. I may not review a lot of short films but I screen many. When I review a short it’s because I feel it deserves attention. Fetish is one of my favorite short films of the year. Seek out this Fetish if you can.

Playing Now at Select Festivals

4 out of 5 Headless Critics