Cute. That is my one word review of this short film. But it is more than that. There are layers at what might at first glance seem like a simple shy guy falling for a pretty woman film. Yes, it is about love, but in a deeper way. Platonic love as well as love for your fellow humans. How a little kindness goes a long way. How it is, in the end, rewarded. To not allow those who society has deemed as invisible just fade away. Get to know people. Always an important message, especially during these times.
This pandemic in many ways has forced us to slow down. Modern life has got so hectic we tend to not slow down to smell the flowers. Be appreciative of the small things in life. This is a gift which is readily available to us during confinement. To take pleasure in small things like baking bread or reaching out to friends who we have not done so on the regular. Our appreciation of these things has grown as a result. This film really reinforces that belief that the small things or gestures do make a difference.
A lonely postman named Gilbert (James Michael Tyler – from television’s Friends). A lovely flower shop owner named Eloise (Nicole LaLiberte – from television’s Twin Peaks – 2017). A young woman named Aurore (Roxane Mesquida – from television’s Gossip Girl), who looks forward to the postcards from around the world her boyfriend sends her and a blind older gentleman named Mr. Rosalie (Paul Dooley – Hairspray – 2007, Sixteen Candles), who is a retired English professor. They all come together showing that good people still exist in this world and that love is worth the risk.
Though writer/director Helen Alexis Yodov (We Stand Together) presents it in a rather muted way the emotions here are anything but. Feelings are bursting up everywhere. Whether they be longing or romantic love. It is not only the flowers which are blooming here. But Yodov does it in such a measured way that all the feelings kind of sneak up on you. In the end, that gives them all that much more of an impact.
All through the short I was preoccupied by the thought of “where have I seen this postman before?” Then it struck me. He was Gunther in the uber popular Friends. Cool to see him do something else. He does a great job as a shy guy who evolves before our eyes due to him getting in touch with his emotions. Realizing that he does deserve love and to be truly happy. He begins to put himself out there. And we are urging him on the whole way!