“Almond Wood” is a 2020 Short film thriller directed by James Frost and written by James Frost, Patricia Rodrigeuz, and Michael Schilf. The film stars Kate Amundsen and Will Brandt.
The film centers around Debbie Reynolds (Kate Amundsen), an attractive young woman from a privileged background, albeit with dark connections, and Jason, her good-looking and overly confident boyfriend, as she takes him out for a birthday dinner and surprise that begins innocently enough. Pretty quickly, we get the sense that things are not alright in the relationship when Jason clearly uses the opportunity to drink as much as possible and even makes a pass at a passing customer, which acts as a reinforcement of the decisions as to what is about to transpire, maybe even cementing his faint.
We then end up in a limousine borrowed from Debbie’s father for the evening in an endless journey to Jason’s awaiting surprise. The power dynamic shifts in the car as we go from a cocky and arrogant Jason to now an empowered Debbie, perhaps enforced by the fact she is in a safe place and knowing that she is now the one in control. Debbie displays moments of hesitation and empathy as she throws Jason one last lifeline before committing to whatever she has planned. Jason answers his cell phone clearly to another woman and pretends it’s a guy. Instead of not answering the phone, he goes on a misogynistic rant about online dating, clearly annoying Debbie in the process. At this moment, Debbie offers him one last chance at redemption. The car pulls over as she describes the beauty of nature, Jason, irritated and bored, suddenly begins to urinate on the side of the road, sealing his fate.
The car pulls off the road where Debbie has Jason’s birthday surprise set up for him, but first, he needs to be blindfolded. Jason, clearly annoyed at what he perceives as an immature gesture, goes along with it. The car opens, and a heavily accented woman takes his hand and leads him from the car. Jason suddenly becomes threatened by the situation. Debbie then handcuffs him, which alarms Jason, who is already questioning the situation. Debbie wishes him a happy birthday and alludes to the fact that she has given him some sort of kinky sexual experience before announcing something in Russian, which takes Jason by surprise and clearly rattles him.
We then cut to a scene in the forest where Jason is being seduced on a treadmill by three Russian women (played by Natasha Blasick, Alisa Levinson, and Gabrielle Salinger), clearly alluding to something sexual that is about to happen. Jason plays along even though he finds the whole process frustrating. He asks if he can see the women who have disrobed him and are about to seduce him; they agree only once and are all masked in “Debbie” masks, a rather eerie detail, but also revealing a rather sinister, unkept man (played by Kalus Harrison) who suddenly instructs him to run while simultaneously starting the treadmill. Jason is then forced to run while being steadily whipped by the three women. He calls out for Debbie in vein. During this scene, we see Debbie sitting quietly in the back of the limo, seemingly observing this torture from afar. We can’t help but notice that she is contemplating her decision to psychically and emotionally torment Jason in what can only be described as an act of revenge, or at the very least, the most horrendous breakup of all time.
In the climax, Jason collapses in exhaustion and is thrown from the treadmill. The scene becomes quiet as he stands up, battered and bruised, and tries to catch up with a limo driving away on a dirt road toward the highway. The limo is then hit by a passing truck. The ending is ambiguous, as we see the car’s light turning on after the accident, but the fate of the occupants is never revealed. Finally, we see Jason on the ground, distressed, as he reflects on the situation and experiences shock at what he has just witnessed.
The Other Cinema 