Director: Jung-jen Pao
Writer: Jung-jen Pao
Cast: Jung-jen Pao, Camille Chalons
Running time: 30mins
Jung-jen Pao’s quietly mesmerising half-hour film The Soul in My Head shows just what can be achieved with consistency of tone. Even as the action veers between wacky absurdism and psychological trauma, the writer/director (and star) exercises a level of restraint that ensures the cinematic spell is never broken.
And truly this is a story where things could have become seriously uneven. With themes of suicide, and schizophrenia, and a female co-lead who appears to be written almost as a game of chicken against the ‘manic pixie dream girl’ trope, this is territory that all too often leads immature film makers to exploit every cheap wow factor available. From these volatile ingredients, Pao has managed to craft a piece that proceeds for the most part like a pleasantly intriguing reverie.
Huge credit has to go to our two lead actors. Pao himself anchors the movie as POV character Morpheus, subtly channelling the shifting mental tides of a young man moving from high school alienation to new job optimism as a qualified psychiatric doctor. But it’s Camille Chalons as Fish (Pao’s restraint momentarily abandoned him when it was time to think of names) who lifts things to a higher plane.
It’s a tricky role: Fish doesn’t conform to socially acceptable behaviour (certainly not library etiquette); she’s capricious and mischievous; she both helps and hinders Morpheus. But she’s never less than magnetic and it’s no surprise that Morpheus feels he needs her in his life, despite the problems she causes. Somehow, Chalons infuses all of these moments with warmth and believability.
Pao’s disciplined direction is superbly backed up by I-fan Wang’s measured cinematography. CK Chang’s original music is also highly effective at setting and maintaining the mood. It’s worth noting that, with a budget of $120,000, this film benefits from technical polish such as excellent colour grading and special effects good enough to be unobtrusive. The comprehensive credits list an extensive crew that somehow includes no fewer than five Best Boys – is this a record?
Obviously, money tends to help any production – it’s not uncommon for our reviews to say things like “this could be developed with more funding” – but it has to be deployed sensibly. Jung-jen Pao has used his generous resources wisely to serve his directorial aims and created a film of real quality.