From Omeleto.
A woman goes on a date.
HOW DID I GET HERE is used with permission from Kate Hamilton. Learn more at https://instagram.com/justkateh.
Cynthia is remembering a date, recounting every "squicky" moment, from realizing he doesn’t look anything like his photos on his profile to recoiling from his casual touches on their hike. She charts the ebb and flows of their date, as well as that of her instincts, as they spend the day and then the evening together.
Cynthia observes herself, from her willingness to give him the benefit of a doubt to her attempts to assert herself. As the date wears on, she finds herself in a confrontation with herself as she faces uncomfortable truths.
Directed and written by Kate Hamilton, this barbed short dramedy is a forensic examination of romance, dating and sexual politics, told through the lens of a bad date. The storytelling employs the device of a direct address to the camera, an invisible presence tagging along the date and adding commentary as it unfolds. Two Cynthias go through the date — one on the inside as she goes through her date, and one on the outside narrating and judging every cringe-worthy misstep.
Nicely shot and briskly paced, the film initially intrigues, thanks to the specificity and strength of the writing. Cynthia’s voice is crisp, sarcastic and sharp, and her perspective is fluent in the modern mores of #MeToo, consent and power dynamics, though she’s careful to situate the date as an examination of the gray areas. As the date goes on — and she becomes increasingly disgusted by her inability to assert herself, stand her ground and walk away — that voice becomes more entrenched in its narrative, setting up the audience to experience a story we’re all too familiar with.
As Cynthia, actor Kate Hamilton is an initially wry presence, with a demeanor that is detached, observational and smart. Yet Hamilton also allows a genuine discomfort to creep in, especially as the moment of ultimate self-betrayal draws near. As the visuals darken and become more murky, so do the actions of both Cynthia and her date, with Cynthia setting boundaries and her date pushing against them.
But right at the key moment of self-loathing — and just when we think we’re going to see something painfully familiar in typical stories about consent — HOW DID I GET HERE takes a different turn, one that makes it even more complex, nuanced and complicated. And for Cynthia, it may even be more painful than the clearer, simpler story that was being set up for us and her. Instead, she must confront herself and her harsh judgment — and perhaps a larger, more endemic problem about assertion, voice and being "nice." It threads the narrative on a more pensive note, making for a frank, surprising and thought-provoking end that will spark debate and reflection.
