From Omeleto.
A man cares for his mother.
TOOTS is used with permission from Chris Alan Evans. Learn more at https://instagram.com/velvetysatin.
Logan is a son caring for his mother, Pam, at home. She has Parkinson’s, and Logan sometimes feels burned out by the responsibility of caregiving. But he is devoted to her, and they have a close relationship.
But when Pam begins to decline sharply, the fragile equilibrium they have threatens to fall apart, and her son must come to terms with what that means.
Directed and written by Chris Alan Evans, this tender, empathetic short has a simplicity in its style and storytelling tenor, but it nevertheless packs an emotional wallop, thanks to its deft blend of humor and heartbreak. The subject is undeniably somber, yet it mines both the deep familiarity between family members and the sometimes messy physical reality of human bodies to capture a funny yet aching pivotal moment between a mother and son, whose roles have reversed but whose love and affection have never wavered.
The visuals are lived-in, warm and straightforward in their simplicity, creating an intimacy between viewers and the mother-son pair at the heart of the story. The work of caregiving is portrayed with detailed specificity, conveyed with both warmth and weariness by the son, played by actor Logan Sledge in a layered, nuanced performance that captures a caregiver’s fatigue and a son’s love and loyalty. His rapport with actor Pam Dougherty, who plays the ailing mother, forms the heart of the film. Pam is sick, but Dougherty finds a beautiful balance in portraying the difficulties of her present illness with the funny, loving mother she has always been for her son.
Their routine, as captured in the narrative with subtlety and understatement, is quiet. But life has a way of injecting unpredictability and absurdity into things, and even in the most somber of times, the pair find something to laugh at, captured in an extended scene of laughter and the unexpected expressiveness of human flatulence. It’s a small, human moment that bridges absurdity and affection, and it’s warmly funny, an island of unexpected brightness during a somber time. It’s the latest memory in a long string of them in the family, and its warmth becomes a bridge that will help Logan get through the more difficult ones that follow.
Honest, warmhearted and rooted in emotional authenticity, TOOTS is inspired by the real-life experiences of its writer-director, who was a caregiver to his mother. It captures the physical reality of care, and the sometimes uncomfortable intimacy of it all, full as it is with the farts, fluids and other effluvia. It makes for a deeply human juxtaposition, with many unexpectedly warm and funny moments. And it makes for an emotionally rich film about the unexpected ways love reveals itself and the memories that help love linger after our loved ones are gone.
