Short Film: Rick and Ruby

This 14.5-minute short from director Scott Woodburn was released in 2019 and is billed as a horror comedy, though through the opening set up you’d be forgiven for wondering at the comedy label as, to a point, the film is quite harrowing. Then the film turns round and, as all Hell breaks loose, the darkly black comedy streams on in.

A car dies and the driver, Ruby (Ellie Lee), manhandles a large trunk from the boot and drags it along with her. She eventually gets to a place called Larry’s bar and goes on inside. The bar is sparsely occupied. Larry (Chip Ramsey, Jug Face) is working the bar and Lou (Doug McCue) and Chick (Kyle Minshew) are his only customers.

the assault

Ruby, at this point, is already coming across as bad-ass, taking a shot of whiskey as she tries to ascertain where there might be a tow company and/or a motel. Larry insinuates that she should take a cot out the back but she refuses, saying she needs her amenities but the situation quickly escalates and she is manhandled to the pool table where the ‘good ol’ boys’ mean to gang rape her. She is fighting back and manages to scratch Larry deep enough to draw blood.

Samuel Dunning as Rick

So far, so harrowing – the acting and direction makes this pretty darn visceral. However, the spilt blood seems to be the catalyst for the case opening and a figure in Hawaiian shirt emerges, unfolding in a way suggesting that it is not a comfortable place to be holed up. Meet Rick (Samuel Dunning), wise cracking, with a droll humour he actually reminded me of Cassidy from Preacher. He has an illness that gives him an unrelenting thirst and an allergy to sunlight, as well as shrugging off the impact of a gunshot wound, and he and Ruby are searching out the one who made him ill. But, for now, the game is on.

stump fountain

The moment Rick appears the black comedy flows, both through his dialogue and also the very bloody action that follows. Rick feeding from the stump left by a rather vicious decapitation is gory as Hell and yet played for (dark) laughs. The film develops a backstory but the narrative itself is an excuse for an action piece that works well. I would love to see more of the adventures of Rick and Ruby.

The imdb page is here.