Tight
(2024)

Tight 🥀

After premiering earlier this year at SXSW, Jessica Barr’s short film Tight just had its international premiere at Montreal’s Fantasia Film Festival.

The short film follows a woman who is trying to make sense of her side effects to post-pregnancy life, specifically the difficulty in finding sexual pleasure from her partner. As scenes of continued doctor visits intertwine with painful bouts of intercourse, the story slowly reveals a shocking secret, which ends up being the root cause of all her problems.

As someone who grew up around a lot of women, there’s nothing comparable to what they go through in pregnancy, and what’s even more heartbreaking are the postpartum issues they face after the fact.

At times you see them, and they can seem like a shell of themselves, and there are others who end up seeming like an entirely different person.

That’s their body’s time to adjust and heal itself to as close to pre-pregnancy state as possible, which must feel like an unbearably taxing journey after the nine months they already endure, so to watch something like this, where a scumbug takes advantage of that period in time, will anger viewers to no end.

After finding out the truth, I was in shock, but it was incredible storytelling to metaphorically parallel this couple wrapping everything up for their move, with everything set to transpire.

Immediately after I watched this, I had to Google whether this is something that actually happens, and it is! It’s called the ‘Husband Stitch’ and it’s not only medical malpractice, but it’s a disgusting abuse of trust.

It’s so sad to see this woman watching energetic couples who are carefree, publicly showing passionate displays of affection, while someone she had those same intimate moments with took full advantage of a situation where she was at her most vulnerable.

Fabianne Therese was able to convey every ounce of emotion this woman felt through a captivating physical performance that was emboldened by the applause-worthy direction of one Jessica Barr.

Tight masterfully captures the isolating journey of postpartum life through a harrowing tale of broken trust and a well-executed play for revenge. 

Enjoy!

8.8/10 🍿 🎥

Runtime: 13mins

Where: Fantasia International Film Festival

Tight Review (2024) The Richmond Reviewer -  July 20th, 2024.