With uncommon restraint, writer/director Matthew Puccini and lead actor Max Jenkins richly develop the mindscape of a man as he awaits life-altering news. The result is a film that says little, but speaks volumes. It’s a shame that to write about a film almost needs giving away its premise. While it is simple to grasp, Puccini doesn’t specifically explain the circumstances of Jude, our main character, who begins the film in a clinic having his finger pricked for a sample of blood. The subtext is clear though from minor signals; the tension in Jude’s face, the forced nonchalance he enacts when asking to bum a cigarette, the phone call from a man who pleads “can we just talk?”. Jude is getting tested for HIV. He fucked up, and in the process may have just changed his life.
