A homeless man runs into a classmate.
CLASSMATE is used with permission from Javier Marco. Learn more at langosta-films.com.
John is a homeless man riding a bus one evening when he catches sight of a woman getting on the bus. He strikes up a conversation with her, recognizing her from elementary school. At first, Emma is wary, but as she and John talk, she warms up to him as he evokes their shared childhood and past.
But as they talk, John's over-eager efforts and sometimes inappropriate efforts to connect make Emma wary, and as they catch up, she feels uneasy and guilty at their differences in fortune. She's an engineer and happily married, and he's homeless and struggling. By all accounts, she holds all the cards. Or does she?
Directed by Javier Marco from a script written by Belen Sanchez-Arevalo, this compelling short drama deftly takes one random encounter between a man and a woman on a bus and uses it as a springboard to explore societal power dynamics, economic status, guilt and obligation. Told masterfully through simple but powerful, almost doc-like visual storytelling and pitch-perfect dialogue brought to life by elegantly precise performances, it constantly plays with expectations, teasing them out only to subvert and upend them.
This balancing act is driven by the character of John, the homeless man who attempts to create a connection with Emma, whom he apparently attended elementary school with. He initiates and then attempts to connect with her, but she is guarded and wary at first. But John also possesses a kind of self-awareness and even charm, slowly establishing common ground.
Actor Jimmy Shaw finds a balance between guilelessness and a more wily canniness, as John is constantly observing Emma's every reaction, occasionally unsettling her with an off-putting statement before scaling it back, often with a seemingly honest recognition of his inappropriateness. As Emma, actor Melina Matthews alternates between a closed-off guardedness that thaws out and then becomes prickly again. As she navigates the conversation, what also emerges is a kind of guilt at her own mistrust and a desire to be a kind, nice person. She oscillates between opposite internal impulses, giving the scene an ambiguity that rises in tension.
As Emma and John talk, what emerges is an unspoken dance, especially as tension builds and viewers question just how genuine or trustworthy John is -- and just who holds more power in the situation at times. Emma may be successful and secure in life, but John plays upon her desire to be nice and the guilt about her privilege at times. At the end of CLASSMATE, we get all the answers to the questions raised during this fascinating dramatic short, but we're also left with questions for ourselves on how we feel about it all.