Another effort from Monticello, Indiana's Oak Road MultiMedia, the 12-minute short film Purge Clause benefits greatly from the presence of special guest Lloyd Kaufman, the president of B-movie giants Troma Entertainment and the longest running indie filmmaker in the world. 

Suzanne (Indy's own Julie Powers) is a woman who works for the government and becomes privy to some highly confidential government information that is both fascinating and downright frightening - and information considerably above her pay grade. Kaufman plays her counselor, a man who is trying to read between her lines while discerning the truth and all its implications. 

Purge Clause is actually an older short completed by writer/director Randy DeFord that has been steady on the film festival circuit since 2004 while picking up a few prizes along the way. The film has had a few unexpected festival experiences, for example the 2010 Wet Your Pants Comedy Film Festival in Indianapolis, but its indie cred is clearly evident with appearances from the B-Movie Celebration to Cleveland's Twisted Spine Film Festival and several others. 

It's a novel approach to cast Kaufman in what amounts to a dramatic role, though anyone who has seen Kaufman's work shouldn't exactly be surprised that he pulls it off just fine. Indianapolis's own Julie Powers does a nice job as Suzanne, a woman whose mystery only gets revealed as the film winds down. 

The film is simple and in twelve short minutes gets right to the point, but DeFord paces the film nicely and despite occasionally getting bogged down by its dialogue it's an involving and intelligent film. 

© Written by Richard Propes 
The Independent Critic