It's hard not to admire the ambitious spirit contained within director Joey Corpora's 28-minute short film Sins of the Dragon, an indie short from the Temple University film student that has already been accepted into Action on Film and Fright Night Film Festival.

The film is sort of a tip o' the hat to old school kung fu cinema, with revenge at the heart of the film as a young man (Kyle Frankenfield) commits to avenging the murder of his father. Sins of the Dragon weaves together the magic and the swordplay that has often marked films by Jet Li and those who watch the film will likely admire what Corpora and his crew are able to accomplish within the confines of a low-budget short from Easton, PA based Platypus Productions. Corpora joined with Frankenfield and Shannon Lee Haines in starting Platypus and this film is their first production.

Those who can appreciate hardcore independent cinema are most in a position to enjoy themselves with Sins of the Dragon, a decent effort by Corpora but a film that no doubt shows its low-budget foundation in a way that would likely prove distracting for your run-of-the-mill moviegoer.

Action on Film has always been a master at finding promising young filmmakers and featuring them early in their careers, and despite the overall roughness of Sins of the Dragon there's quite a bit of promise here ranging from a spirited with just a hint of quirky performance from Haines and visual effects that are surprisingly effective given budgetary limitations.

As one can nearly always expect from a low-budget indie, the acting is hit-and-miss across the board with an uneven tone being the major deficit that holds the film back. This may have been solved, or could be solved in the future, by Corpora's setting a stronger vision for the film to ensure that the entire cast understands their mission.

It will be interesting to see what other festivals pick up on Sins of the Dragon, and it should be a lot of fun watching this cast and crew and where they go in their future endeavors.

© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic