The Birds Upstairs

Christopher Jarvis

The stifling life of aristocracy is deftly skewered in this grimly amusing mashup of baroque imagery and 19th century comedy of manners: Think Kubrick's Barry Lyndon as directed by David Lynch. After years of fruitless effort, two skeletal aristocratic birds are finally granted the miracle of childbirth, only to have their dreams shattered by the vulgarity of their newborn's fowl appearance. Feathers? Flesh? On a bird of their lineage? What could they have done to deserve such a cruel jest from the gods? Determinedly dark yet funny, the film is aimed at anyone who likes their humor in shades of black.

Shows in the Animation Block, Saturday, July 16, 3:45 pm at the Darkside Cinema and Sunday July 17, 2:30 pm at the Majestic Theatre.