The Crush is sweetly romantic and wickedly suspenseful, all in one 15-minute film, written and directed by Michael Creagh. It is the age-old schoolboy (Ardal, played by Creagh's son) crush on his pretty teacher (named Ms. Purdy, interestingly). The inevitable heartbreak comes when Ardal runs into his teacher, her fiance Pierce, and her brand new engagement ring. From crush to crushed, however, the young lover must've sensed that the fiance isn't quite up to snuff for what Ms. Purdy deserves. So he openly confronts the dickhead (Ardal's term) to a deadly duel, guns de rigueur. Creagh could've easily turned this short film into a tragedy, and while expected and usual, it still would've garnered accolades, I think.
Picture this, instead: Ardal pulls out a gun his father had hid in the closet, while Pierce has no weapon whatsoever, because it's all a silly, youthful crackpot of a matter to him. Under threat of death, however, Pierce confesses the unsavory truth about his sentiments for Ms. Purdy and in so doing proves how much of a dickhead he truly is. A shot thunders in the gray afternoon, and the errant fiance falls to the ground. The ending is deliciously hilarious and, did I mention it, sweetly romantic.
By the way, The Crush was a nominee at the 83rd Academy Awards (2011) for Best Live Action Short Film, but lost the Oscar to God of Love. Still, this film is very well done.
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