Rob Munday
Rejoice genre fans! Halloween is just over a week away and so here at S/W we’re starting spooky season early with nine-days of coverage devoted to the creepy and unsettling. Kicking us off in stylish fashion is Max r Lincoln’s high-concept horror Rhyme or Die, a dystopian short that sees five individuals forced to enter a rap battle…with deadly consequences for the losers.
Written by Alex Moran, with no real exposition to the short, we enter the world of Rhyme or Die as dazed and confused as the five characters in the film, who have just found theirselves on the floor of a strange room with Wedlock-style collars around their necks. As their host Dynamo enters proceedings and explains the situation they’re forced to step in the arena and battle to protect their necks. Their palms are sweaty, knees weak, arms are heavy, but this is no normal rap battle and at the end of the contest they’ll be left with more than vomit on their sweaters.
Bethan Cullinane as Dynamo the unnervingly upbeat host of Rhyme or Die.
Writer Moran first had the idea after his first spoken word performance, and Lincoln brought his vision to the piece with inspiration from Kinji Fukasaku’s cult feature Battle Royale. Together, they aimed to create a story based around “inner strength/self-belief” and “how one might grow in confidence through a dark and twisted scenario”. Combining this original idea with their interest in the “cutthroat creative industry” and their own battle to the death was born. Although here no-one was armed with a pot-lid or binoculars.
“We wanted to shine a light on this toxic culture through the cathartic genre of horror”
“As artists, we are encouraged to compete against one another for views, likes and awards”, Lincoln explains as we discuss the motivations behind the narrative. “This can frequently have destructive consequences. Consequences that will affect our artistry and, more often, our mental health/health. We are pressured to be the best or ‘die’. We wanted to shine a light on this toxic culture through the cathartic genre of horror”.
Like a lot of the films that we’ve seen grace our pages this year, Rhyme or Die was created during lockdown, but Lincoln used some of the social distancing rules that were in place to shape the scenario in the film. In real-life, we were advised to keep ourselves separated from others to stop the spread of the pandemic, but in the short the contestants were kept apart, framed by spotlights they couldn’t leave the for the fear of execution.
Victor Alli as Colin, will he be the last person standing in this battle to the death?
Shot in a nightclub temporarily closed due to lockdown, Rhyme or Die makes the most of its setting with low-key lighting and clever set design. It’s the collars and the FX work prompted by their explosive impact that steals the show though. The ominous glow of the high-tech neckwear lends them a threatening appearance, but it’s only after poor old soil analyst Harry fails at rhyming that we witness their gory power as things get a lot more bloody.
Having followed Lincoln’s career for a while now (I interviewed him back in 2014 for Directors Notes), the moment I saw Rhyme or Die I wanted it for Short of the Week and was excited to have it kick off our week long Halloween programming. With two new genre pieces in development – a short, Inebriated (which sounds like it might make another good Halloween pick), and a feature, Harrow – we’re looking to see how the director builds on the success of this short, which feels like it should find a welcoming home online (don’t let us down internet!).