He Took His Skin Off For Me (2014)

its realism. the poetry of story. the delicacy to give a delicate subject in inspired, wise manner. a slice of life. the desire of woman. the gesture of man. the love. the sacrifices. and the last scene as the piece of circle. something special defines this film. an emotion, a feeling, an obscure-well known theme developed in the perfect way. result - a poem. in which the expectation to return to the start point, like suggestion in two scenes, missing. because the love is more than a beautiful emotions puzzle. it has a price. and, in essence, this is the key for discover the blood traces, the sheets, the barefoot print and the gesture who could change everything. short, an admirable work.

All men should get their skin out of them for the women they love, don't they? As a form of supreme sacrifice or the proof of supreme love, or both, however, they, the women, kill us slowly, through everything they do, right after the honeymoon ends... The film lacks what it should happened after the last scene: will she remove her skin for him too? I doubt that, I think she will prefer the divorce, in case they were married... Joke or no joke, reading the opinions of everyone on You-tube and IMDb, 99% did not understood anything. And somehow, rightly, because at least one aspect does not come out clearly from the film: the motivation for which him removes the skin. I'll try again to give an explanation. The reason is simple, those men who have not experienced True Total Love for a woman, have no way to know. The answer is that Love causes you to do such stupid things, such as even getting your skin out of you. I have to add that the movie has a very attractive and commercial title, which makes many to watch it. Last but not least, I can tell you that I've done something worse than taking my skin off for a woman, I married the woman, and not only one woman but two women...

"He Took His Skin Off for Me" is a 10-minute (without credits) British short film from last year. The director and writer is Ben Aston, but he isn't really experienced (yet). Same can be said about his co-writer. The most experience here probably comes from lead actor Sebastian Armesto who is the one this (pretty bad) title refers to. Apparently a guy decided to get rid off all his skin for his girlfriend. Why? There is no convincing explanation unfortunately. However, the whole premise also makes this a science-fiction/fantasy movie apart from drama, horror and romance, because this is simply not possible in real life. And he even says, he has no pain, which is completely unrealistic. I must say, all in all, the plot was simply not through through in a convincing manner in my opinion. It reminded me a bit of an old Robbie Williams music video. All in all, not recommended.

Ben Aston's He Took His Skin Off for Me is one of the most literal short films I have yet to see, as it concerns the relationship between two people, where, the male (Sebastian Armesto) loved his partner (Anna Maguire) so much he decided to take every part of his skin completely off his body, leaving him nothing but a bright red display of muscles and ventricles. The eleven-minute short film chronicles the relationship these two have created with one another, with the female of the relationship talking about the struggles that have come about with her lover carrying out such a drastic act. While love-making and intimacy hasn't suffered, cleaning the house has become more of a common practice, as her partner leaves bloodstains all over the floors, carpets, sheets, and clothes, and his job has suffered a sharp decline due to his inability to close deals because of the distraction of his physical appearance. Nonetheless, the two share a strong bond and are largely unfazed by the opinions and glares of outsiders.Before anything else is said, special effects artists Colin Arthur and Jen Cardno must be commended for their unfathomable anatomical makeup, perfected and executed using no computer animation and all practical effects. Aston states Armesto sometimes spent up to eight hours in a makeup chair, but for good reason, as he is so breathtakingly realistic and impeccably perfected that one almost wonders what the special effects crew did with his skin. With that, the film conducts itself in a very straight-forward, minimalist manner, which could be the most disappointing element of all because the film walks with its concept rather than letting it run on its own. We watch things that play out to what we expect and nothing really more.That isn't necessarily such a hefty criticism, however, seeing as the entire cast is, for one, thoroughly capable at acting in a low-key fashion, and secondly, the makeup and special effects work is so fascinating to view. Aston's methodical storytelling, reliant predominately on dreamlike pacing and narration, makes for a strangely calming, almost reassuring aesthetic to an already deranged piece of work that is effectively defies categorization in every regard. He Took His Skin Off for Me shows just how far someone in a relationship will go to express their feelings and affection to the one they love, even if the action doesn't make much sense or liable to be met with perplexing stares and such from others.Starring: Sebastian Armesto and Anna Maguire. Directed by: Ben Aston.