REGULATION (2019)

REGULATION (2019)

Tagline: Every child has the right to be happy. 

(Sci-Fi, Drama, Mental Health) [Short]

Note: This film never got an MPA rating, but it likely would have been rated [PG]. 

This dives into a future government regulation that encourages a micro-doser or “happy patch” on children that their social workers feel aren’t happy. Agent Mia is on her way to the Warren household where she first meets Kaleigh’s mom. The interaction is unwanted, but ultimately her mother knows the law and now Mia must meet Kaleigh. She has no idea what’s coming. 

It ultimately serves as an 11-minute commentary on the fine balance between doing nothing to help children on an emotional level and forcing artificial happiness. It kind of reminds me of the dawn of the Prozac era. It also sadly highlights the intrusive manner in which the government has become more and more involved in everyday lives. Part of the terror here is that Kaleigh might get talked into something she never wanted or never even knew about if a friend hadn’t told her about it first. Then that thing would alter who she is forever. The other haunting thing is that they introduce the idea of being able to get a religious exemption from the “happy patch” if you are “certified religious by a psychiatrist”. So in this version of the future, you wouldn’t even be able to just say you adhered to a certain faith, you would be subjected to evaluation regarding it. 

Yes, the film is given a nice little wrapper and the performances are mostly light and come across as whimsical at times, but the concepts are frightening. I have personal experience with this and I am glad as a parent I was never “forced” to give my son anything regarding pills or patches, and that he was never forced to against his will. I can’t even imagine what that would be like. 

Acting-wise, Sunita Mani's (SAVE YOURSELVES!) performance is outstanding. CGI is used for Mia’s drive-in, but it’s just a very brief display in the self-driving car she’s in. Mrs. Warren is played by Tessa Drake who I wish they had given more than 2 seconds of screen time. This is also a really decent outing for Audrey Bennett in what was then her first role ever. She is still in acting and has gone on to do TV series, movies, and more short films. That’s actually it. That’s the cast, just 3 people getting it done. 

I don’t want to give too much away, but there is something to be said for unfettered imagination. It’s not uncommon for short films to cram more character development into 11 minutes than some full-length movies do in 2 hours. You probably think I am joking if you haven’t watched a few, but you should. This film really isn’t trying to give any answers. I think if anything it’s just exposing the idea of government control and how sometimes the human spirit and the right thing can break through that on an individual level and in some cases, it most assuredly won’t. 

For the performances alone REGULATION gets a 5 out of 7. There is nothing super flashy here just a quick in and quick out with precision non-nonsense scripting and an accessible setting. 

GRAPHICS ARE THE PROPERTY OF MPI ORIGINAL FILMS AND ARE USED FOR REVIEW PURPOSES ONLY.