Assurances; The Boardwalk Club; Master Misery

The three latest entries in The Cinema Guild's Short Stories: A Video Anthology series (the 13 previous titles were covered in our April 1992 issue) offer one warm and amusing piece and a pair of duds. The Boardwalk Club, written and directed by Craig Shapiro, is a charming comic short about an elderly Jewish couple who argue over retiring to Florida. Sadie is ready to hit the road for the land of sunshine and oranges, but Max has a compelling reason for delaying the move: the Boardwalk Club. Comprised of five elderly bickering gents, including Max, the quintet are the last remaining members of a once larger poker-playing group (the membership board has three categories: Active/Florida/Deceased). Since 4-player poker is the pits, Max feels guilty about abandoning the club. But then the police arrive and haul the lawbreaking penny ante cardsharps off to the hoosegow and the fun really begins. Cute and clever, The Boardwalk Club is a promising entry from writer/director Shapiro.Not so Assurances, written and directed by Jody Widelitz. This tiresome short about a successful real estate agent arguing with his fiancee a week before nuptials is meant to be a satirical look at male/female relations in the cautious 90s. Instead, it's a poorly paced piece of juvenilia that features bad acting, irritating writing, and technical problems (out of focus scenes, overdubbed outside shots, etc.)Nor Master Misery, based on a Truman Capote short story, and directed by Elizabeth Dimon. The story of a young woman named Sylvia who sells her dreams to a mysterious man named Mr. Revercomb (dubbed "Master Misery" by an alcoholic ex-clown who befriends Sylvia), the film's message is far more interesting than the way it's slowly and awkwardly presented. Amateur acting and an uncertain sense of pacing dilute the punch of this philosophical admonition to hold on to your dreams when everything else is lost.The Boardwalk Club is recommended. Assurances and Master Misery are not recommended. (Available from: The Cinema Guild, 1697 Broadway, Suite 506, New York, NY 10019-5904; (800) 723-5522.)