Review
Validation (2007)
reviewed by Jack Butler
T J Thyne, most of you know him by sight,
possibly as Hodgins in the tv show Bones,
possibly as one of the many other
characters he's played. What most of you
don't know is that he also runs a small
production company that makes some
frankly amazing short films. Today we're
going to look at my personal favourite of
his works; Validation. Marketed as "a
fable about the magic of free parking"
Validation is a feel good film about .... Oi!
Where are you all going? Ok, yes, I'm with
you on this, by the end of most "feel
good" films all you want to do is go
outside, pick up a puppy and use it to beat
a nun in the face. The endless cliches, the
tired plots it's all just too awful. But this
film is something else. Yeah, it's pretty
predictable, the plot twist (which I won't
spoil for you) can be seen from so far
away it'll actually appear in your morning
cartoons if you plan to watch the film
that night ... and you know what? None of
that matters. The characters are
adorable, the writing is crisp and on point
and, at the end of the film you will
actually find yourself smiling, very
possibly through tears. The plot is the
usual nerd (in this case a parking
attendant) makes good and changes the
world through the power of his (insert
cliche here) and You. Won't. Care. At less
than 17 minutes long there is no way that
this film should have the impact it does,
and I sure as hell shouldn't have watched
it as many times as I have (actual number
redacted to cover my shame) but if
you're ever feeling kinda down and need a
fifteen minute pick-me-up then this is
the film for you.
Watch the full film here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=Cbk980jV7Ao