Eye For Film >> Movies >> Shrimp Fried Rice (2025) Film Review
Every now and again, one encounters a film which, for one reason or another, is almost impossible to review. I cannot begin to discuss the plot of this delightful short, which won the Best Screenplay award in the Shorts Competition at Fantasia 2025, but I will say that it’s spicy, and worth making a meal of.
Is it fair for a film to win screenplay awards if it shares a substantial part of its key concept with another recent work? The charismatic anti-hero of this one would probably respond by accusing that film of plagiarism, and throwing in a few aggressive slurs in the process. Is it fair to win when everything stems from a single, not-particularly sophisticated joke? The problem with answering any of this in the negative is that one would then feel bad for other films at the festival, as one would have to admit that it is still one of the cleverest and most enjoyable, and consistently inventive, with a shocking twist in the narrative and surprising emotional nuance.
One might also point out that the film is topical and timely, dealing as it does with issues around immigration, and given a certain confluence of colours and personalities, it might be read as a satire throughout. In addition to this, it has some simple but pleasingly creative effects work, and the amount of effort put into some images that we glimpse for mere seconds puts Hollywood blockbusters to shame.
With two very different but equally impressive central performances, plus some magnificently catty lines, this is a bite sized treat. If you only have time for one little starter from Fantasia, make it Shrimp Fried Rice.
Reviewed on: 29 Jul 2025
