Upstate Story is entirely self-funded and was made on a shoestring budget by Shaun Rose who both directed and starred in (as well as edited) the film. The meditation on melancholy, cynicism and cheap liquor grows and develops throughout the narrative in surprising and emotional ways.
The stylistic choices of the film are bold and executed well. The most prominent of these choices is that of the continuous extra-diegetic narration provided by Ellis (Shaun Rose). Interestingly, the film is almost void of any tangible human interaction; he lives alone and his work colleagues are less than adequate company. Instead we are provided a unique insight into Ellis’s thoughts. Although these may be mostly cynical and self-deprecating, there are instances of dark humour amongst them that work to provide relief from the seemingly endless monotony of the protagonist’s life. He is stuck firmly in the grind of the nine to five, and the film presents this as an incredibly lonely place to be. Despite the isolating effect of the monologue, it also aligns us more wholly with Ellis which allows us to empathise more fully and deeply with him.
Upstate Story utilises silence in a way that almost forces the audience into a self-reflexive state as they use these moments to consider their own lives. It isn’t until quite a way into the film that we learn more about Ellis and he is revealed as a three dimensional character with a past and future as well as a present. Though Shaun Rose is stylistically emotionless in his portrayal of Ellis, the true feeling seeps out in the narration. The words become more emotional and poetic; reflective, bold and yet also uncertain. The writing really propels the film into a new direction.
Though at first it seems like the pervading sense of isolation in the film is the core of the narrative, as we learn more about Ellis it becomes clear that this is not the case. We find out that the reason Ellis so desperately wants to reach the weekends is so that he can see his children from a partner he separated with. With this endearing revelation comes a visual shift too; the dull black and white tones become colourised and the joy Ellis’s children bring him becomes evident.
This highly emotional development isn’t exaggerated or overworked and instead flows naturally, playing on the genuine emotion of the audience rather than creating heightened situations in order to provoke a response. The use of old family videos is a wonderful addition and at once Ellis’s narration becomes a culmination of all the positive emotion that has been missing from the first two thirds of the film. This heart-warming denouement changes the direction of the film entirely and casts Ellis into a new light.
Shaun Rose has worked excellently to produce a film within a micro-budget that is unique and touching as well as deeply cynical.