Fishbelly White (1998) User Reviews

One of the best short films

[raymond-15 · 8/10 · 13 June 2002]

It is quite amazing how much is packed into this short film of 20 minutes or so. The farm atmosphere is well developed and the characters are real people. The story begins with the cackling of hens and has a sudden ending which is guaranteed to shock.

The scriptwriter has a good underestanding of the feelings of a boy growing into manhood, his adoration of his peers and his loneliness when not accepted because he is "different". There is a sense of homosexuality about the film.

Duncan ( Mickey Smith) a naive boy on a pig farm spends much of his day cuddling a hen, kissing it and taking it for rides on his bike. Perry (Jason Hayes) some years older likes to display his muscular physique which scrawny Duncan likes to watch and touch. This is delicately portrayed in a scene under a railway bridge.

The local boys and girls give Duncan a rough time teasing him by making cackling sounds, but in the end Duncan plays a trump card in an incident they will never forget for the rest of their lives.

The Mudge Boy is Fishbelly White Fleshed Out

[PWB · 8/10 · 28 October 2006]

This short film was expanded into The Mudge Boy (2003), with Emil Hirsch as Duncan. All the characters and plot are the same. Perry's antagonism toward and attraction to Duncan moves the story along the same inevitable path, but the under-the-bridge-scene is far more graphic and deliberate than in The Mudge Boy--and explains Duncan's motivation far better.

Fishbelly White clearly lays a more homo-erotic quality to Duncan's character--without the necessity of the rape scene in The Mudge Boy. In fact, after seeing Fishbelly White, I was rather disappointed that Michael Burke resorted to such a shocking and unnecessary scene.

Fishbelly White is the more evocative story.

Fishbelly White and The Mudge Boy

[greekwise · 7/10 · 18 May 2006]

I just watched "Fishbelly White" about two weeks after I first saw "The Mudge Boy." I was surprised to see that "Fishbelly" is a shorter, earlier version of "Mudge Boy" (kinda like "Some Folks Call It a Sling Blade" and "Sling Blade"); some scenes are almost identical, but the shorter version is, of course, less fleshed-out and less detailed. For examples, neither boy's father plays any significant role.

Unlike the shorter "Sling Blade," though, "Fishbelly" does tell the whole story.

I think Emile Hirsch in "Mudge" made a better "Chicken Boy" than Jason Hayes in "Fishbelly", but just because he's less "geeky" and therefore, to me, more heartbreaking in the end. "Mudge Boy" is all the more tragic because Duncan at first thinks he's been accepted by the other, older kids.

Excellent Movie, would only be perfect if scenes were fleshed out a little more and director was more daring but how much can you pack in 22 minutes? Superb Effort from a VERY talented Director.

[zadok-4 · 10/10 · 4 June 2000]

Nice story about what a person will do to be accepted. Shows the hypocrisy and cruelty of people as well as the courage and desperation of a victim determined to be accepted. Nice moral is pushing people too far is never a good idea.

Well Directed

[scawman · 10/10 · 22 February 2002]

This movie was well directed...the characters give real performances that are convincing and cover a diverse emotional range. The direction is wonderful in giving viewers the information they need without beating them over the head with...well shot with a certain sensibility that is refreshing and engaging

Short movie, surprise ending.

[bing_bang_lazytown · 5/10 · 27 December 2006]

This movie was indeed interesting. Short movie, with a surprise, disturbing ending.

I enjoyed the actors, and the storyline. It was indeed a coming of age story, that showed the viewers you would do anything to be accepted and considered "normal." Caution!!!!!--a small SPOILER!!!..there is some animal cruelty. I like how the actors worked so well together to pull this movie together. It was a slow start movie, but towards the end it went faster. You can't expect much of a love story from this movie, but there is something there, that I still can't figure out. All in all, I did enjoy this movie, and if you like those coming of age stories, and short films, you might want to check this out.

Underwhelming for the most part, disgusting at the end

[Horst_In_Translation · 2/10 · 31 March 2017]

"Fishbelly White" is an American English-language short film from 1998, so this one will have its 20th anniversary next year. The fact that this is included on "Boys Life" shows you what to expect here. It is a gay-themed movie that has a runtime of only slightly over 20 minutes. Writer and director is Michael Burke and he turned this short film into a full feature with a cast including some big(ger) names afterward. I have no idea why though. This film was boring and uninteresting for over 15 minutes and is downright gross at the very end, apparently because of the filmmaker's attempt to get people talk about this one thanks to its shock value I guess. and the sad thing is that he was pretty much successful to that regard. That's really the only thing he was successful with as after the full feature version his career stalled and he basically disappeared from the movie-making industry. The cast pretty much did the same. As a whole, I would have given this 2 stars out of 5, but the ending forced me to adjust the rating and give it an even lower evaluation. And honestly, how can you like the protagonist at all after what he does at the end. Seriously? Oh yeah, he is just a victim and not headstrong enough blah blah. Nonsense I say. Just like the entire thing. Another really really bad inclusion on "Boys Life". stay far far away.