The Story of 90 Coins Short Film Review

The Story of 90 Coins is a 2015 short film directed by Michael Wong. It is not often that one can say that a short film is simply not enough for a concept, but The Story of 90 Coins makes a strong case for this very thought process.

What Works In The Story of 90 Coins:

The visuals are simply beautiful here. With excellent cinematography and scene variety. Even for a film made in 2015 it still holds up and could easily be confused with something that was shot in 2021. The acting shows a level of commitment from the entire cast. Everyone serves their purposes perfectly and goes to dramatic extremes for the purposes of the story. The concept itself is great, and a wonderfully sweet if not a bit melodramatic tale of love. It
makes for an interesting thread about letting love win above all else.

Where Things Fall Short:

As mentioned from the start, this concept, while wonderful, is simply too big for this short. The amount of information that is attempting to be conveyed is just overwhelming for a 10-minute piece. This is one that needed to fit into a feature-length film and would make for a great proof of concept of a larger cinematic experience. The acting while being a commitment from the actors, who do their best to sell the drama unfolding, is simply too over the top. There is no subtlety at play here and that theme runs far past just the performances on screen. Toning it all down a few notches would do a large favor to each layer of the short.

While it is easy to sell the audience on the initial concept of a man trying to prove his true devotion, the characters are far too shallow to allow for the 90 days of time to go by. With a lacking character motivation from anyone, the decisions made fall flat and just don’t add up to something that pays off more. Once we are at the end credits, there is a positive outcome here but one that does not feel earned or deserved as we have only been given small snippets of all these trials. While many of these experiences are visually conveyed, they are undercut by narration that really wants anyone watching to understand every step.

Promises, Promises. Watch the Full Movie Below

Exposition is something that will be needed in any film but allowing for some moments to just be seen and experienced was another element that would have been immensely helpful. “The Story of 90 Coins” brings a beautiful-looking short that lacks the depth needed for something completely character-driven. The high concept starting point is bold and is certainly appreciated but the inevitable execution just needed more time to breathe. With more subtlety, conventional cutting between passages of time, and character development there is an amazing film to be made here. However, 10 minutes is simply just not enough time to unlock every piece of that puzzle.

The Story of 90 Coins gets

2.5 gestures of affection out of 5

For another review of this romantic drama short film see Get On My Damn Level.

Directed by Michael Wong,

Written by Jackie Bai,

Starring Dongjun Han, Zhuang Zhiqi, and Jose Acosta.

What to Watch Next: Wrong Turn

The Story of 90 Coins, Full Short Film

Daniel Hess

Owner and founder of To Tony Productions. Daniel is a filmmaker and writer. You can find more of Daniel’s reviews and other work on his website via the link below.