Drama Queen

Director - David E. Teixeira (Mater, Mannequin)

Starring - Catarina Carvalho (Final Grasp, Dead Talk Tales: Volume 1) and David E. Teixeira

Release Date - 2024

Genre - Horror

Tagline - "Once upon a time, there was a beautiful young woman, who was eager to find love"

Format - Streaming (Online Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

      It's not often that I get to review a horror short for the site but when I do I jump at the chance especially when it's from a filmmaker that hasn't let me down in the past. A few years ago, I was introduced to filmmaker David Teixeira when he asked me to review several of his horror shorts. I was lucky enough to review Final Gasp, Stream, Visiteur, and Play. Pause. Kill. I haven't heard from David since until a few weeks ago when he reached out to me to check out his newest short Drama Queen. He never let me down before, so I greatly accepted the offer to check it out. I want to thank David for sending this one over for review! 

      The film follows a love torn woman who is angry over the fact that the man she has been trying to date is gay. Instead of moving on and finding another romantic interest, she decides that if she can't have him then nobody else can. 

      I had no idea what Drama Queen was about and while I did enjoy the short, I did find the title to be accurate and misleading at the same time. The acting in this one is a lot of fun. The film has a very small cast but it's a one woman show. Catarina Carvalho is fantastic as the film's lead. She brings so much energy to the character and without her I don't see the short hitting like it does now. The story for this one is a bit light-hearted with almost a comical approach to it but the actual plot of the film of the film is very disturbing. The LGBTQ+ witnesses' horrible atrocities in the name of hate and religion so this story is not that farfetched. In fact, it's horrifying from the real world standpoint. I couldn't imagine being a member of a community that draws so much controversy because of how they love and this short really demonstrates this. It doesn't overstay, it's welcome and works very well. Finally, the film has some blood but it's not something that will satisfy the blood hungry genre fans. The death fits the film but nothing that imaginative or creative. Overall, Drama Queen is a great short that really strikes a nerve with it's viewer. As an ally of the LGBTQ+ community, I find this story to be very unnerving even though it's not really meant to be that shocking. Check it out.