An elderly woman gets a visit from a government agent in an overpopulated future.


THE EXIT PLAN is used with permission from Angus Wilkinson. Learn more at   / angus_wilkinson  .


Martha is a widow living out in the remote English countryside. She's also living at a time when overpopulation has strained the world's limited resources, and global governments regularly cull people over 80 who aren't living with family or other caretakers as part of an initiative called "The Exit Plan."

Martha ostensibly lives with her daughter Sophie. But when Zeke, a government official, comes by to investigate Martha and Sophie after a series of missed check-ins, he begins to suspect that the situation is other than it seems.

Directed by Angus Wilkinson from a script written by Ella Cook, this sci-fi thriller short is a fascinating double act of a dystopian narrative that challenges our notions about aging, the elderly and their role in society. Rendered in a pensive, melancholic visual style that's both beautiful and slightly ominous, the story starts -- after an evocative overhead sequence over the landscape of cliffs and sea -- with Martha returning in the morning to her tidy, well-loved home after an outdoor excursion of some sort. She is old, but she is still active and alert. But her seemingly quiet morning is interrupted when Zeke appears on her doorstep, conducting a government investigation.

Zeke's agenda is to check in on Martha and Sophie, but it's also to sign Martha up for the government exit plan. But as Zeke and Martha sit down for a conversation, each party has an objective that's hidden from the other, turning a perfunctory government task into a subtle cat-and-mouse game. The dance between deception and detection is captured in excellently understated but precise dialogue, which builds both tension and character.

It's brought to life by pitch-perfect performances by actors Marcia Warren and Paapa Essiedu, who play Martha and Zeke, respectively, with intelligence and wiliness. Both Martha and Zeke are well-matched as adversaries pretending to be polite, but Zeke's mistake is that he's accepted the government's view on elderly people as soft, doddering and weak -- and the mistake will cost him when Martha manages to turn the tables.

The second half of THE EXIT PLAN shifts registers slightly, as a showdown reveals layers of dark comedy that toy with both Zeke's and the audience's stereotypes of senior citizens. Yet the comedy remains subtle, and it doesn't sacrifice conflict and tension as the narrative builds up to a thrilling, climactic moment when Zeke confronts what "the exit plan" is a euphemism for. Both Zeke and viewers must face questions of who gets to decide who is worthy of life, resources and time, and how. For her part, Martha is determined to reclaim agency and autonomy, and most importantly, to demand being seen and treated as a person worthy of dignity and respect. A demand that is simple and understandable, but made complicated by a world that values utility over humanity.