The Strange Thing About the Johnsons - wikipedia The Strange Thing About the Johnsons The Strange Thing About the Johnsons Promotional release poster Directed by Ari Aster Produced by Alejandro De Leon Written by Ari Aster Starring Billy Mayo Brandon Greenhouse Angela Bullock Music by Brendan Eder Cinematography Pawel Pogorzelski Edited by Brady Hallongren Running time 29 minutes Country United States Language English The Strange Thing About the Johnsons is a 2011 American short film written and directed by Ari Aster. The film stars Billy Mayo, Brandon Greenhouse, and Angela Bullock as members of a suburban family in which the son is involved with a taboo relationship with his father. Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Release and reception 4 References 5 External links Plot A twelve - year - old boy named Isaiah Johnson is masturbating when he is interrupted by his father, an acclaimed poet named Sidney, who apologizes and reassures him that the act is completely natural and to be expected. After he leaves, it is revealed that Isaiah was masturbating to a photograph of Sidney. Years later, at Isaiah 's wedding party, his mother Joan sees Isaiah about to perform fellatio on a distressed - looking Sidney. While Joan is in the shower one night, Sidney leaves a typed memoir under her pillow entitled Cocoon Man, which chronicles the molestation he has endured at the hands of his son. Isaiah discovers the memoir and confronts Sidney, telling him that the memoir will be burned and that there will be consequences if another copy is printed. One night, while Sidney is taking a bath, Isaiah forcefully breaks down the locked door to the bathroom and sexually abuses Sidney. Joan hears the struggle but does not intervene. Later, Sidney removes a secret copy of Cocoon Man from the floorboards, which leads to another verbal confrontation with Isaiah. Sidney runs out of the house and is struck by a truck and killed. After Sidney 's funeral, Joan approaches Isaiah and asks why Sidney cried for hours in the bathroom after Isaiah 's prom night, to which Isaiah responds that he does not know the reason. Their conversation escalates into a fight, during which Joan stabs and kills Isaiah with a fire iron. Afterwards, she throws the copy of Cocoon Man into the fireplace. Cast Billy Mayo as Sidney Johnson Brandon Greenhouse as Isaiah Johnson Carlon Jeffery as young Isaiah Angela Bullock as Joan Johnson Stanley Bennett Clay as Howard Connie Jackson as Grace Danièle Watts as Marianne Release and reception In early 2017, five years after the film 's initial release, the short film became somewhat viral, garnering a polarizing reaction due to its controversial themes. Ivan Kander of the website Short of the Week wrote that if one `` ( takes ) a quick perusal of the video 's comments on YouTube... you 'll find everything from effusive acclaim to disgusted vitriol. In terms of the internet, that means it 's a hit ''. The film also garnered controversy for its portrayal of an African American family by a white filmmaker. Director Ari Aster has stated that `` the color of the family is n't important. We certainly assumed that casting black actors in a film that tackles such transgressive themes would create something of a stir, and it would be a lie to say that we were n't hesitant, especially as many people were advising us against the decision ''. As an African American incest and molestation survivor, Malcolm Harris of The Huffington Post wrote that Billy Mayo 's performance was `` brilliant '' and that `` we should be applauding the fact that someone has finally shown true courage in proposing the question, ' What If ? What if these strange events were happening behind the closed doors of The Smiths, The Rosenbergs, The Mortimers, The Herreras ? What if these strange things were happening to me ? ' '' References Jump up ^ `` Fantastic Fest 2013 Short Film Lineup Announced ''. Daily Dead. 4 September 2013. Retrieved 18 February 2017. Jump up ^ `` For Discussion : `` The Strange Thing About The Johnsons '' Asks & Answers `` TABOO '' Question... ( FULL VIDEO ) ``. Straight From The A. 2 December 2011. Retrieved 18 February 2017. ^ Jump up to : Malcolm Harris ( 19 December 2011 ). `` What 's So Strange About the Johnsons ? ''. The Huffington Post. Retrieved 18 February 2017. ^ Jump up to : Emmanuel Akitobi ( 28 November 2011 ). `` '' The Strange Thing About The Johnsons '' Director Ari Aster Talks To Shadow & Act About His Provocative & Controversial Short Film ``. IndieWire. Retrieved 18 February 2017. Jump up ^ Ivan Kander ( 10 August 2012 ). `` The Strange Thing About the Johnsons ''. Short of the Week. Retrieved 18 February 2017. External links The Strange Thing About the Johnsons on IMDb Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Strange_Thing_About_the_Johnsons&oldid=792811192 '' Categories : English - language films 2010s short films 2011 short films American short films Independent films Viral videos Talk Contents About Wikipedia Add links This page was last edited on 28 July 2017, at 20 : 56. About Wikipedia

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