There’s a message in this short somewhere, I’m just not 100 percent sure what it is. Coincidentally, after watching it at least three times I’m convinced that’s where its genius lies. Maybe. I don’t know.
Let me elaborate.
The first time I watched this I chuckled solely because it reminded me of Point Break’s ex-presidents. That was all I took from it. “Maybe President Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, President Emmanuel Macron, and Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un are running away from a guy in a Johnny Utah mask,” I thought. But nope. It’s just a group of guys wearing the rubber masks of four current world leaders skating and/or terrorizing the streets of Paris.
That’s all that’s actually happening here, but again, I’m sure there’s a message. Maybe the filmmaker’s making a statement that these four men are just troublemakers. Or maybe the filmmaker’s trying to say their perceived mischief amounts to nothing more than everyday annoyances like stealing your sandwich and running off. I doubt that last one is it though…opening with Hitler seems a little heavier than that.
You could ask questions for days about what Mask Off is actually saying and that reaction is actually becoming a rarity. People are often overt about their intended message and feelings toward something, rather than just letting you sit, digest, and leave with a new question or two. Plenty of folks think their favorite pastime — surfing, skating, etc. — should be left entirely clear of politics as if they exist in a bubble that isn’t affected by the outside world. Yes, the “stay in your lane” approach is always a go-to for many. I’m sure that alone — the fact that somebody would put on a Donald Trump or a Vladimir Putin mask and ride a skateboard— is enough to ruin somebody’s day when they see this. And maybe that was the point.
