Chicken is a 2001 Irish short film directed by Barry Dignam concerning adolescent guys’ tendency to reroute their feelings of affection for one another into frequently aggressive or competitive pastimes such as chicken games.
Mick (Darren Healy) and Kev (Niall O’Shea) spend a late afternoon by the seaside near railroad lines when Mick teaches Kev how to “shotgun” beer for reasons that remain a mystery to the audience. After failing to mimic the appropriate shotgunning technique, he remarks that Kev is “a bit of a sissy” and invites him to sit close to him for a test of courage, the knife game, which involves thrusting a knife between outstretched fingers at an ever-faster rate.
The game is normally played with one person’s hand at a time, and Mick lays his hand over Kev’s in an act of self-sacrifice to protect Kev’s hand from the brunt of an injury if one occurs.
When a train passes them by, Mick accidentally cuts Kev and himself with his knife. They fiercely grip each other’s hands, and Mick, who appears suddenly vulnerable and in need of affection, is tenderly held by Kev, who may have known why Mick brought him here all along.
The video closes with a brief view of the two in silhouette, standing apart, watching the sunset over the ocean before a single screen of titles emerges. Chicken was shot on 35mm film over two days with Dolby Digital audio. Because “chicken” is also a slang term for a young homosexual, the title of the short film is a double entendre.
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