Tue, Aug 12th, 10:00 PM @ TCL CHINESE 6 THEATRE || #6
Screening at: Hollyshorts ShortFest
By Valerie Milano
Los Angeles, CA (The Hollywood Times) 7/17/25 – In The Sentry, writer-director Jake Wachtel cleverly flips the spy genre on its head, delivering a slick, subversive short that balances action, comedy, and social commentary with remarkable precision. What begins as a stylish Western espionage caper set in Cambodia quickly reveals deeper layers, a tale not of guns and gadgets, but of guilt, responsibility, and the unseen costs of global power plays.
Wachtel, who’s lived in Cambodia for over a decade, draws deeply from his surroundings. “I’m passionate about telling Cambodian stories and exploring my own role as a Westerner there, sometimes an avatar of neocolonialism,” he told The Hollywood Times. “The Century lets me weave those personal threads into a genre piece about a Western spy who ‘messes things up’ in Cambodia.” That perspective transforms what could’ve been a stylish pastiche into something richer and more reflective.
Click below to see our exclusive interview:
The film follows a charismatic foreign spy whose assignment is disrupted by an unexpected encounter with a chatty local guard. What might seem like a comic interlude evolves into a disarming moral confrontation, as the narrative peels back the consequences of covert operations on those living in their shadow. The guard, portrayed with warmth and wit, is no mere obstacle, he becomes the film’s conscience, forcing the spy (and the audience) to reckon with the human lives entangled in systems of secrecy and control.
The core idea behind The Sentry came quickly, Wachtel says: “I’ve always loved action movies, but I find it corrosive to witness so much casual, meaningless violence. You see henchmen in spy films die anonymously; there’s no humanity to their deaths.” Inspired by that observation, he imagined “a spy haunted by the ghost of that henchman,” blending genre critique with Cambodian ghost folklore. The result is a film that uses the tools of action cinema to ask uncomfortable, necessary questions.
Though the concept came fast, the production was thoughtfully executed. “We spent a month on pre-production… shot over four days, plus one B-unit day,” Wachtel shared, crediting much of the smooth execution to trusted collaborators from his previous Cambodian feature, Karmalink. That continuity shows in the film’s tone: playful and precise but always grounded.
Wachtel’s direction is nimble and confident, balancing sleek genre stylings with an undercurrent of cultural reflection. Fans of James Bond or Mission: Impossible will recognize the visual grammar, but Wachtel deploys it in service of something more thoughtful. “Cinema is an empathy machine,” he noted, and this film puts that principle into action.
The Cambodian setting is more than backdrop; it’s integral to the film’s message. Wachtel’s long-standing connection to the country, first as a teacher, then as a filmmaker, infuses The Sentry with authenticity and care. The local cast and crew, along with key collaborators like Sok Visal and Alan R. Milligan, help ground the fantastical elements in real cultural texture. Visal, a leading voice in Cambodia’s creative resurgence, and Milligan, known for his socially conscious storytelling, bring nuance and depth to the project’s vibrant tone.
As Wachtel works on a feature-length expansion of the story, he promises to go even further: “It’s not just growing the short, it jumps off in a broader direction, exploring more fully the ideas of Western intrusion, empathy, and the ghosts of violence.“
At under 20 minutes, The Sentry moves briskly but leaves a weighty impression. It’s a rare short that delivers both laughter and introspection, all while nudging us to ask: What happens when the people on the fringes of a spy story speak up? What do they see that the heroes don’t?
When asked what advice he has for aspiring filmmakers, Wachtel offered a piece of wisdom that seems to echo in every frame of the film: “Only commit to the story that fills you with fire, because those will be the projects you see through to completion.“
Verdict: ★★★★☆ (4/5)
The Sentry is a stylish, soulful takedown of spy-movie tropes that offers something increasingly rare in genre filmmaking: perspective. It’s smart, funny, and unafraid to hold a mirror up to the systems that create heroes—and collateral damage.
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