With Oscar Night less than 2 weeks away I’m gonna try to get a jump start on making my picks, starting with the short film categories. Some of these shorts can be found on The Youtubes, but I’m not gonna hunt them down for ya this year (unless you ask nicely and I like you). If you live in a hip town like me there may very well be screenings for you to check out. Ann Arborites, check the schedule at the Michigan Theater here. $10 for each category - if I could only choose one each year (it would probably be because I'm poor) I’d suggest the animated shorts, they’re showing some extras so you’ll see four more “commended” films in addition to the five nominees. Warning: you will have to sit through the excruciatingly sappy trailer for Albert Nobbs each time you go.
Others, find yourself an art house. Support the local biznass, yo.
I’ll admit that, when it comes to the shorts, almost none of my favorites have won the award the last few years, so I may not be on the pulse of those who actually get to vote for these things. It’s all subjective, and frankly all of these shorts are noteworthy and will ultimately benefit by being seen by a wider audience.
My picks are in bold. If this goes as planned I’ll hit the big categories later next week and repost all of my picks before the awards:
Best Documentary, Short Subjects
Nominees:
- The Barber of Birmingham
- Incident in New Baghdad
- Saving Face
- The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom
- God is the Bigger Elvis
Since these are generally a little lengthier (around 30 minutes each on average), the screening at the Mich did not include “God is the Bigger Elvis,” (which curiously hasn't been released yet?) so I can only comment on the other four. These were solid but mostly depressing docs, the closest to a “feel good” film in the bunch was “The Barber of Birmingham,” which covers the life of Civil Rights “foot soldier.” Mr. James Armstrong, and his reaction to the 2008 election of Barack Obama. It didn’t blow me away, but it is mostly light and colorful, with moments of poignancy and stark reminiscence.
“Incident in New Baghdad” is the account of Ethan McCord, a US Army Specialist who was one of the first on the scene after the infamous incident that became a worldwide scandal after the video was released by wikileaks as "Collateral Murder." The photography and personal recounting of events make for a gut-wrenching short, but it could have been fleshed out, maybe to feature-length, with additional interviews or a deeper dissection of the video and surrounding scandal.
“Saving Face” struck me about the same way. It details the deplorable trend of women in Pakistan who have been disfigured by acid attacks, most of which have been carried out by their own husbands. The images of the shocking effects of these assaults will stay in your brain for a long time. There is enough of a hopeful story arc to the film to lift it up, but it still felt overly taxing, although I would not be surprised to see this win.
My favorite, and pick to win, is “The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom,” about the devastation along the coast of Japan from the March, 2011 natural disaster. Harrowing first-hand images and accounts of the destructive force of the wave find an amazing counterbalance in the detailing of the island’s significant preoccupation with sakura (cherry blossom). I found it a testament to the hopeful will of a nation in the face of unthinkable tragedy.
Best Short Film, Live Action
Nominees:
- Pentecost
- Raju
- The Shore
- Time Freak
- Tuba Atlantic
This was certainly an eclectic group, starting with “Pentecost,” which had me laughing my head off by cribbing pre-game speech boilerplate and cleverly twisting it into a religious context. As an altar boy growing up (non-abused, thanks for asking), I felt a strong connection to it right off the bat and thought it would be hard to beat, but the other shorts proved to be just as strong.
“Time Freak,” the other purely comedic short, finds clever new problems in the ever-popular sci-fi quandary, “what do you do if you have a working time machine?” While a little too quick to develop any depth, it is nonetheless quirkily neurotic, memorable and very, very funny.
On the flip side of that is “Raju,” about a German couple who adopt an orphan fresh from the streets of India only to find that trying to better the life of a single child is a much more complex affair than they had bargained. It deftly uproots larger issues involving adoption, urban conditions, and bridging cultural gaps, but I found a bit of distaste with a slight xenophobic edge that unfairly casts villainy on certain people.
I think this is ultimately a close call between the final two films. “Tuba Atlantic” is a Norwegian short about an elderly man who learns he has a week to live and tries to reach out to his long-estranged brother. Yes, from that description you might think this is a weeper, I was pleasantly surprised that it has a dark streak of irascibility running through it, oozing with a unique stamp of Scandinavian humor that I’m only just beginning to appreciate. It’s frustrating but pleasantly distracting, like trying to navigate your way through an IKEA showroom and discovering a kickass little bookshelf around the corner.
Finally, “The Shore,” about a man returning to his homeland of Northern Ireland after 25 years, manages more depth than most feature-length films these days, and therefore gets my nonexistent vote. At times heart-achingly sentimental and at others witty and lighthearted, it works on many levels, as it is also a subtle allegory of the rift that has been splitting Ireland for centuries. A warm appeal for fence-mending and brotherhood.
Best Short Film, Animated
Nominees:
- Dimanche (Sunday)
- The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore
- La Luna
- A Morning Stroll
- Wild Life
As you can tell by my picks in the first two categories, I have an appreciation for films that I feel find depth, balance and offer more than one note. That’s a little harder with the animated category, because they are typically shorter with a completely different M.O. than the documentary or live action shorts. When they first started awarding this category you’d see lots of Tom & Jerry, Tex Avery, Looney Tunes, etc., but as things have evolved the winners aren’t always humorous. Check out of my favorites of all time: Balance.
I implied earlier that if I could only pay for one screening each year I would go with the animated films, but ultimately, this year I think it is the weakest category as a whole. Sue me for being contradictory. Since these are much shorter on the whole I won’t touch on the individual stories at all. “The Fantastic Flying Books” was the biggest disappointment in the bunch; some excellent visual tricks, but essentially an extremely sappy after-school PSA encouraging kids to spend all of their time reading alone. Mostly eye-rolls from me.
“Dimanche” & “Wild Life” both have distinctly Canadian vibes to them. The latter is a cute, simply-drawn day-in-the-life with a few smart, twisted laughs. The former is interesting if a bit dry, a little too “Prairie Home Companion,” with an extra dose of the blankly existential.
“La Luna” is the Pixar-picked pic for this year. The story is a little sappy and the payoff a little disappointing, but they still never disappoint in squeezing every byte to deliver images that dazzle the eye. Not the best, but it was nice to see it glow on a big screen.
So that leaves my pick, “A Morning Stroll.” Again, this was a tough choice because I don’t think there’s a clear-cut winner, but this one delivered the biggest laughs and gained extra points, not just for using multiple styles of animation, but because those changing styles have a direct impact on the way that the story is delivered.
I’ll probably be back in a few days to lay out some more early picks.
Noticed shades of Funny Games and Sleuth running through this dark little number, but ultimately not nearly as disturbing as the former, nor as smart as the latter (though that would indeed be a tall order in both cases). David Hyde Pierce is deviously smart and the story is weird with the potential to twist and surprise, but I felt like the best of the twists comes a bit too early and leaves us riding out to the end on a a gentle wave instead of being corked against the rocks.
