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A Look at the Oscar® Nominated Animated Shorts.

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When it is time to award the best in films each year, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences include three categories of short films in their Oscar® presentations. Most people don’t get to see many shorts. They play at festivals, and occasionally in front of a feature film. But short films are an art form worth attention. Many (probably most) feature filmmakers started out making short films. To tell a story in such a brief format takes skill. All the Oscar®-nominated short films will be playing in theaters and on virtual cinema in special programs.

Let’s take a look at the Oscar®-nominated animated shorts.

Burrow (6 minutes, directed by Madeline Sharafian). This Disney/Pixar entry features a young rabbit who wants to build the home of her dreams, but really doesn’t know what she’s doing. The more she digs, the more trouble she gets into until her neighbors step in to lend a hand. It’s fun. It has the cuteness one associates with Disney, but it doesn’t quite have the heart.

Genius Loci (16 minutes, directed by Adrien Mérigeau). Waiting for a sign, a young loner experience the urban chaos around her. Will it lead her to joy or destruction? The key thing in this piece is the artwork, that brings in elements of surrealism, cubism, and abstract expressionism. The narrative nature is a bit slow and disjointed.

If Anything Happens I Love You (13 minutes, directed by Michael Govier and Will McCormack). We see two grieving parents as they struggle to cope after the loss of a child. They drift apart. They comfort each other. They have pain together and separately. They have memories that fill them with joy and pain at the same time. The film comes to a very powerful ending that finally gives us a context for all this grief.

Opera (9 minutes, directed by Erick Oh). A mesmerizing world of tiny people in a pyramidal hierarchy. Each little section is busy with its own activity. It portrays history and society with all its beauty and absurdity. There’s working, worship, war, and rebirth. What a pleasure to explore!

Yes-People (9 minutes, directed by Gísli Darri Halldórson). A day in the life of three families in an apartment building. Each in their own way are trying to deal with the mundane nature of life. It is somewhat difficult to make the mundane interesting.

BONUS: Because the nominated films are so brief, the program is filled out with a few of the “highly recommended” films that were shortlisted, but not nominated:

Kapaemahu (9 minutes, directed by Dean Hamer, Joe Wilson, and Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu). A Hawaiian legend of god-like visitors from Tahiti who brought healing gifts and left them is special boulders, only to have the legend forgotten—until now. A very engaging retelling.

The Snail and the Whale (26 minutes, directed by Max Lang and Daniel Snaddon). A snail that is dissatisfied with life on its rock in the harbor, hitches a ride with a friendly humpback whale that allows it to see the wonders of the world. But in time, the whale needs the snail’s help. A wonderful feel good story based on a children’s picture book.

To: Gerard (7 minutes, directed by Taylor Meacham). An postal worker spends his day sorting letters, but dreams of being a magician. As a child he was fascinated by a magician who gave him a magic coin. He has tried to master the craft, but never really found an audience. But one day a little girl wanders into his work area and finds his magic coin. After some slight of hand, he gives her the coin. Many years later he gets an invitation to a magic show…

Of the nominated films, my favorite by far is Opera. When I first saw it as part of the Slamdance festival this year, I had to watch it more than once just to get a start at all the things it is showing us about who we are. I’ll give an Honorable Mention to If Anything Happens I Love You because it is such a great touchstone for the emotions of grief and has such a powerful (if difficult) ending.

Of the bonus films, I really liked The Snail and the Whale for the way it took us on a spectacular journey just as it does the snail.

To see trailers or to find where you can see these shorts, go to https://shorts.tv/theoscarshorts/

French Exit: For Love or Luxury

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FRENCH EXIT Michelle Pfeiffer as Frances Price, Lucas Hedges as Malcolm Price

Someone once asked what it profits a person if they gain the whole world but lose their soul. 

Directed by Azazel Jacobs, French Exit attempts to explore this question by following the exploits of Frances Price (Michelle Pfeiffer), an aging Manhattan socialite who has just been informed that her husband’s massive financial resources have finally been exhausted. Depressed and contemplating her death, she opts to sell her possessions and burn through her remaining money in Paris with her son, Malcolm (Lucas Hedges). Despite having plans to marry his girlfriend, Susan (Imogen Poots), Malcolm can never stand up to his mother and acquiesces to her request. Feeling lost and alone, the two attempt to start over in their unfamiliar surroundings.

Adapted by Peter DeWitt from his own novel, French Exit feels like a mix between Wes Anderson and the work of the Coen Brothers. Sharply written, the dialogue has the bite of an off-Broadway play, filled with double-meanings and existential arguments. Featuring quirky characters and unusual situations, the film also keeps its characters at an emotional distance from its audience. However, unlike even the Coen’s darkest works, Exit somehow carries very little joy within it. Though moments of dark humour are present, the film’s pacing and performances keep the film from fully sparking with the viewer. While the film’s eccentric humour often works, the characters often remain at such an emotional distance that they become difficult to connect with as a viewer. (Even the always engaging Lucas Hedges seems muted in this particular role.)

Though the film doesn’t always pop, the one aspect of it that works throughout is Pfeiffer. As the dissatisfied widow, Pfeiffer is absolutely captivating to watch. Though many other actresses would play Frances as a hateful beast, there remains a compassionate core to her performance that somehow makes her character likeable. While she never loses her ‘edge’, we also see behind the façade to the hurts that lie underneath. In other words, though her character maintains an exterior of stone, Pfeiffer allows Frances to reveal a certain sense of brokenness that makes her relatable. (And, I must confess, there’s a certain sense of meta-irony about the former Batman Returns star struggling in her relationship with a black cat.)

At the core of French Exit lies the gap between luxury and love. Having suffered in a loveless marriage, Frances has been drained of her soul. Kept afloat physically because of her wealth, her empty heart makes her almost anxious to see it all disappear. Having the world at her feet (for now) but haunted by her past, she struggles to allow anyone into her life. As a result, outside of the domineering relationship with her son, she isolates herself emotionally. To Frances, her waning finances symbolize her deflating, loveless life and she yearns for it to end.

This sort of existential malaise is pervasive amongst the cast of the film as they float through their meaningless existence. Sex has little emotional impact, nor does commitment. Money is merely a means to an end. Although they all have some experience with relationships, one could argue that none of the character have any concept of what it means to experience or offer love. (In fact, the character who arguably seems closest is Susan’s fiancé Tom, who states that he once thought he knew what love was but was wrong until they began their relationship.)

Yet what’s interesting about this group is that they also yearn for community. Despite the fact that they’re almost all ‘loners’, they seem to come alive as they move into the apartment one-by-one. As this group begins to solidify, their hearts begin to open, allowing for intimacy between them to bloom. Though these characters seem soulless, they eventually begin to come alive when they are together. Suddenly, the meaninglessness of their world begins to crumble. Loneliness gives way to safety and security. Isolation leans into unity. Although there is still a pervasive sense of privileged malaise surrounding them, somehow their lives become more bearable (even hopeful). For this motley crew, supportive love melts their frozen hearts and (almost) brings a new beginning to their relationships.

Anchored by a stunning performance by Michelle Pfeiffer, French Exit provides enough witty banter and outrageous characters to qualify for a recommendation. While the film lacks the energy of Anderson’s films, there’s a certain amount of charm within its story that makes it enjoyable. However, it’s also likely that this is one Exit you will only want to travel through once.

French Exit is available in theatres on Friday, April 2nd, 2021.

A Look at the Oscar® Nominated Live Action Shorts

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When it is time to award the best in films each year, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences include three categories of short films in their Oscar ® presentations. Most people don’t get to see many shorts. They play at festivals, and occasionally in front of a feature film. But short films are an art form worth attention. Many (probably most) feature filmmakers started out making short films. To tell a story in such a brief format takes skill. All the Oscar-nominated short films will be playing in theaters and on virtual cinema in special programs.

Let’s take a look at the Oscar ® nominated live action shorts.

Feeling Through (19 minutes, directed by Doug Roland). Tereek, a homeless teen helps Walter, a blind-deaf man (played by a deaf-blind actor), find his bus to get home. He learns to see the man as more than a problem, and also gets perspective on his own trials.  This is a very moving story. In just a few minutes of screen time, we see tremendous growth in Tereek’s character. For him this is truly a life changing experience.

The Letter Room (33 minutes, directed by Elvira Lind). When a sensitive prison guard gets transferred to the mail room, his job is to read all the incoming and outgoing mail. He is enthralled with the very personal letters sent to a death row inmate. But perhaps the reality is less than he imagines. Nice performance from Oscar Isaac as a man who strives to be kind, even in an unkind environment.

The Present (25 minutes, directed by Farah Nabulsi). This Palestinian film is the story of a man who sets off with his daughter to go into town to buy an anniversary gift for his wife. The way is complicated by checkpoints, hostile Israeli soldiers, and segregated highways. It becomes a trial by humiliation. Can the man get the gift home and still maintain his stature in the eyes of his daughter? This look at life within the occupied Palestinian territories shows some of the injustice that people must face, with no real rights or power. The Present is currently streaming on Netflix.

Two Distant Strangers (29 minutes, directed by Travon Free and Martin Desmond Roe). When a man wakes up in his girlfriend’s apartment, he sets off home to take care of his dog. But when he runs into trouble with a racist policeman, it ends tragically. Then he wakes up again…. This is something of a Black Lives Matter version of Groundhog Day. There are lots of different scenarios, but it always ends in the police killing of a black man.

White Eye (20 minutes, directed by Tomer Shushan). In Israel, a man finds his bike stolen weeks ago. It now belongs to a Somalian immigrant who bought it at bus station. When the police get involved it becomes far more complicated than the man wanted. The film moves from being about what rights a person might have to what is the right thing to do in a difficult setting.

My favorites among these are Feeling Through,because it brings hope out of darkness in a touchingly human way; and Two Distant Strangers, for the way it uses the time loop trope to emphasize the way the killing of black people seems be something we wake up to anew each day.

To see where you can see these shorts, go to https://shorts.tv/theoscarshorts/

A Look at Oscar® Nominated Short Documentaries

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When it is time to award the best in films each year, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences include three categories of short films in their Oscar® presentations. Most people don’t get to see many shorts. They play at festivals, and occasionally in front of a feature film. But short films are an art form worth attention. Many (probably most) feature filmmakers started out making short films. To tell a story in such a brief format takes skill. All the Oscar®-nominated short films will be playing in theaters and on virtual cinema in special programs.

Let’s take a look at the Oscar®-nominated short documentaries

Colette (25 minutes, directed by Anthony Giacchino). At 90 years old, Colette is one of the last remaining veterans of the French Resistance. She has never, in the years since the war, stepped foot in Germany. Now, with a young researcher, she is going to the Concentration Camp where her brother died. It is an emotional trip for both women. It makes the story of the Resistance and of her brother very personal.

A Concerto Is a Conversation (13 minutes, directed by Kris Bowers and Ben Proudfoot). Kris Bowers is a rising star among Hollywood composers. But he sometimes wonders, as an African American if he is “supposed to be in the spaces that I’m in.” As he talks with his grandfather, he hears of growing up in the Jim Crow south, and finding a way to a better life in Los Angeles, which shaped the family Bowers was born into. This is a bit of a celebration of family, and especially the bond between Bowers and his grandfather.

Do Not Split (35 minutes, directed by Anders Hammer). In the spring of 2019, when the Chinese government proposed extraditing Hong Kong people to China, protests began. By September (when the documentary joins the protests) these protests had gotten very large and filled with violence, by both protesters and police. This film takes us into those protests. It shows us the passion of the young people involved. But we really don’t get a lot of context to fully understand all the issues that come into play.

Hunger Ward (40 Minutes, directed by Skye Fitzgerald). In Yemen, war and famine have resulted in large numbers of children starving. This is a look into two clinics and the doctors who are trying to save the lives of these children. The film is a brutal experience—not because of violence, but because of the near hopelessness of the situation. Viewers should know they have to steal themselves for some of these scenes, which include children dying. It’s also important to note that the US is a key supporter and supplier of the Saudis who have blocked aid from reaching Yemen.

A Love Song for Latasha (19 minutes, directed by Sophia Nahli Allison). “Say her name” has become an important phrase in our culture as we remember the deaths of African Americans needlessly killed. Fifteen year old Latasha Harlins, was killed trying to buy Orange Juice. That event became a focal point in the 1992 Los Angeles uprising. This film, related by a cousin and a friend of Latasha does more than say her name. It tells of a life. It is not about a victim, but about what has been lost.

My favorite among these is A Concerto Is a Conversation. It points to the struggle people have endured, but also shows a bit of hope that we can do better. I hesitated to call Hunger Ward a “favorite”, because it is very difficult to watch. But it is a powerful and important story that much of the world is overlooking.

To see trailers or to find where you can see these shorts, go to https://shorts.tv/theoscarshorts/

Amundson: The Greatest Expedition

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Roald Amundsen is probably best known as the polar explorer who beat Robert Scott to the South Pole. Amundsen, a new biopic from Epsen Sandberg, shows us some of his noteworthy expeditions, but also more about Amundsen as a person—and that isn’t always flattering.

Roald Amundsen (Pål Sverre Hagen) has his sights set, at the beginning of the film, with reaching the North Pole and discovering what might be there. But when Americans claim to have reached the pole (something that history disputes) he shifts his attention to the South Pole, knowing that Scott is already putting together an expedition. He never mentions the change in plans to investors or to the English. That kind of dishonest self-interest becomes the real focus of the story, more than the exploits themselves.

The story is structured around a conversation between Roald’s estranged brother Leon (Christian Rubeck) and his finacee Bess Magids (Kathering Waterston) at a time that Roald is lost and possibly dead on one of his attempts to fly to the North Pole. Leon was the pragmatic and businesslike side of the brotherly partnership. Bess, a Canadian, was married when she and Roald first got together.

Leon relates the story of Roald’s obsession with the poles and many of the ways that Roald was reckless and uncaring about anything other than his success. For example, we see that Amundsen’s mindset for the trip to the South Pole was that of a suicide mission. He didn’t really care if they all got back, so long as he got there first. (The irony is that Scott’s expedition did perish on their attempt.)

As the film moves between that conversation and the various expeditions Roald undertook, we get a picture of someone who had great ambition, but perhaps was not as worthy of adulation as we might expect. When Leon tells him that the finances are no longer available and that things must change, Roald will have nothing to do with him thereafter. When Roald writes his autobiography, it is filled with bitterness.

I think we know that most of those considered heroes have flaws. That is very apparent with Roald Amundsen. We see both sides of him in the film. It illustrates the difference between doing great things and being a great person. But it never gives us a chance to find his redeeming (or redeemed) nature. The film’s subtitle is “The Greatest Expedition”. Perhaps his success in going places no other person had ever been is not the real story. It could be that he failed at ‘the greatest expedition”—life.

Amundsen is available on virtual cinema through local theaters and on VOD.

Photos courtesy of Samuel Goldwyn Films.