Greetings again from the darkness. The Dallas Magnolia Theatre again presented showings of all Oscar nominated short films. This has become one of my favorite movie events of the year. Short films are quite a different art form than feature length films. Connections with characters must be made so quickly and interest in the story must be gained within the first couple of minutes, or all is lost.
It’s really a shame more short films don’t get distributed with mainstream movies. It would be a nice bonus for the viewers and the filmmakers. You know what I mean if you saw Toy Story 3 at the theatre this year. Below is a quick recap of this year’s nominees. They are by category and in order of my preference.
LIVE ACTION
THE CRUSH (Ireland) by Michael Creagh. It’s the age old tale of schoolboy crush on his teacher. Only this one has quite a twist. When Ardal discovers that his teacher is engaged to be married, he decides to save her from a marriage to this less-than-admirable character by challenging him to a duel. This one makes a couple of really good statements in a short period of time and would have been even better if a real actor, rather than the director’s son, had been chosen to play Ardal.
WISH 143 (UK) by Ian Barnes and Samantha Waite. A teenage terminally ill cancer patient tells the make-a-wish representative that his wish is to lose his virginity before he dies. When his story hits the newspaper, it doesn’t go as he wished. With a little help from a Priest and a very thoughtful young lady played by the very talented Jodie Whittaker (Venus), the boy’s dreams are surpassed in a warm and surprising manner.
THE CONFESSION (UK) by Tanel Toom. Two young catholic school boys are on the verge of their first confession. Being a bit confused on just what to confess, they stage a prank that inevitably goes horribly wrong. Their response to this tragedy leads to yet another tragedy that is surely to scar for life. Not very uplifting, but very well done.
GOD OF LOVE (USA) by Luke Matheny. The director plays a love song crooner who also happens to be an expert at darts, while terribly misguided on love. His prayers are answered by the Olympus Foundation in a box of love darts. Yes, these darts ignite the openness required for two people to fall in love. While it doesn’t turn out exactly as he had hoped, Olympus rewards his efforts with a promotion to full Cupid status.
NA WEWE (Belgium) by Ivan Goldschmidt. This is mid 90’s Burundi and a war between the Hutus and Tutsis is waging. The similarites to Don Cheadle‘s film Hotel Rwanda are inescapable, but this is limited to one incident where a van full of passengers is stopped and the frightening process of sorting out begins.
ANIMATION
DAY AND NIGHT (USA) by Teddy Newton. I feel a bit guilty selecting this Pixar production as my favorite, but it is simply another example of the genius we have come to expect from these people. Sunny dispositioned “Day” stumbles into the dark, gloomy “Night” and the battle begins. It’s only when they see the world through each other’s eyes that they began to celebrate their similarities and differences. Whatever you do, don’t mistake this for the lame Tom Cruise movie, Knight and Day.
THE GRUFFALO (Germany) by Jakob Schuh and Max Lang. This probably would have been my favorite had it been original instead of based on the children’s book by Julia Donaldson. The story, message and animation are all superb and it even has hints of Dr. Seuss! Care for any Owl Ice Cream?
LET’S POLLUTE (USA) by Geefwee Boedoe. Created by a Disney animator, this brilliant work is done in the style of a 1960’s educational film … only with top notch satire that instructs the viewer on how to be a better polluter! The voice-over is tremendous and the lessons can’t be missed. Want it. Waste it.
MADAGASCAR, A JOURNEY DIARY (French) by Bastien Dubois. This is the most artfully drawn of the nominees. The watercolors are beautiful and the movements are unique and eye-catching. Even the music is terrific and unusual. Presented to us as scrapbook pages describing a trip, we experience many people and the culture, and even the affect on the artist. This one just needed a bit more substance and it could have jumped to the top of the list.
THE LOST THING (Australia) by Shaun Tan and Andrew Ruhemann. A guy discovers a most unusual creature just by being a bit more observant than the masses who seem to be lost in their own world. He helps the thing find it’s place in the world and proves the point that we all belong somewhere … oh yeah, and pay attention to your surroundings!
Movie Reviews from the Dark 