Shorts

Today I saw the live short films nominated this year for the Academy Awards. Yay for independent movie houses! I really enjoy the short form for film and stories, and I think it's a largely undervalued and overlooked format which is a real shame. I've already mentioned that I listen to Selected Shorts from PRI which is a wonderful weekly program. Some weeks the stories aren't so great, but then other weeks they are really excellent. But beyond that, I think it's wonderful to hear short stories because they can really explore so many different ides, and the best can pack so much into a short space. Anyway, I wanted to briefly discuss the live shorts nominated this year.

First up was "On the Line" from Germany. (By the way I'm using the English titles.) It was the longest and definitely a contender for the statue. It explores the relationship of security guard Rolf and book clerk Sarah. Her brother is killed on the subway by a gang of punks and Rolf could have prevented it. That's the basic plot. I'm not really sure what it was about, and as is often possible with the short, the ending was vastly unsatisfactory. Or beyond satisfying, I wasn't sure at all what to do with the ending. I suppose there are two different interpretations, neither of which are helpful. It was really my least favorite of the five, yet I say it's a contender because it's the longest, the most realistic, and I can see the Academy enjoying the ending though I suspect most audiences will not.

The next film presented was "New Boy" from Ireland. At first I thought it said it was from Iceland and I was wondering why everyone was speaking English--it was very confusing. Anyway, it was the shortest of the five and the most comedic. It's about a black student from Africa, Joseph, on his first day at this Irish school where two of the white boys take to tormenting him. They nearly get in a fight on the playground when they're stopped by their teacher. As all students know, you never tattle on the bullies because once the teachers have reprimanded them, they seek you out with a vengeance. Joseph instead connects with these boys by gently mocking their shrill teacher with them and in the end all three are laughing and smiling. I suspect that they will even become good friends. Look out for Hazel who is a delightful Irish girl in the class.

The third film was "Toyland" from Germany which was undoubtedly my favorite. It's beautiful, haunting, stylistic, and emotionally powerful. I think this should win the Oscar, and as Ricky Gervais said to Kate Winslet, "I told you, do a Holocaust movie and the awards come, didn't I?" That's glib but true--where would film be without the Nazis? Anyway, the short focuses on a German mother who is frantically searching for her missing son. She fears that he has been rounded up with the Jewish neighbors. She told Heinrich, her son, that the Jews are going to "Toyland" and he desperately wants to go there too. It's absolutely amazing.

The next movie was "The Pig" from Denmark. It's a whimsical film absolutely rich in symbolism. An older man checks into a hospital for an operation in his rectum. There is a painting of a pig on the wall which brings him great comfort and joy--his guardian angel as he puts it. However, the picture is removed when a Muslim man is also placed in the same room and his family has it removed out of religious consideration. This makes Asbjorn, the older man, furious and he demands the pig be reinstated on the wall. Wit, whimsy, and religious debate ensue. I think this really requires at least a second viewing to take in all the symbolism.

Finally, "Manon on the Asphalt" from France was screened. I would imagine this is also a front runner. Manon is young French woman who is hit by a car while she is cycling down the street. As she lays there on the asphalt, she believes that she is dying and imagines how the lives of her friends, family, and neighbors will be affected by her death. It is a wonderful study on the transience of life and absolutely beautiful. This was probably my second favorite film of the five.

So those are the live shorts nominated this year. I must see the animated ones which are also playing at the Tower Theatre. You can also find these on iTunes if you don't have an art house cinema nearby. See "Toyland!" I really hope it wins the Oscar. But the others are also really good.