Oscar nominated shorts break the rules
Welcome to a world beyond superhero smack-downs
A feel-good story of survival, an existential parable about life, a long-form narrative that trades in death and desperation.
When it comes to Oscarnominated short films — both animated and live action — there are things you can pretty much take for granted.
And the most basic one is this: it’s almost impossible to correctly pick a winner.
Last year, for example, the Oscar went to “Bear Story,” which critics dismissed as a clunky, heavy handed “steampunk deconstruction of ‘The Three Bears’,” a heavy handed parable for slavery in the Old South using anthropomorphic circus animals.
That left the more inventive “World of Tomorrow” — about a squiggly drawn preschooler who meets her cloned future self — and “Sanjay’s Super Team,” a whimsical superhero tale steeped in diversity and inclusion, out in the cold.
But was anyone really surprised?
With so little overlap between the entries and so little consensus among critics, these are the categories that make the bookies and Oscar pool contenders throw up their hands in despair.
“The good thing is, you can be the judge and jury,” points out Princess Cinema owner John Tutt, who will be showcasing the five nominated shorts for both animation (plus runners-up) and live action in separate screenings in the weeks leading up to Oscar night, Feb. 26.
“Because they’re short, they have to be really efficient about getting you into the story. They’re like calling cards for their directors. Chances are you’re going to be
more entertained than you would in the average Hollywood movie.”
This year’s animated lineup is no exception, with a handful of six-minute mavericks that range from whimsical to thought-provoking and a 35-minute outlier that, even by these benchmarks, seems beamed in from another dimension.
That would be “Pear Cider and Cigarettes,” one of two Canadian entries, a stark, seductive tale of self-destruction that plays like a ’40s film noir, with a modern dose of graphic novel.
Courtesy of Vancouver video director Robert Valley, this moody elegy draws you in as it outlines the sad downward trajectory of a man hell bent on destruction.
“Techno was convinced nothing could kill him,” notes narrator Valley of the friend whose liver failure now threatens his life. “The truth is there really wasn’t much keeping Techno alive.”
In a more philosophical vein, the award-winning “Blind Vaysha,” courtesy of the National Film Board of Canada, depicts a young girl who sees the past out of one eye, the future out of the other, and is blind to the present.
“Vaysha could not be happy either in the past or the future,” sums up the narrator, whose ominous tone is reflected in the film’s stark, hand-drawn animation.
“This story is hopeless because we cannot find anything in this world capable of reuniting these two views ... (pregnant pause) ... Do we look at the world with the eyes of Vaysha the blind?”
And then there’s the sprightly, photorealistic “Piper,” touted as the front-runner by those impressed with its Pixar connection and the fact it was the preview toon for hit “Finding Dory.”
But with few creative risks, it’s the “La La Land” of animated shorts: engaging, technically brilliant, with a built-in appeal for viewers who lean toward tradition.
That’s not a knock. This story of a baby sandpiper learning the art of self-sufficiency from a feisty sand crab is pulled off with such endearing charm that, like the Best Picture front-runner it parallels, it’s impossible not to like.
Not so “Borrowed Time,” a gut punch reversal of the classic western hero tale in which the principal character revisits a tragic accident that haunts him decades later, not in acceptance, but in grief.
There’s no deep life lesson — the accident is just what it appears — but the filmmaker’s ability to tap deep emotions in under seven minutes is an achievement that indicates talent on the rise.
Finally, there’s “Pearl,” a touching “Boyhood”-styled coming-ofage story about a father and daughter who bond over a shared love of music and an ’83 Chevy Citation.
Sweet and nostalgic, this U.S. entry from previous winner Patrick Osborne also plays like a heart-tugging commercial for life insurance, which in an Oscar context, may not be a good thing.
Live action shorts, by contrast, are a tougher sell — more serious by nature, conditioned to make a point, yet not oblivious to that same gooey emotional centre.
In keeping with the Age of Trump, two immigration dramas lead the pack, including Denmark’s “Silent Nights,” about a soup kitchen volunteer with a racist mother who falls in love with a Ghanaian immigrant.
Reputed to be the front-runner, I’ve also seen it disparagingly referred to as “the worst film ever nominated for the Oscar” and “well-heeled white saviour guilt run amok,” so place your bets carefully.
Just as timely, given the U.S. crackdown on immigrants, is France’s “Ennemis Interieurs,” which pits a French Algerian man seeking citizenship against a police officer nervous about terrorists.
On a less combative note:
Switzerland’s “La Femme et le TGV,” about a widow who finds renewed passion for life when the driver of a high-speed commuter train starts dropping off letters outside her window.
Hungary’s “Sing,” about an off-key warbler told to keep her mouth shut, literally, when she sings in the school choir.
Spain’s “Timecode,” about two security guards who communicate through the art of dance on security camera footage.
In the end, short films have a lot of boxes to tick in their quest for Oscar gold, many of which make them less accessible than typical Hollywood fare.
But with challenge comes reward. And for those interested in a world beyond superhero smackdowns, Oscar shorts are a good place to start.