It’s that special time of year when movie theaters all over America start playing short films. Some places are hosting a total of 15 of them. Most of those participating, though, will be screening only 10. The shorts receiving this privileged exhibition are the Oscar nominees in the three categories devoted to the best in cinema of a length of 40 minutes or less. Thanks to ShortsHD, each category — live-action, animated and documentary — are showing separately (docs in fewer theaters), and all five contenders for each are included. You can find them in a theater near you (find one here) beginning this Friday.
Continuing our review and ranking of the 2016 Oscar-nominated shorts (see our posts on the animated and live-action contenders), below is my take on the documentary category. Despite typically favoring nonfiction films, I’ve never been too excited about the docs chosen by the Academy. They seem mainly highlighted for what they’re about rather than how they’re about. This year is no exception, unfortunately, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t a few notably strong shorts in the bunch, great films with significant subjects. As always, it’s a tough category to predict since it’s not necessarily about quality, but I will bet the one former winner in the category won’t get it again. Regarding their theatrical run starting this weekend, I don’t recommend it as being necessary. Two are already streaming on Netflix and the other three air on HBO within the next six months.
5. Body Team 12
Actress Olivia Wilde and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen are executive producers of this 13-minute short that looks at Ebola victim clean up in Liberia. The film focuses on one member of the titular team tasked with collecting the bodies of the dead, transporting them and burning them in a crematorium. This woman tells of the dangers, the need for brave people to risk their lives for the sake their country, the reasons why women are more suited to be a part of Body Team 12 and the drama that comes with trying to collect bodies from families who violently refuse to let their loved ones go, especially to be incinerated, despite the concern for contagion.
There’s no question that this is an important subject, a multi-personal side of the Ebola story that most of us wouldn’t see otherwise, and there’s no question that the primary documented worker, Garmai, is a brave woman. The doc, however, is pretty basic stuff. It’s hard to see the achievement of the filmmaking, outside of maybe director David Darg risked his own life to capture this story. But he didn’t capture it adequately enough as it was happening, or didn’t trust that footage to work on its own, so has Garmai comment on what we’re seeing through a later interview, reality TV-style, so even though it’s a film that shows a lot, it’s more interesting in telling. Body Team 12 is the kind of doc short that seems more likely nominated because of the content than how it’s presented. Fortunately it’s quite brief, a quick in and out with the essential facts and narrative and that’s it.
Could it win? Typically the worst nominee, in my opinion, winds up being the winner, so I guess we can bet on it.
How else to see it: HBO, premiering March 12th
4. Chau, Beyond the Lines
Think the effects of Agent Orange have decreased by now? It’s been 45 years since the stuff was last dropped over Vietnam, but children continue to be born with defects as a result of what it did to the environment there. Courtney Marsh’s film highlights the ongoing aftermath of the war on its people but focuses solely on one teenager with physical disabilities caused by America’s use of “orange crush.” Filmed over eight years, Chau is followed from a care center filled with other disabled kids, mostly orphans, back home to his unloving parents and through various other residences as he tries to make it on his own as an artist.
Chau, Beyond the Lines is at first heartbreaking and angering and shocking — particularly for how the care center is a tourist spot for people to gawk at the poor, deformed children. Then it becomes an inspirational tale of the highest order. This is a film that takes the overcoming all odds and obstacles idea to the extreme. Chau barely has use of his hands and his legs are different sizes, but he’s of very sound and passionate mind to do what he loves. While only 34 minutes, the short doc does feel a lot longer, due to the span of time. And it does seems a little directionless in the middle. Obviously that’s how it had to have been for much of those eight years, until Marsh found some kind of conclusion or at least a solid stopping point. At least she didn’t try to stretch it out to a feature.
Could it win? It’s possible, given that it’s similar to 2012 winner Inocente except here the artist is disabled not undocumented, which could be seen as even more powerful to the voters.
How else to see it: Netflix
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