One of the unexpected delights about the Oscar Animated Shorts screening in theaters for a few weeks before the Academy Awards ceremony each year is how adult-centric the cartoons tend to be. When it comes to mainstream features, the fare from Disney and Pixar tends to be aimed at all-family audiences, but such is not the case with those animators delivering the Oscar shorts. Their cartoons are more serious, mature in theme, and even political at times. Indeed, more often than not, the five finalists represent a range of approaches, imbued with layers of sophistication, and enjoy the participation of the international community. It all makes for a truly special time at the cineplex, one I encourage all film fans to indulge in. Particularly, adults.
All five of the nominees have their strong points and I enjoyed all of them. Here are my quick reviews of each, starting with the one I enjoyed the most:
RETIREMENT PLAN
The renderings may be simplistic and barely animated in this mere 7-minute entry, but moment for moment, it’s the most clever and entertaining. Directed by John Kelly and written by the director and his co-screenwriter Tara Lawell, the short chronicles the big plans that a retiree makes for himself, yet with each proclamation named, we realize that his ambitions are too lofty. “I will swim every morning. I will learn to play a single piano piece…exceptionally well.” Oh yeah? Good luck with that. The laughs increase as we realize, as does the narrator, that most of his dreams and goals will never be realized. By the time he gets to “I will hike” he can’t help but follow it up with “I will see a point in hiking. I will know when a walk becomes a hike. I will become so good at meditation.” Hilarious! Sure, it’s cynical, especially with Domhnall Gleeson’s wry narration, but the truth and humor grow exponentially throughout the seven minutes as it’s all so universal, even if one is 40 years away from his or her golden years.
THE GIRL WHO CRIED PEARLS
My second favorite was this somber, 17-minute story about a wealthy old Parisian telling his granddaughter about how he became rich. He started out as a Dickensian street urchin squatting in an abandoned apartment and eavesdropping on the tormented life of the young girl who lives in the apartment next door. Each night she cries herself to sleep, and the girl’s tears magically turn into pearls. The ragamuffin boy steals them to exchange for a few dollars from a stingy pawnbroker to buy food. This Canadian-made short has a stop-motion feel to it with an incredibly detailed, three-dimensional figure design and elaborate production values. The moody piece from directors Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski, written by them too with the help of Isabelle Mandalian, is enthralling, haunting, and even more than a little disturbing. It also comes with a lesson about morality, one that makes it very Dickensian as well. I only wish it was a feature-length film. The vividness of all here was worth spending more time with.
THE THREE SISTERS
The three siblings in question here are not Anton Chekov’s creations, though there is an austerity to their life that feels similar. This 14-minute entry from Russian writer/director Konstantin Bronzit showcases three lonely sisters living on an isolated island who decide to rent out one of their three houses to make ends meet. Their new tenant is a burly sea captain prone to parading around naked and grunting at anything he finds amusing. (BTW…his grunt is one of the short’s better running gags.) Having such a strapping male on premise brings out the longing in all three. Each woman attempts to win his affections with what little they can offer from the island, and it makes for a drolly humorous competition for love, like perhaps Chekov’s version of ABC’s THE BACHELOR. Its cheeky slapstick makes for the funniest visuals of any short this year, and yet it finds room for pathos and empathy too. Bronzit was nominated by the Academy before in 2014 for his brilliant WE CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT COSMOS about Russian astronauts, and it shared the same simple line drawings, adroit physicality, and ultimately moving story about loneliness as his entry here. Perhaps this year, Oscar will become his companion.
FOREVERGREEN
The likely winner this year, however, because of its artistry, important message about conservation, and clear POV, is the 13-minute FOREVERGREEN. Coming to us from veterans of Pixar and Disney, this short tells of the strange friendship that develops between an immature bear cub and a wizened, old Evergreen tree that provides the errant animal with shade, shelter and sustenance. Eventually, the bear grows up to be spoiled and unappreciative of his benefactor and when picnic garbage presents itself as an alternate diet, the impressionable bruin turns his back on the forest. The journey may feel a bit too obvious here, but the story is told with vibrant and detailed visuals, strong characterizations, and the energy of a feature. It is arguably is the most four-quadrant of all the nominees too, so directors Nathan Englehardt and Jeremy Spears – they worked together on ZOOTOPIA and BIG HERO 6 – should probably get their acceptance speeches ready.
BUTTERFLY
And last, but certainly not least, is BUTTERFLY (aka PAPILLON), a 15-minute, painterly effort that seamlessly transitions from one scene to another via its brushstrokes and blending, all the while rendering its characters like they’re the sophisticated inhabitants of a Gaugin painting. Such stunning artistry occurs while telling a difficult, often brutal story about a North African swimmer who becomes an athlete in the 1930s but is hounded out of his livelihood for being a Jew. Just where the story goes is often harrowing, but the man’s pluck and resolve to survive is represented by the indomitable spirit of the water he finds so much solace in. A river constantly flows, changes, and remains a force of nature, one that never stands still. It’s the most serious of the bunch, and in many ways, the most beautiful to watch and learn from. Director Florence Miailhe and co-screenwriter Marie Desplechin have created a true work of art and it’s wonderful that the Academy recognized it as such.
Again, do yourself a big favor and check them out on the big screen. They may be short, but they will linger in the mind a long time after.
