The Oscar Shorts

For the second year in a row I saw the short films nominated for an Oscar (minus the doc shorts). They are usually the categories a lot of people go to have a snack during, but it makes it more enjoyable to me to watch the Oscars when I have seen almost everything including the shorts.

So here are my  brief  thoughts on the nominees and my current predictions as to which one will win.

The animated shorts first.

The Lost Thing- Something feels a little off. The story is minimal and not too interesting. It does have a nice message though about finding your own place as an individual. There is also a moment in the film that looks like a giant Salvador Dali painting, but that part isn't long enough. 3 out of 5 stars

Day and Night- This played before Toy Story 3 and most of the time I like the Pixar shorts, but this time not so much. I appreciate its theme of tolerating those who are different, and I can appreciate the work that went into it. But it is pretty dull and seems very slow for a short that is only 6 minutes. 2.5 out of 5 stars

Let's Pollute- A snarky short with a political theme may seem like something Oscar voters eats up. It is funny and sometimes clever, but its environmental theme feels a little over hammered. Usually subtle is better. 3.5 out of 5 star

The Gruffalo- This is the only short with a full story and it has the voice of Oscar Nominee Helena Bonham Carter. But even the story seems pretty slight and sing songy like the children's book that it came from. The animation is just good as well. But it has the mostly fully developed story going for it and this could be the winner 3.5 out of 5.

Madagascar- Thankfully this has nothing to do with the Ben Stiller animated film. This is easily the best animated of the 5 shorts with all of its colors, drawings and layers of animation. But it is essentially  a travelogue about Madagascar with no plot to speak of. 3.5 out of 5.

My prediction: There are three that I think are out of it. But it is a hard choice between the gruffalo and madagascar.Iit is the battle between story and art. I think in this case art wins by a hair. I think the winner will be Madagascar.

Live Action Shorts
The Confession- This was the best made technically of the bunch, but the story of accidental murder in childhood feels like something off of the Young Adult shelves at the library that you come back to as an adult and say, "When does something like that ever happen?" Sometimes this category goes to the nominee that feels the most important. This isn't it. 3 out of 5

The Crush- There is something very sweet about this short, but also very sinister and creepy. It doesn't quite pull off of the tone of the two clashing feelings. 3 out of 5

God of Love- This is definitely the slightest of the nominees, but it is also the funniest of the bunch. It definitely has a young Woody Allen feel to it as its filmmaker and star is a nebbish unattractive guy that is unlucky at love. The academy loves Woody Allen, and I think they will love this. It is also a student film and a student winning an Oscar would make a great story. 3.5 out of 5

Na Wewe- One of two shorts in the categories that deals with "important" themes. This one being  violence in Africa. The only problem is that it doesn't really go deep enough and feels kind of empty, but if Oscars want to feel important and well versed in international news, they will go for this 3 out of 5

Wish 143- The other "important" short is about a teenager with cancer. That would probably be enough if it was a big tear jerker. But it is mostly comic because it is about the teen asking a make a wish like foundation to fulfill his wish of losing his virginity. It is funny and has heart, but doesn't feel important enough. 3.5 out of 5 stars

My prediction for the win: Its the important Goliath against the very funny David. I think this time david wins because it makes a better story. I think the winner will be God of Love, but Na wewe could easily steal it.