Academy Awards -- Short Films

The animated and live action short film awards are usually overlooked by the general public for the good reason that few people get a chance to see the nominees. Fortunately, this year all ten of the nominees are being distributed in theaters nationwide by Magnolia Pictures. Here are the play dates.

It is worth noting that none of the ten nominees were produced in the United States, which, I believe, is a first. I cannot say whether this reflects the prejudice of the Academy short film committee or the decline of short film making in the U.S.

Animated Short Films

When I sit down to watch animated shorts, I want to laugh, so this year there is one nominee that stands out for me: Even Pigeons Go to Heaven, in which a priest tries to con an old man into signing over his savings before he dies by showing him a machine that is guaranteed to transport him to Heaven rather than Hell. This short is not for thin-skinned Catholics, but otherwise it is extremely amusing.

In 1969, 14-year-old Jerry Levitan wormed his way into John Lennon's Toronto hotel room and interviewed him. I Met the Walrus animates the original recording of the interview. The actual animation is whimsical, but did not make much of an impression on me. However, Lennon's words about peace are just as relevant today as they were 39 years ago.

The other three animated short nominees are long-form shorts, ranging from 17 to 32 minutes. The standout is My Love, about a 15-year-old 19th century Russian prince who falls in love with two young women, a servant girl and a mysterious neighbor who always wears eyeshades. The paintbrush-style animation is spectacular. Peter and the Wolf and Madame Tutli-Putli are both characterized by excellent stop-action puppet animation.

Live Action Short Films

This year's live action nominees are of more appeal than the animated nominees. My favorite is Tanghi Argentini about a man who sets up a date on the Internet, claiming that he loves to dance the tango. In fact, he knows nothing about tango, so he convinces a colleague at work, a fellow bachelor known as a dancer, to give him a two-week crash course in tango dancing. This is a real charmer.

In The Substitute, a highly unorthodox substitute teacher disrupts and inspires a classful of teenagers and, in turn, learns an important lesson from them.

The other three live action nominees are long-form shorts, ranging from 31 to 40 minutes. The Tonto Woman is based on an Elmore Leonard short story about a cattle rustler who stumbles upon a white woman who is living in isolation after spending 11 years as a captive of Mojave Indians. The Canadian director, Daniel Barber, has been making commercials in London and financed this film himself. Somebody in Hollywood needs to sign him up and give him a real budget.

At Night tells the story of three young Danish women in a cancer ward coming to terms with their mortality, while The Mozart of Pickpockets is about two barely ept pickpockets whose lives are changed when they adopt a deaf, homeless beggar boy.

My votes go to:

Animated Short: Even Pigeons Go to Heaven
Live Action Short: Tanghi Argentini, with a close second to The Tonto Woman.