Oscar Nominated Shorts

Kavi--Slumdog without the millions.





This year’s Oscar-nominated short subject films are testaments on how to tell a good story compactly. If you’re lucky enough to live in an area with a theater showing these, it would be well worth your time to view them. Otherwise, rent the compilation disc—there’s not a dog among them. In alphabetical order the films are:

The Door (Ireland, in Russian with subtitles, 17 minutes, directed by Juanita Wilson): The film opens with a man clamoring across a ruined amusement park and breaking into an abandoned tenement. Quickly we learn that it’s Chernobyl and the man’s former apartment. This heartbreaking tale reveals why he’s there what he wants, and why he wants it.

Instead of Abracadabra (Sweden, subtitles, 22 minutes, directed by Patrik Eklund): This wacky little film focuses on a twenty-something live-at-home slacker who fancies himself a magician. He’s bad—really bad. Dangerously bad! This film’s surreal qualities suggest what the Junot brothers might have done as film students.

Kavi (India, subtitles, 19 minutes, directed by Gregg Helvey): If you think slavery is a thing of the past, think again. A young boy, Kavi, and his entire family are under the thrall of a brick maker. Kavi’s moment of awareness comes from seeing boys his age playing cricket while he’s hauling waste. Director Helvey crams a lot into nineteen minutes and is especially skillful in thinking about the things that rock a pre-teen’s world.

Miracle Fish (Australia, 17 minutes, directed by Luke Doolan): Eight-year old Joe comes from a broken home and other kids pick on him. When he slinks off the playground for a nap in the nurse’s office, he awakes to an abandoned school in which he can do as he pleases. Eerie silences and haunting sequences reveal why Joe’s alone. Another film in which the director knows how to get inside a child’s head.

The New Tenants (Denmark, in English, 20 minutes, directed by Joachim Back): Two gay men—one a rat-a-tat-speaking cynic and the other a long-suffering listener--have just moved into a new apartment that has way more history than even the cynic can imagine. And talk about neighbors! This hysterical black comedy is a cross between Barton Fink and My Dinner with Andre.

And the winner will be? Our favorite was the wickedly snarky The New Tenants, but Kavi probably has the inside track. Think Slumdog Millionaire without the happy ending; the combination of a weighty topic and a cute kid is Hollywood irresistible. But really, any of the films except the Swedish entry would be worthy. The latter isn’t bad, merely fluffier than the rest.