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Review #404 of 365
Movie Review of The 2006 Academy Award®-Nominated Animated Short Films (2006)
Where Viewed: Starz FilmCenter at the Tivoli, Denver, CO
When 1st Seen: 20 February 2007
Time: 7:55 p.m.
Movie Review of Binta and the Great Idea (2006) [NR] 30 minutes
Spanish Title: Binta y la gran idea
WIP™ Scale: $12.00
Directed by: Javier Fesser (Gran aventura de Mortadelo y Filemón, La)
Written by: Javier Fesser ( Gran aventura de Mortadelo y Filemón, La)
Featured Cast:
Zeynabou Diallo • Agnile Sambou • Aminata Sane
Less a typical short film than an extended public service announcement for the world peace, harmony, and fair treatment of women, Binta and the Great Idea, written and directed by Javier Fesser and starring Zeynabou Diallo as Binta herself, is brought to the world sponsored by UNICEF. The film is narrated in by Binta as well. She explains her father is a fisherman and her mother works in the rice fields. She guides us into understanding some weeks in her life in Senegal as the school children produce a short play to convince her uncle to allow her cousin, Soda (Aminata Sane) to go to school where she might grow up to be a teacher, a doctor, or a politician based on real events in the lives of poorly educated Senegalese women, and her father comes up with a really grand idea to help foster world harmony. His great idea is at once both a warning to those of the western-centric consumption mindset as much as it is a gesture of good will and a gentle 'turnabout is fair play' slap in the face. The acting in the film is natural and effective giving a sense that this might really be what a day in a far away rural village in Senegal might be like, and these are actually people that one might meet on a visit. It's a far, far cry from the atrocities of child soldiers and tribally-based genocide of Blood Diamond. Truly, if everyone, everywhere were able to lead the cooperative and harmonious existence of Binta, the world would be a better place. The film's message is hard to miss, which also promotes a small sense of it being contrived, or, as previously stated, a bit more like a public service announcement than a truly engaging story.
Movie Review of Éramos Pocos (2006) [NR] 16 minutes
WIP™ Scale: $13.00
Directed by: Borja Cobeaga (Primera vez, La )
Written by: Sergio Barrejón ("Pasado es mañana, El") and Borja Cobeaga (Primera vez, La)
Featured Cast:
Ramón Barea • Mariví Bilbao • Alejandro Tejerías
Joaquín (Ramón Barea) awakes to find his dear wife gone. He rushes to find his son, Fernando (Alejandro Tejerías) who is sleeping soundly this fine Sunday morning. A moment of panic is ended when the television also is found to be missing, and Fernando discovers piles of their stuff and the television smashed on the street below. The assumption is that the Mrs. was so angry about something that she tossed the stuff off the balcony and fled. After a few weeks of nearly starving and watching their home turn into a pig sty, Joaquín decides to take Fernando and recover his mother-in-law, Lourdes (Mariví Bilbao) from the nursing home as a gesture of good will to his wife in and a desperate attempt to lure her home. Lourdes, then, so happy to be free from the nursing home and back in the company of others, cooks up fabulous meals for the men and keeps the house spotless. Clearly, however, something is slightly amiss to this scene, and the men hope, after cleaning out a junk room for her to use as her bedroom, won't get wise to their true intentions for bringing her home. The do not know that Lourdes has a secret of her own. The double twists in this short film are clever though with in reach of prediction. This gives for a small dose of satisfaction upon delivery. Director and co-writer Borja Cobeaga has crafted Éramos Pocos out of some slight but entertaining performances and a story of humorous misdirection. The short film entertains and proves that you can have your omelet and eat it too.
Movie Review of Helmer & Son (2006) [NR] 13 minutes
Danish Title: Helmer & søn
WIP™ Scale: $12.75
Directed by: Søren Pilmark
Written by: Roni Ezra • Pelle Møller ("Er du skidt, skat?")
Featured Cast:
Per Pallesen • Steen Stig Lommer
Denmark is the source of Helmer & Son. This short film also relies on a twist derived within the nursing home patient room of a former business executive named Helmer (Per Pallesen). One morning, he fails to show up for breakfast, and the staff searches for him everywhere. Finally, they discover he's locked himself inside a large, tandem wardrobe closet in his room. They immediately phone his son and daughter to come and convince him out of the space. His son (Steen Stig Lommer) is first to arrive, and he gets no where in the convincing process and only ends up convincing his father he made a grave mistake in turning Helmer & Son over to his son. When the artistic daughter arrives with good news of selling her latest painting for an excess of $1000, Helmer expresses joy from behind the door, but still won't come out. It's not until his son indicates that he no longer fears for his ability to run the company without his father and feels it will be fine when he passes on that Helmer emerges, in the buff for a pair of startling revelations (no pun intended). Charming in its warmth and emphasis on the value of intergenerational family love vs. in-fighting, the film, directed by Søren Pilmark, brings a chuckle and grin to those who have faced similar situations in dealing with aging parents. The acting is forceful and direct, and the story is both tender and humorous. All in all, this is a wonderful example of the possibilities for a great short film.
Movie Review of The Saviour (2006) [NR] 17 minutes
WIP™ Scale: $13.75
Directed by: Peter Templeman (Splintered)
Written by: Peter Templeman
Featured Cast: (Credited cast)
Thom Campbell • Susan Prior • Rhys Muldoon • David Somerville • Nicholas Hammond
What starts off as an indelicate and controversial circumstance—an elder of the Mormon faith falls off the path when he discreetly visits a potential convert alone—turns into an incredible miracle, not so much a Holy one, but one of faith and promise where what is right for the universe is done whether right by religious standards or not seems less important. In this Peter Templeman written and directed short film featuring Thom Campbell as Malcolm and David Sommerville as Paul portraying two elders canvassing neighborhoods looking for what they are not to call 'prospects', Malcolm turns out to be quite taken with Carmel (Susan Prior) a married woman whom he imagines is in a bad marriage and needs him. Going against everything his faith has taught him and the regulations set forth by the Pastor (Nicholas Hammond) as to the codes of conduct, he sneaks in and, perhaps, participates in unholy activities with Carmel right under the nose of his partner Paul. Paul, of course, does not figure out what's really going on, and just feels slighted that he's not been included in the meetings with Carmel. His jealousy eventually pushes him to a fist-fight that gets him and Malcolm invited in, at last, to meet Tony (Rhys Muldoon), Carmel's husband.
With a clever twist or slight of hand, Mr. Templeman redeems a story that could have seemed tawdry at first into one which teaches us that, sometimes, we have to suspend our adherence to what we perceive to be the rules of this game of life we are playing and seek some middle ground in between the ethics we learned in school or house of worshhip and the hand of cards we are dealt in reality. This is a well-conceived, well-acted, delightfully comedic story with a great take home lesson whether one can agree on it morally or not.
With a clever twist or slight of hand, Mr. Templeman redeems a story that could have seemed tawdry at first into one which teaches us that, sometimes, we have to suspend our adherence to what we perceive to be the rules of this game of life we are playing and seek some middle ground in between the ethics we learned in school or house of worshhip and the hand of cards we are dealt in reality. This is a well-conceived, well-acted, delightfully comedic story with a great take home lesson whether one can agree on it morally or not.
The final nominee, West Bank Story, by director Ari Sandel was not screened. Based on only these four, the winner of the award should go to The Saviour as it stood out in the end as being slightly better than the other three nominees.
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