Short Term 12 (2013) Reviews

• Forget your blockbusters--this is super cinema without the price tag.

  jdesando2013-09-14

  "You are not their friend, and you are not their therapist," Jack (Frantz Turner) to Grace (Brie Larson) You can be forgiven if you think Short Term 12 is a documentary, so close it seems to the reality of a foster-care facility, so natural its acting in almost every character. If you see any films this month, makes sure this is one of them First time helmer Destin Cretton, with two years' experience in a similar care-giving facility (The title refers to the 12 or so group homes for teens in the county), has masterfully relayed the love and sorrow inherent in a place where virtually everyone is displaced from a parent, or abused, even the staff. The story belongs to Grace (Brie Larson), a caring giver who influences for good many of her charges, not easy cases any one of them. Part of the reason she is so successful is that she knows from abuse by her father, who is in prison for his offenses. She finds a younger Doppelganger of sorts in defiant teen Jadyn (Kaitlyn Dever), whose traumas at the hands of her father are ongoing and call for identifying with Grace's experiences and strong remedy. Watch for an Oscar nomination if this indie is seen by enough of us. To parallel the challenges of the home, Grace's home with fellow staffer, boyfriend Mason is both loving and stressful because she struggles with becoming pregnant and reconciling her tortured past with her father, who is ready to be released form prison. Mason is the ideal caregiver, loving and competent with the teenagers and her. Although many moments could be melancholic or downright tear-jerking in other hands, Cretton doesn't allow excessive sorrow to rule; rather, the sadness is mitigated by the small triumphs. Hey, that's just like real life. This little indie will cure you of any longing for summer blockbusters and their half-billion-dollar entanglements. Short Term 12's situations are enough satisfying drama for ten Lone Rangers.

• Near Perfect Film

  alexhughbrown2013-09-05

  It's rare that a film moves you to tears and in the next moment makes you belly laugh, all within a context of a very real, grounded story. This film has some of the strongest writing, acting, and directing I've seen in American cinema since American Beauty was released. Subtle, incredibly deep, and full of unsentimental heart and compassion. It's about people who have been damaged by the people who are supposed to protect them the most: their parents. And it's not just about that. It's about how the human spirit can, with care and respect, somehow sustain after such darkness. It's about real love. This film is why I go to the movies. This film is why I've made my livelihood movies. Bravo Mr. Cretton and everyone involved with the film. I wish you nothing but the best.

• A great film

  buzzbruin-650-4091832013-08-25

  One of the few movies in my life I cried at. Due to some of my background I was moved by the subject matter. It is one of the most natural movies I have ever seen. The entire cast seemed like real people and not one of them seemed like an actor. Great movies plunge the viewer into real lives as if they suddenly discovered someone else's life in front of them. The writer/director also had balance in the story, The most emotional scenes had tremendous impact because the timing when they occurred was not suspected. The scenes were gut-wrenching and drove me to emotional experiences as if I was a person in the film. Thus, the tears. This may be a hard film for viewers to be involved with, but it is worth every minute of it. The private lives of the leaders were weaved into the film and gave great understanding to the people who ran the agency. The child acting was without a flaw, and I felt as if I knew them in real life. I urge you to see it, but prepare yourself for an emotional ride with people in dire circumstances. A simply great film!!

• The snub of the year

  bigmystery232014-01-19

  After seeing this movie, I realized how the Academy works. If a movie doesn't have the budget to distribute their film to a vast amount of cities or campaign well, then it is unlikely to get its deserved recognition. I sat through the 96 minutes of this Indie film that got raved with impressive reviews at SXSW to see what the fuss was about. The people behind this movie deserve SO much more praise than they have gotten. This film, though not technically masterful, is emotionally wrenching. I laughed, I freaking cried my heart out, and overall it felt real. There was a connection to the film that was surprisingly amazing. The movie reminded me to Blue is the Warmest Color in the sense that it was raw, powerful, real, and astonishing. Brie Larson should have easily been one of the five nominees for Best Actress as well as Keith Stanfield for Best Supporting Actor. This film is a portrayal of neglected youth, a rare look at relationships, an articulation of the fears in the world, and a new point of view that most films have never shown before. I truly recommend this film to everyone, and will always give it the praise it deserves.

• May just be the best film of the year

  howard.schumann2013-11-24

  Real heroes do not always end up with glory and parades. Heroism is sometimes reflected in small scale actions that no one ever hears about but occur every day in schools, hospitals, or wherever there are people who need compassion. Werner Erhard defines true heroism as "the kind which ends up in the truth, in what works, in what is honest and real being brought out and made available to others." This kind of authenticity is front and center in Destin Cretton's Short Term 12, the story of troubled teens living in a short-term group home who are the recipients of empathy from counselors only a few years older who may have faced similar situations in their life. Winner of the audience award at the L.A. Film Festival and South by Southwest as well as the narrative feature prize, it is funny and sad with a wide range of emotions in-between. Coming from the director's own experience of working in a similar environment for two years, the film is permeated with an air of authenticity and it is rare that a film has such uniformly natural performances. Grace (Brie Larson) is the staff supervisor at the home known only as Short Term 12, a designation reflecting the fact that the residents are supposed to be there for no more than a year, although many have been there longer. The longer they stay, however, the more traumatic it is for them to leave. These are not "bad" kids though some may have had run-ins with the law. They are, more often than not, victims of parental abuse or neglect whose continuing to live at home would put them at risk. Most of the children are scared and have a lot of hidden anger but Cretton does not present them in a way that solicits our pity. They are who they are and we relate to them as fellow human beings. As Grace tells Nate (Rami Maledk), a new worker at the home, "We're not their parents or their therapists. We're just here to create a safe environment." These words seem to be lost on Nate, however, who, when introduced to the residents, says "I've always wanted to work with underprivileged kids," an insulting designation to which 17-year-old Marcus (Keith Stanfield) takes umbrage. Marcus, who is going to be discharged when he reaches 18, ready or not, elicits a stumbling apology from Nate who realizes his mistake. Grace's boyfriend, Mason (John Gallagher), begins the film with a story about an embarrassing incident with a young runaway. The story, which is gross and off-putting, is interrupted by bells going off as a scrawny young boy, Sammy (Alex Calloway), a frequent runaway, makes a beeline for the gate but is intercepted before he can make it outside the property. Jayden, in an impeccable performance by Kaitlyn Dever, is a new arrival who has made previous suicide attempts. Expecting her father to take her home soon, she is surly and uncommunicative and is only able to communicate with Grace by means of a heartbreaking children's story she wrote about a shark and an octopus, a story with a hidden meaning that that Grace pick ups on. Marcus, in another moving scene, sings a deeply felt rap song he created for Mason about "a life not knowing what a normal life's like." Although the children play a huge role in the film, the main focus is on Grace and how her work affects her life. We find out at the beginning that she is pregnant and has scheduled an appointment to have an abortion, but she is conflicted. She knows that Mason loves her and would be a good father but she has seen neglectful parents or worse in her own life and at the home and her built-up anger expresses itself in a memorable scene. Short Term 12 could have become another film that sets out to inspire us through contrivance and manipulation. Under Cretton's direction, however, if there are tears to be shed, every one of them is earned. Though it (most likely) will not be remembered when awards are handed out at the end of the year, unlike many films with huge budgets and greater hype, it will remain with you after the others are long forgotten. Short Term 12 may just be the best film of the year.