I think my personal quest to watch the entirety of Brie Larson's filmography has already hit its highest point. Destin Daniel Cretton's Short Term 12 is an absolutely astounding and tender film that deeply touches on just about every emotion any normal human could feel. The story, subtle music, and performances make this movie an incredible watch, especially to see how far some of the cast involved have come since this. The thing that impresses me the most about this film, however, is the fact that even with the limited locations and short runtime, this it provided a much more interesting narrative than any blockbuster of today ever could. Now I just need to watch the short film that this feature-length masterpiece was based on, as this director has undoubtedly blown me away.
Short Term 12 is the story of a young supervisor named Grace (Brie Larson) who takes care of a large handful of kids in a residential treatment center. Along with her boyfriend Mason (John Gallagher Jr.) and a new hire named Nate (Rami Malek), the staff of this facility learns and adapts based on every new challenge that is brought their way, especially when receiving new patients. The best part of Cretton's writing in this film is the balance that he brought to every character and their individual stories. Even though Grace is the central protagonist of this film, I learned about and felt for every single character and their struggles. The most interesting had to revolve around Grace, as she dealt with her own personal demons and dark history while attempting to still take care of the kids that were under her care. It was so interesting to see the reversal of fortune and revitalization of Grace's life as her shell began to erode while working with one of the facility's new members, Jayden (Kaitlyn Dever). The relationship that was built between these two was beautiful and (while simultaneously passing the Bechdel test) actually showed a realistic representation of life in one of these centers. I also really appreciated that Cretton's writing did not overly dramatize or romanticize any of the things that happened in this care facility, as his version of the story was grounded in reality and authenticity.
The performances in this movie really bring out the authenticity of the writing as well. Larson and Malek stand out the most, as well as an early performance by Lakeith Stanfield as Marcus, another troubled kid in the home about to turn 18. I believe this is one of Larson's best and most moving roles ever, as she completely embodies the love and tender care that go into being a supervisor such as this one. When she began to struggle with balancing her personal life and dark past, Larson was able to portray every kind of inner emotion that one would feel in her situation. Malek was also great in his role as Nate and was honestly much better in this than anything else he has done recently (he really wasn't able to rock me last year). His adorable naivety and enduring willingness were cast perfectly. Joel P. West's score and Brett Pawlak's cinematography were other technical elements that astounded me. The way that the subtle score was able to just gently lay the foundation of the mood of each scene was so engaging. Accompanied by the sound design, this movie tackled a topic that is relatively not discussed in such a benign way. Pawlak's use of the camera was great too, utilizing the same establishing shot throughout this film to express the tone of each different scene. I loved his use of the slightly shaky camera as well as his attention to detail when it came to the more delicate and heart-pounding scenes.
Short Term 12 is a wonderful piece of filmmaking that shows just how powerful independent cinema can be. With a fantastic cast of then-rising stars and a personal score that will inevitably make you weep, this film has proven itself to be a masterclass in small-scale, reality-based filmmaking.
My Rating: ★★★★½
No comments:
Post a Comment