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Who Likes Short Shorts?

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Shorts! Volume 2 (2004)

I've always found short films pretty eerie. There's something about them that just seems ever so slightly off to me. Perhaps it's the fact that I never know what it is I'm getting into when I watch them. Most short films I've seen come with no synopsis, only a title (if even that). This forces me to figure out what the film is about, and the puzzle creates an air of mystery.

There are plenty of eerie (and not-so-eerie) short films in "Shorts! Vol. 2" a collection of 17 short films that have one awards at various film festivals (there are three in the series). It would have been nice if I had known what form of award some of the films have won, since the quality is rather a hodge-podge. There are some great short documentaries, one or two sumptuously shot, beautifully ambiguous short films, some intriguing animation, but overall a lot of stuff that seems like kind of promising (but mostly mediocre) amateur and student work.

First the highlights of the collection: "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness" is a pointed, bitingly funny short editorial documentary about abortion and a woman's right to choose. "Milton Rogovin: The Forgotten Ones" presents a touching portrait of photographer Milton Rogovin, who spent much of his career documenting the lives of the working-class and lower-class people in his Pennsylvania hometown. The longer, curiously entertaining "Coyote Beach" and the laid-back family dramedy "Family Tree" present interesting looks at relationships, both romantic and familial. And, for some reason, I can't get the super-duper-short "The Most Beautiful Man in the World" out of my head. It's 5:32, but beautifully and hauntingly shot.

Most of the clunkers come from the animation section. I'd seen "Dear Sweet Emma" and "The Firefly Man" previously, and hadn't really been that impressed the first time. Upon second viewing, my thoughts didn't change. I hate to sound like a snob, but I've been spoiled by so many great CGI films and shorts over the years that low-budget computer animation really doesn't do it for me, so I was nonplussed and a little annoyed by "Emma." "Firefly Man" was better, combining CGI effects and stop motion, but it left me feeling empty. "The Fine Art of Poisoning" was the most interesting of the animated films both visually and conceptually, but something about it just didn't seem genuine. Perhaps it just felt a little too "Hot Topic Goth" for my comfort.

I was most disappointed by "Space Off," which was touted by the DVD blurb as one of the most exciting films of the selection offered, but turned out to be pretty dull. The effects, I suppose, are to be commended for being pretty damn good despite what I assume was a low budget, but by the end, I was left thinking "so what?

"Shorts! Vol. 2" is a patchwork of movies, some great, some barely watchable, and some completely unwatchable. It's worth checking out for the good ones (I can't reccommend "Rogovin" enough), but you'd be much better off skipping most of the films and saving your time for a much more industrious use.

Posted Saturday, June 21, 2008 2:26 PM by indieabby88 | with 0 comments

Robbin' Hood or Robin Hood?

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Manda Bala (2007)

During this last year, I had the interesting experience of living in a house with two girls from Brazil. One of them had a fiancee still living there, and every week it seemed like she had some wild story about some close call that either she or her intended had experienced. She once told me that she wouldn't even think about going to the bakery two blocks from her house without getting into a car. It was just too dangerous to walk.

I've heard lots of stories from many different sources about the high rates of crime, especially kidnapping, in Brazil, but I never knew very much about it until I watched "Manda Bala," a fascinating and sharp documentary that looks at corruption and the criminal element in Brazil from many different angles.

"Manda Bala" starts out investigating a corrupt politician's failed program to help poor Brazilians in the north of the country, in a state called Para, which includes part of Brazil's Amazon region. It turns out that the politician, who has held every elected office in Brazil save that of the president, was using this employment program to embezzle money from the government. Director Jason Kohn examines some of the effects of the country's imbalance of wealth on the citizens of Para and also in Sao Paulo, a city famous for its' kidnappings. Kohn interviews victims, police officers and even a kidnapper and gives us a portrait that is creepy, troubling, and surprisingly neutral.

Two of the most interesting characters Kohn interviews are a plastic surgeon who does reconstructive surgery for kidnapping victims (the audience is treated to pretty visceral, but still really interesting footage of reconstructive ear surgery) and the kidnapper, who claims to have been born in a slum in Sao Paulo, and started stealing when he was nine.

The kidnapper, who also moonlights as a bank robber, seems to think of himself as some kind of Robin Hood character. The juxtaposition of a man who thinks very little about the many cops he kills and victims he maims while he still claims to have the best interests of his friends and family at heart was surprising and, oddly enough, a little heartwarming, too.

I do wish that Kohn had tied the political situation and the social issues of the film together more than he did. For most of the film, the corrupt politician's scandal and the stories of kidnappers and victims in Sao Paulo seem rather isolated, but Kohn manages to kind of tie the two together, although the connecting thread seems kind of weak. Otherwise, with its' nearly perfect cinematography, hip score (I want that soundtrack!) and enthralling subject matter, "Manda Bala" is 85 minutes well spent.

Posted Sunday, June 01, 2008 6:07 PM by indieabby88 | with 0 comments