15 Oscar-Nominated Short Films Reviewed

The Oscar shortlisted films are divided into three categories — and encompass a wide range of topics, artistic approaches, and moods. It's further evidence that an award determined by runtime doesn't have to be limited by anything else.

In the live-action category, a varied range of methods — some drawing from classic literature — are enhanced by compelling performances. Lee Knight’s“A Friend of Dorothy”Perhaps a bit obvious in its exploration of the cultural and emotional effects of a lonely London widow on a closeted teenage boy. However, Miriam Margolyes and Alistair Nwachukwu shine brightly with humor and affection.“Jane Austen’s Period Drama,”A heartfelt adjustment of the writer's body of work by Steve Pinder and Julia Aks (who also appears in it) is essentially a single-joke demonstration piece aimed at creating comedic features, and it should accomplish the task. Its cast is precisely the lively group required to deliver its hypothetical humor.

Two other individuals narrowly fail to achieve strong conclusions in expressing their conflicts but gain from the camera's affection. Meyer Levinson-Blount’s“Butcher’s Stain,”focused on a weak accusation against a kind Palestinian butcher in an Israeli market, diminishes its compelling narrative with careless direction and an extra storyline, although the lead actor Omar Sameer delivers a strong performance. The black-and-white futuristic shock“Two People Exchanging Saliva,”Directed by Natalie Musteata and Alexandre Singh, this is a disjointed European art film filled with unfulfilled emotional connections and casual aggression — where kissing is met with severe consequences and slapping serves as a form of exchange — yet it gains refined tension through the graceful, one-sided romantic longing of actors Zar Amir and Luana Bajrami.

Then there's my favorite, Sam A. Davis' probable winner“The Singers,”from Ivan Turgenev's short story, which delivers richly in moments of heartfelt singing that momentarily transform a barroom's place of numbness into a sanctuary of emotion.

Many of this year's documentary contenders focus on the most severe and somber tragedies, as in“All the Empty Rooms” andChildren No More: Lost and Gone Forever,Which focus on the remembrance of children who were brutally killed. The first film, by Joshua Seftel, follows CBS reporter Steve Hartman and photographer Lou Bopp as they embark on an essay project exploring the bedrooms of children who were shot in school shootings, their private spaces heartbreakingly kept intact by their families. The second short film, directed by Hilla Medalia, documents the silent vigils in Tel Aviv for children from Gaza, where protests feature posters with smiling faces and sometimes face open ridicule. These are respectful, thought-provoking acts of grief—Seftel's is likely to win an award. You might hope they go beyond this, considering the issues (guns, war, political stubbornness) that led to the destruction.

The conflict is what motivated award-winning photojournalist Brent Renaud, who was killed in Ukraine in 2022. However, his brother Craig's tribute to him,Equipped Solely With a Lens,is strangely unengaging, more like a collection of Brent's distant assignments than a genuine depiction of mastering a perilous profession. A more moving real-life report (and my choice, if I could cast a vote) is“The Devil Is Busy,” Directed by Christalyn Hampton and dual nominee Geeta Gandbhir, the film "The Perfect Neighbor" is also in contention. It portrays a day in the life of a meticulously protected, women-led abortion clinic in Georgia, likened to a last hope medical outpost in a newly medieval world, surviving through determination, kindness, and faith. You will surely not forget security head Tracii, the clinic's somber knight and guide.

Your pursuer is Alison McAlpine's attractive, well-named“Perfectly a Strangeness,”Without humans, but featuring three donkeys in an unnamed desert who come across a group of hilltop observatories. The sound of science blends with the awe of nature, and this delightful, beautifully filmed tribute to discovery (both on Earth and beyond) makes one wish the motion picture academy would consider more creative nonfiction works in the future.

Animation, naturally, flourishes on the excitement of created worlds, such as the one in Konstantin Bronzit’s silent (but not mute) desert island comedy. “The Three Sisters.”It has no connection to Chekhov — although there are seagulls — but a great deal to do with a traditionally Russian style of humor and a Chaplinesque creativity. Elsewhere, you can see the excessively charming Christian message.“Forevergreen,”by Nathan Engelhardt and Jeremy Spears, concerning a caring tree, a restless bear, and the risky appeal of potato chips. The message becomes unclear but this environmentally aware adventure is endearing.

It's challenging to determine a winner when the participants are this formidable, but John Kelly's“Retirement Plan”Gorges on cleverly crafted relatability, as Domhnall Gleeson portrays a rotund middle-aged man with grand aspirations after his career, while the stream of deadpan humor, richly detailed, and everyday colored visuals highlight a more touching, limited reality. In its very human perspective on life, this is, delightfully, the exact opposite of an overly sentimental graduation speech.

The delicate, elderly-doll-style puppetry in the stop-motion masterpieceThe Girl That Wept PearlsHighlights a clever tale of desire, greed, and fate, revolving around a rich grandfather's Dickensian depiction of his impoverished childhood in 19th century Montreal. Directors Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski achieve an appealing mix of whimsical storytelling and mature cunning. Perhaps this one takes the prize?

Regardless of the situation, the animation that had the greatest impact on me is“Butterfly,”From Florence Miailhe, envisioning the final, memory-filled swim of Jewish French-Algerian athlete Alfred Nakache, who participated in the Olympics before and following the Holocaust. Amid the soothing fluidity of an oceanic day, depicted with bold brushstrokes and bursts of sound, we move through glimpses of community, injustice, success, affection, and sorrow. The visual and thematic thread, however, is water as a sanctuary and a poetic source of renewal.

This narrative first was published inLos Angeles Times.

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