2013 Oscar nominated shorts, animated & live action (2013)

Jack and I liked these, but, in both compilations, not as much as in years past. We skipped the documentaries, as they sounded depressing (more on that in a moment). I've listed the shorts from my most-liked to least. Each show is about an hour and three-quarters, necessitating that three runners-up be added to the animated series. We saw the animated ones a week ago and the live action series on Wednesday.

ANIMATED:

Get a Horse (USA) begins with a vintage Micky Mouse cartoon on a small portion of the screen, then imaginatively fills the rest of it. Like Saving Mr. Banks, this Disney-based project had to be a Disney production. We liked it a lot, partly because we're suckers for vintage done well.

In Mr. Hublot (Luxembourg/France), the title character, made of metal with visible bolts, keeps his apartment very clean and looks out the window to the busy street below. Then his world changes when he makes an impulsive move. Very funny.

A la Francaise (France, runner-up) gives us a 17th century court at the Palace of Versailles, populated entirely by not-too-bright chickens. Vivian, this has your name on it! We loved it.

Room on the Broom (UK) features the narration of Simon Pegg with Gillian Anderson as a kindly witch who allows hitchhikers on her broom, displeasing her possessive cat. When we saw the squirrel we knew the filmmakers were familiar. Turns out they were nominated three years ago for The Gruffalo. The Gruffalo's Child made it into last year's series as a runner-up. The squirrel was in all three, along with many other distinguished actors adding their voices. Sweet.

Another runner-up, The Missing Scarf (Ireland), is narrated by George Takei. A squirrel, this one made of origami, looks for a scarf. Takei is always good.
Blue Umbrella (US) has no dialogue, and is about two umbrellas who meet in a rainstorm. It's a runner-up as well. Not awful.
A Japanese entry, Possessions, has a warrior-type man seeking shelter from a storm in a dilapidated shrine. He encounters a series of household objects inhabited by goblin spirits. I've already forgotten it.

Feral (USA) is about a wild boy brought to 19th or early 20th century civilization (judging by the clothing). Meh.

As usual, the emcees are animated, and this year's are great: a giraffe and an ostrich in front of the camera chat as they are stand-ins for other characters on a movie set. They've both worked in the business a while and they gossip and schmooze.

LIVE ACTION:

The Voorman Problem (UK) features Martin Freeman as a psychiatrist and Tom Hollander as a delusional prison inmate. There are no jokes but it's funny, based on an excerpt of a novel.

Helium (Denmark) is a sweet tale of a hospital janitor who comforts a sick boy with stories.
Avant Que De Tout Perdre (Just before Losing Everything - France) gives us a woman calmly making arrangements to quit her job at an enormous supermarket, and we eventually (this one is 29 minutes) realize the gravity of her situation. A favorite of many reviewers.
Pitääkö Mun Kaikki Hoitaa? (Do I Have to Take Care of Everything? - Finland) is an amusing tale of a harried housewife rushing her family to a wedding.

Now, about that "depressing" comment earlier: if I were the type to walk out of a movie, I certainly would have left the room for this last one. I found Aquel No Era Yo (That Wasn't Me - Spain) entirely odious. It made me sick both literally and figuratively with its swinging camera moves causing Motion Picture Motion Sickness (MPMS) and its theme of children with guns under the command of a murderous African warlord. Lucky for me, the Finnish one screened after it.

The time before and after each short was filled with comments from various filmmakers, including Steve McQueen, Oscar-nominated as director of 12 Years a Slave, Matthew Modine (I guess he's included for starring in Full Metal Jacket (1987), for which director Stanley Kubrick was nominated for Best Screenplay Oscar), and last year's Live Action Short winner Shawn Christensen (Curfew) (it was our favorite!).