If you like true stories told very well, but briefly, and you'd like to get a leg up in an Oscar pool, then this review is for you! In my continuing effort to see as many Oscar nominees as possible, I took advantage of the opportunity to see the shorts.TV theatrical presentation "Oscar Nominated Short Films 2016: Documentary" (NR, 3:00 – with 10 min. intermission). Here's a brief, spoiler-free summary and evaluation of one of those five films...
"Body Team 12" (13 min.) – This film follows one group of Red Cross Workers whose job it was to collect bodies of the victims of the 2014-2015 Ebola outbreak in Liberia. We see the daily task through the eyes of the team's only female member and hear her discuss the importance and challenges of her task. This documentary short is an eye-opening and personal look at a huge news story. It spares us the most gruesome visuals of the team's work, but also fails to go deeply into the underlying story. "B+"
The other four films in the shorts.TV theatrical presentation "Oscar Nominated Short Films 2016: Documentary" are "Chau, beyond the Lines" "Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah" "A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness" "Last Day of Freedom" We have posted our articles about each of those other films on their respective pages on this website.
"Body Team 12" (13 min.) – This film follows one group of Red Cross Workers whose job it was to collect bodies of the victims of the 2014-2015 Ebola outbreak in Liberia. We see the daily task through the eyes of the team's only female member and hear her discuss the importance and challenges of her task. This documentary short is an eye-opening and personal look at a huge news story. It spares us the most gruesome visuals of the team's work, but also fails to go deeply into the underlying story. "B+"
The other four films in the shorts.TV theatrical presentation "Oscar Nominated Short Films 2016: Documentary" are "Chau, beyond the Lines" "Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah" "A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness" "Last Day of Freedom" We have posted our articles about each of those other films on their respective pages on this website.