States of Grace

Short Term 12 is a powerful and moving drama that leaves you with warm feelings on conclusion. It depicts the personal struggles of a group of teenagers in supported care and their carers.

Dramas of this sort can sometimes leave you feeling gloomy and have a depressing feel. It certainly has dark moments of personal struggle, dealing in mental health, domestic abuse, self harm and suicide but the standard of acting and ending of the movie most definitely leave you feeling positive.

What stands out most about this film however is the cast. There are several strong performances even from the supporting cast with minor screen time. Brie Larson in the lead role excels. A breakout performance in a slow moving drama. One particular scene that comes to mind is the scene with Frantz Turner playing Jack. The outburst is a culmination of her protecting Jayden (played very well by Kaitlyn Dever) who she has begun to understand and create a close bond with, along with her own personal life frustrations. It is Jayden and not her boyfriend, despite his attempts, who allow Grace to open up and deal with her own personal struggles and her past. John Gallagher Jnr, who I had not seen much of prior to this movie also puts in an understated performance as the caring and supporting boyfriend and provides a few moments of comedic relief throughout the drama. I should also mention his scene at his foster family birthday celebration. The scene is only short but the emotion he displays in saying thank you to his foster parents was powerful. This is also one of the early roles for Rami Malek, who has now gone on like Brie to much more significant roles. He doesn't have much screen time in this and no particular scenes of note. Other than Brie however I believe Lakeith Stanfield as Marcus puts in the best performance. His backstory doesn't get as much time as Jayden and it is less central to the plot of the film which is mainly the Grace/Jayden/Mason arc, but all of his scenes are very strong and he is very believable.

It's not just the residents in this home that are damaged. To some degree, the staff comes here with their own life experiences that are just as damaging as those they care for. Maybe being damaged is what attracts people to the work - I certainly saw it often in psychology and counseling classes.

Grace (Brie Larson), the supervisor, is certainly dealing with a damaged past. It is probably what makes her good at her job, but it does cause her problems. It's balancing the two that makes one successful.

Cutting, anger, withdrawal, are all things you will see in these children/young adults. They are manifestations of their unnatural upbringing. Marcus (Keith Stanfield) is terrified at the prospect of going out on his own. Jayden (Kaitlyn Dever) guards her secret past, while Grace tries to pry it open.

Every day is a challenge, and the worst part is not ever knowing if you were successful.

Incredibly natural in its approach, wonderfully balanced from start to finish & further solidified by a convincing ensemble performances, Short Term 12 tells the story of Grace, a very caring & capable supervisor at a foster-care facility for at-risk teenagers. There are three story lines that emerge from this film; one is about Marcus, a quiet kid who's about to turn eighteen but doesn't want to leave the facility, the second plot line is about Jayden, a troubled teenage girl who's the latest member of the club. And the final & main plot line is about Grace herself, whose past returns to haunt her after meeting Jayden with whom she shares a connection plus the unexpected surprise she discovers that can have a major impact on her future, thus leaving her utterly confused with everything about her life.

The entire cast has given a brilliant performance, but it's Brie Larson who impresses the most as Grace and the film manages to portray her toughness & fragility evocatively. The locations are very lifelike, the entire film has a very calm & relaxed atmosphere for which the shooting location is responsible for, editing is finely done & it is smartly written & directed. On an overall scale, Short Term 12 is one of those dramas that are heartwarming & heartbreaking at the same time that will have you go through every emotion you're capable of and dares to deal with issues most people or families aren't very comfortable viewing or discussing about.

"You are not their friend, and you are not their therapist," Jack (Frantz Turner) to Grace (Brie Larson)

You can be forgiven if you think Short Term 12 is a documentary, so close it seems to the reality of a foster-care facility, so natural its acting in almost every character. If you see any films this month, makes sure this is one of them

First time helmer Destin Cretton, with two years' experience in a similar care-giving facility (The title refers to the 12 or so group homes for teens in the county), has masterfully relayed the love and sorrow inherent in a place where virtually everyone is displaced from a parent, or abused, even the staff.

The story belongs to Grace (Brie Larson), a caring giver who influences for good many of her charges, not easy cases any one of them. Part of the reason she is so successful is that she knows from abuse by her father, who is in prison for his offenses. She finds a younger Doppelganger of sorts in defiant teen Jadyn (Kaitlyn Dever), whose traumas at the hands of her father are ongoing and call for identifying with Grace's experiences and strong remedy. Watch for an Oscar nomination if this indie is seen by enough of us.

To parallel the challenges of the home, Grace's home with fellow staffer, boyfriend Mason is both loving and stressful because she struggles with becoming pregnant and reconciling her tortured past with her father, who is ready to be released form prison. Mason is the ideal caregiver, loving and competent with the teenagers and her.

Although many moments could be melancholic or downright tear-jerking in other hands, Cretton doesn't allow excessive sorrow to rule; rather, the sadness is mitigated by the small triumphs. Hey, that's just like real life.

This little indie will cure you of any longing for summer blockbusters and their half-billion-dollar entanglements. Short Term 12's situations are enough satisfying drama for ten Lone Rangers.

After seeing this movie, I realized how the Academy works. If a movie doesn't have the budget to distribute their film to a vast amount of cities or campaign well, then it is unlikely to get its deserved recognition. I sat through the 96 minutes of this Indie film that got raved with impressive reviews at SXSW to see what the fuss was about. The people behind this movie deserve SO much more praise than they have gotten. This film, though not technically masterful, is emotionally wrenching. I laughed, I freaking cried my heart out, and overall it felt real. There was a connection to the film that was surprisingly amazing. The movie reminded me to Blue is the Warmest Color in the sense that it was raw, powerful, real, and astonishing. Brie Larson should have easily been one of the five nominees for Best Actress as well as Keith Stanfield for Best Supporting Actor. This film is a portrayal of neglected youth, a rare look at relationships, an articulation of the fears in the world, and a new point of view that most films have never shown before. I truly recommend this film to everyone, and will always give it the praise it deserves.