Borrowed Time

Borrowed Time (2015)

**** (out of 4)

A worn-down Sheriff returns to the scene of an event that helped shape who he became as a man.

That's pretty much the only plot you need to know about this wonderful animated movie, which picked up an Oscar-nomination for Best Animation Short. If you're a fan of Westerns or of animation then you'll certainly want to check out this seven-minute picture because it's certainly something special. The animation is excellent as you'd expect but where the film really succeeds is with its story. I'm not going to ruin what happens but it's an excellent drama and really packs an emotional punch. It's rare that I feel this connected to an animation piece but it certainly ranks right up there with the best of Pixar or Disney.

The short movie takes you to beginning and end of one's life story forth and back. What would happen if you could have done otherwise, could you forgive yourself today? The intriguing start, ends with dejection leaving the main character in utter desolation. Pixar enters into an untouched arena with this, which could be termed as "dark". Borrowed Time tells a short tale about Relationship, past deed, power to undo, forgiveness, memories, it combines all of them and present it to you. Leaving the viewer to decide whether what happened was correct, incorrect or uncontrollable. It also reminds of the goodness some people leave behind. This one definitely is worth your time.

I thought this was the best of the Oscar nominated animated shorts from the 2017 ceremony. It used Western tropes brilliantly in this sad father and son tale. It tugs at the heartstrings and has gorgeous texture.

During my free time of scrolling through tons of tedious shared Facebook posts, I saw several companies share out their thoughts about this short film. They said it was made by 2 Pixar animators and has some very adult themes in it. I'm a fan of short films, deep themes and Pixar, so I checked it out on Vimeo.

I was very glad I did.

The story is about a cowboy haunted by his past. Saying anything more would give the entire plot away.

The animation, as usual from Pixar, is flat-out gorgeous, and the music fits very well with the tone. But most impressive of all is its ambition. This is Pixar(ish) at its darkest, and the thoughts, feelings, images and delivery is gritty and portrays a realistic sense of gloom. The ending isn't happy, and nothing was really resolved, but was beautifully presented and emotionally wrenching, and will leave you thinking deeply. This is a beautiful story of grief, the past, our will to live, and forgiveness.

Well worth watching!

9/10

I watched this short film and it was super good but so hard to watch. I am a very emotional movie watcher and it was extremely depressing at times. Overall, I really liked it but because it was so sad I give it a 9 out of 10.