Articles

ANIMATED

For all the categories, the animated is the most entertaining.  Two Canadian shorts make the cut, both excellent entries.  My fav is the one from Cyprus, THE THREE SISTERS, for its unique animation, simplicity and message of hope.

FOREVERGREEN (USA 2025) ***½

Directed by Nathan Engelhardt & Jeremy Spears.

The film begins with what seems to be a lonely bear cub, likely an orphan, as nothing is shown of its father or mother, left to fend for itself.  It is rescued from falling off a cliff and cared for by an evergreen tree — almost like a parent figure. The cub and the tree develop a deep, emotional connection as the cub learns to survive in the forest.  The cub is much loved by the tree, but the cub, being young and naughty, is tempted and learns the hard way that there is more to life than food. As the cub grows, it becomes tempted by human trash and easy food at a campsite, which leads it into dangerous situations. The film touches key components of adult and life themes, such as exploring themes of temptation, growing up, friendship, sacrifice, and the consequences of choices — all accomplished without spoken dialogue, using stylised animated visuals including music to tell the tale.

LA JEUNE FILLE QUI PLEURAIT DES PERLES (The Girl Who Cried Pearls)(Canada 2025) ****

Directed by Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski

Stop-motion animation, time-consuming but worth every moment, is animation art in its purest form.  In this endearing tale from Canada, in Montreal, at the dawn of the 20th century, a poor boy falls in love with a girl whose sorrow turns into pearls.  He sells them to a ruthless pawnbroker, who hungers for more.  Tempted by greed, the boy must choose between love and fortune.  The choice could damn his soul. From the Oscar-nominated team of Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski (Madame Tutli-Putli), this meticulously crafted film is a testament to the craft mentioned with handmade puppets, mesmerizing narration by Canadian actor Colm Feore, and a haunting score by Patrick Watson. The Girl Who Cried Pearls is a timeless parable of desire, deception, and the price of innocence.   It helps that one can identify with a young, innocent boy down on his luck, without fate having dished out.  Watching this cautionary moral taleufold is pure delight!

THE THREE SISTERS (Israel/Cyprus/Russia 2024) ****

Directed by Konstantin Bronzit

This is my definite favourite short, and I hope it wins the Oscar for the following reasons. The animated short is fresh, simple, unique, imaginative, original, and mostly has the universal language of hope in a world of despair.  The film follows three different sisters, all of individual personalities, who experience. jealousy, love and finally happiness.  It is a story of three sisters living solitary on an island when they face challenges.  Not an easy achievement for any film!  The short combines comedy and drama,  a mixture of sad and funny. The director also has a unique animated style that is unlike anything I have ever seen.  The humour is subtle, the message universal and the effect of the short indescribable.  Ultimately, this one is the best!

PAPILLION (BUTTERFLY) (France 2024) ***½

Directed by Florence Miailhe

The 15-minute animated short begins with a man swimming the butterfly stroke in the sea.  As he swims, he reminisces about his childhood to his present life as a man.   All the memories are linked to water.  It turns out that the man is Jewish Olympic Butterfly Stroke swimmer Alfred Nakache, who has to endure anti-semitism during the Nazi years of the War.  He also loses his wife and child during the war as they are separated from him to be taken to a concentration camp.  Alfred eventually remarries and has another child.  The short is a bit confusing as one has to figure out what everything is all about, but this is more than made up for.

RETIREMENT PLAN (Ireland 2025) ***
Directed by John Kelly

In the throes of his overstimulated, energy-poor midlife, Ray fantasises about everything he'd love to do in retirement, once he finally has the “time."  The bucket list includes almost everything, including hiking, paragliding, swimming every morning and caring for others.  The short achieves an impressive blend of sadness, euphoria and charm.  And there are a few funny moments, too.  The short might seem ordinary at first, but it slowly but surely grabs you.   Narrated by young Irish actor Domhnall Gleeson.