Short Term 12

Short Term 12, the newest film by writer/director Deston Cretton is simply amazing. It is powerful, moving, heartbreaking, and inspiring. It is well acted, competently directed, and superbly written. There are little to no flaws with this film, and yes if you were to nitpick you could probably find more than a few, but overall Short Term 12 is a masterpiece and I feel lucky that I got to see it. Because of that I am giving it five buckets of Killer Korn.










Short Term 12 starts of slight. It slowly draws you in, in much the same way Mason's story when the movie starts pulls in Nate, the new guy. Mason is played by the new hot kid on the block John Gallagher Jr who is a lot of fun to watch on HBO's Newsroom where he plays the affable associate producer Jim Harper. Nate is played by the chameleon like and incredibly talented Rami Malek and this role suits him perfectly. Short Term 12 is a story about the island of broken and misfit toys, it's about the young boys and girls who have been abused, used, and who are broken in such a way the State doesn't know what to do with them. Therefore, they get sent to a sort of halfway house until they're returned to their parents or turn 18.

The head of this particular island is Grace, played by Brie Larson and while she seems like she's the most put together individual, we later come to find out that's nothing but a facade. She is one of the most broken ones there, but because she is, she knows what these kids are going trhough on the most intimate level, because she's been there. She is a fighter for those kids under her care and she will go down swinging with and for them against anyone that seeks to hurt them. That's shown and proven time and time again when she lovingly and gently deals with the shattered Sammy, played by Alex Calloway, the would be ticking time bomb Marcus, played by the brilliant Keith Stanfield, and the abused Jayden, played by the amazing Kaitlyn Dever. If you want to see some truly great performances then Short Term 12 is an absolute must see!

There's a lot of hand held camera work, which puts you right in the middle of the hallways, bedrooms, and minds of the kids and their counselors as they all try to make it through the day. Simply put, the cinematography by Brett Pawlak was perfectly done. You felt like you were there, eavesdropping in on conversations that felt so private and personal, that you are bearing witness to moments that are none of your business. The music is forgettable but that's a good thing, it doesn't overshadow or drown out the performances, and it doesn't make the film sappy. So in that way, Joel P. West did a fine job of getting out of the way. I strongly recommend Short Term 12, both the short film and the feature length one by the same director, and I will see you at the...wait a second....


FORMAT CHANGE!!!!

Killer Korn will be changing. It is going to grow right in front of your very eyes. I will not just be doing movie reviews, I am instead turning KK into your one stop shop for all things movies. That includes who's directing what, who's cast in what, what's upcoming that I think looks interesting, and lastly DVD recommendations. Ambitious I know but it's time to diversify and have KK realize its potential. Please be patient with me as I embark out on this journey and I beg you to join me, cause it'll be fun. Should you have any suggestions, questions, or comments you can email me at KillerKorn121@gmail.com...and I will definitely see you at the theater!