Plot so thin, it passes unnoticed.

Highly Overrated But Still Good

It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

Close shines in drama with strong language, adult themes.

"Body Team 12" is a 13-minute documentary short film from 2015 that brought writer and director David Darg his first Oscar nomination. And even if it lost to a longer film about women's rights in Pakistan, I am glad this one exists and it is maybe my winner from the nominees. It shows us the work of those in Liberia in charge of collecting dead bodies of people who died from Ebola and if these helpers didn't exist, then the country (Liberia in this case) would never even have a chance to become Ebola free. We find out some general stuff about their work, like their clothes, but also about the biggest problems they have, namely convincing the relatives that they can take the bodies away because it means they have no idea where the corpses of their loved ones are taken.You read so often about new diseases and hundreds of people dying from them, but this film, as short as it may be, actually gives these words and figures a face. I think everything here was done right. The choice to let one helper narrate the story was a wise one because nobody is closer to the contents of this movie. Focus is very good. We don't need to know where they are taking the bodies, we find out about their work and that's it. At slightly over 10 minutes, the film reaches depth and relevance on a level that most 90-minute documentaries can only dream of. In short: This film is a triumph and I am glad it got the Oscar nomination. Also a special thumbs-up to Darg and his crew for risking their own health in making this little film. I highly recommend checking it out. Close to a must-see as this is among 2015's very best, short or not short.

David Darg's "Body Team 12" focuses on the Red Cross workers of Liberia during the Ebola outbreak. The story gets told by Garmai Sumo, a woman who worked as a nurse during the outbreak. Through the documentary, people are forced to bury their loved ones of all ages. Even amid this horror, people do what they can to continue with their lives.I doubt that people unaffected by the Ebola virus can truly know what it was like. This documentary, nominated for Best Documentary Short Subject at the Academy Awards, is probably the closest that the rest of the world will come to it. The main thing to note is that the people who collected the dead bodies performed an invaluable service just as much as any medical professional who tended to people. I recommend the documentary.

This is the shortest of the Oscar-nominated documentaries and was shown first at this year's special showing of the five nominees. The film is about folks who work for the Red Cross in Liberia and their job is to clean up the dead bodies from Ebola and then incinerate them. You see a few corpses in the short but, thank God, the footage is actually rather tame and the story of these courageous people inspiring...but depressing beyond believe. After all, what is more depressing than Ebola?! Well made and not as depressing and awful as it could have been. I am glad these wonderful people and their work are being celebrated...but when the special showing starts off with an Ebola film, you know it's going to be a long day! Tough to watch and not for kids or the easily disturbed.UPDATE: "A Girl in the River" took the Oscar for Best Documentary Short.

Tribeca award winner Body Team 12 was one of my top three films nominated for the International Documentary Association (IDA)'s best short film of the year. The courage required to capture this story at the center of an ebola outbreak is almost inconceivable. Not only did the filmmakers rise to the occasion to 'get the goods' for their story, they managed to capture quiet, soulful moments that enriched the film. The overall effect is uplifting in the face of immense tragedy and hardship--a stunning feat.This is not mere journalistic storytelling, but something more artful. Watch for visual themes and motifs, subtly textured into the edit, that emphasize the spiritual and earthly sacrifice these brave workers are making for their fellow human beings. Hauntingly beautiful, terrifyingly real.