Most undeservingly overhyped movie of all time??

Fantastic!

Am I Missing Something?

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

Writer Director Destin Daniel Cretton created this full length feature from his Oscar nominated short by the same name. It is based on his own experiences of working with teenagers.Grace (Brie Larsen) plays the protagonist, the young supervisor of a group facility with young troubled teenagers. She with her boyfriend Mason (John Gallagher Jr) focus their attention on short-tempered talented rapper kid Marcus (Lakeith Stanfield). Grace builds an intimate bond with a new inmate Jayden (Katlyen Daver) to make her feel comfortable in the new home with other kids. In the process Grace learns about Jayden's abusive past through her metaphorical story of octopus and shark. The movie presents every day challenges of working at such facilities where abuse, emotional trauma, fights, self-harm, depression, fights etc. are common. A love story between Grace and Mason, both with a past of troubled kids themselves, is built in as a sub-plot.The director Daniel handles the subject with confidence, expertise, a keen-eye to detail, psychology and tenderness. Even though the movie is heart-breaking at places Daniel does not burden the screenplay with depressing heaviness and gives a heart-warming light feel throughout the movie.It is a short movie with 96 minutes running time and it is worth watching and one immediately connects with the main characters of the movie.The main led - Brie and John - were auditioned by Daniel via skype after sending them scripts via emails. The shooting of the movie took place only in 20 days with free flowing acts with main characters improvising on the dialogue and actions on their own. The movie is widely acclaimed and have won 35 awards and 70 nominations. Those who are working with NGO / NPO with less privileged people will definitely identify with the movie.I am going with 7.75 out of 10 for the movie

I loved the happy and endearing moments. Everyone should watch this, to get a deeper understanding of life.

The film is set in a short term foster-care facility for at-risk teens and follows trials and tribulations of the teens living their and staff members Grace (Larson) and Mason (Gallagher Jr.) who take care of them. When a new child arrives at the facility, it forces Grace to confront her troubled past whilst continuing her struggle in preparing soon-to-be 18 Marcus (Keith Stanfield) for life outside of the care facility. The film is inspired by Cretton's experience of working in a foster-care facility for young people and this helps the film tell an emotionally honest and heart-wrenching story, avoiding most of the tropes and clichés common in these type of films. It was met with critical acclaim when was first released and won the Grand Jury Narrative Feature Award and the Narrative Audience Award at South by Southwest Film festival. Short Term 12 features masterful storytelling, its tightly scripted with natural everyday dialogue that comes across as real and improvised and is cemented by true to life , seemingly effortless and naturalistic form of acting with performances so-convincing it almost makes you feel like your watching a documentary. There are no one dimensional characters in the film and each feel authentic. In particular Brie Larson gives a impressive and awe-inspiring performance as grace a caring and loving young women with heavy baggage from her past locked up tight and bursting at the seams due to her inability to trust and open up to people. She was nominated for numerous accolades for her performance in the film and won Gotham Independent Film Award for Best Actress. The two scenes that bookend the film were particularly interesting. The film opens with Mason telling Nate (a new worker in the facility) and Jessica an embarrassing and comedic story of his first week working at the facility. This excellently establishes the friendships between the characters with natural interaction between them which is a pleasure to watch. Before mason finishes telling the story, a child in his underpants with American flag wrapped around him like a Cape, busts out and makes a run for the exit. The ending scene also contains mason telling a funny story and again the story is interrupted by Sammy running for the exit. This excellently reinforces the naturalistic style of the film as it shows the audience that the narrative includes the everyday struggles of the characters and that there are no easy solutions. Additionally the scenes are similar but the differences effectively showcase how things have subtly changed. It particular they show how our relationship to the characters have evolved. at the start of the movie, we were in the shoes of Nate (not knowing what to expect) . At the end, we are more familiar with the characters and have a better understanding of what happens at the facility. The film is shot predominantly using hand-held cameras and consists mostly of medium and close-ups shots.The shots are tightly framed and this help make the viewer feel as close to the emotions on screen as possible. The camera is a patient, unobtrusive presence among the characters and the almost observational style also strengthens the audience's emotional connection to the characters in the film. Though some may criticize the rather convenient and perfect intertwining of individual narratives and struggles throughout the film as well as its irrepressible sense of optimism, I feel the film sticks to his naturalistic style effectively, never becoming melodramatic or unbelievable. The various revelations that occur throughout the film come to us organically in characters' conversation and it has beautifully crafted lighting which gives a warm glow to the film and a beautiful sense of optimism. In the hands of a less talented director, the film could have felt overly-sentimental and syrupy but instead feels brutally honest with the right amount of grit and grace. In closing short term 12 is a marvel of a film. It is perfectly scripted piece of drama that features wonderful performances and a genuine and heartfelt story that will stick with you long after you watch the film.

Short Term 12 is a good movie with a well written plot and a stellar cast. The performances are without a doubt the highlight, everyone gives it their all. Every piece of dialogue is delivered with pure realism, there is no sense of acting, the best scenes are without a doubt those between Brie Larson and John Gallagher Jr., there chemistry was superb. Neither of them was afraid to unleash themselves to the other. I was, however, disappointed by the ending, as it ends without us getting much of a sense of where these characters are headed, there is not much progression to their lives. It is practically the exact same as it is in the beginning. It starts the same way as it ends, which some people probably loved, but I felt it contradicted everything that occurred prior. As well as that, Grace never seems challenged, she seems perfectly capable of handling every problem that comes her way. There is no moment where the character is really struggling and loses her strong demeanor, never a moment where she loses all hope, which should occur to every movies protagonist in order to gain the viewers support. I felt the intimacy of the film was what made it unique, taking place almost entirely within the facility, which was certainly a clever way to make us form a bond with these characters. Sweet, dramatic and well acted, Short Term 12 has its flaws but makes up for it with what it does right, I would recommend it to anyone looking for a good drama. Grace works in a shelter for young people where she finds herself struggling to juggle her work and love life. Best Performance: Brie Larson