Short Term 12 (2013)

Directed by: Destin Cretton
Country: USA

Movie Review: Based on his 2008 multi-awarded short film with the same title, helmer Destin Cretton creates one of the most heart-warming movies of 2013. The story is centered on Grace (Brie Larson), who works as a supervisor in a foster-care facility intended to accommodate at-risk teens. Despite doing her job with love and patience, Grace also had a difficult past and is not completely free from it. All her fears will come to her mind when a troubled young girl named Jayden (Kaitlyn Diver) arrives at the facility. They established a special bond that will be tested when Jayden’s father takes her for the weekend, leaving a sense of danger in the air. This situation along with the fact that Grace was expecting a baby from her boyfriend and co-worker, Mason (John Gallagher Jr.), will trigger a lot of confusion, fear, and angry feelings. Meanwhile, they have to keep an eye on Marcus (Keith Stanfield), a restless boy who is struggling with the idea of leaving the facility for good, due to turn 18. The outstanding performances made all the characters seem real, while Cretton’s direction, punctuated by intimate close-ups, creates a smothered atmosphere yet giving it some space to breath. I was amazed by how the humor worked so fine within a story with such a deep emotional weight. Beautifully and intelligently conceived, “Short Term 12” showed to be in a level of understanding and maturity that is quite difficult to find in films of its genre. Above all, and without being forced, it revealed to be human in every sense.