Having seen all 5 of the 2013 Oscar-nominated live-action shorts, my opinion is that this should be a two-horse race between "Death of a Shadow" and this film, "Henry". Just like a previous reviewer, I have to give the nod to "Henry" by a nose.
I particularly enjoyed the approach this short took to the subject matter. The title character is suffering from Alzheimer's. (I guess that's a spoiler, but you'll figure that out 30 seconds in.) The interesting twist is that the film is portrayed from Henry's point of view. That means you get to experience his confusion, delusion, and memory loss first-hand. I thought the film was extremely effective in making the viewer feel, in some sense, as if he/she is suffering the effects of Alzheimer's - an amazing feat, if you think about it.
I also think this was a perfect treatment for a short film. Often, you'll read folks judging shorts based on which ones they'd like to see expanded to full-length films. I'd rather judge them based on which ones work best specifically AS shorts. This one fits that criterion perfectly. 90 minutes of Henry's struggle would be tiring and repetitive. 20 minutes is the optimal duration to get the message across.
This is a great short - well worth seeking out.
I particularly enjoyed the approach this short took to the subject matter. The title character is suffering from Alzheimer's. (I guess that's a spoiler, but you'll figure that out 30 seconds in.) The interesting twist is that the film is portrayed from Henry's point of view. That means you get to experience his confusion, delusion, and memory loss first-hand. I thought the film was extremely effective in making the viewer feel, in some sense, as if he/she is suffering the effects of Alzheimer's - an amazing feat, if you think about it.
I also think this was a perfect treatment for a short film. Often, you'll read folks judging shorts based on which ones they'd like to see expanded to full-length films. I'd rather judge them based on which ones work best specifically AS shorts. This one fits that criterion perfectly. 90 minutes of Henry's struggle would be tiring and repetitive. 20 minutes is the optimal duration to get the message across.
This is a great short - well worth seeking out.