Directed by: Destin Daniel Cretton
Written by: Destin Daniel Cretton
Starring: Brie Larson, John Gallagher, Jr., Kaitlyn Dever, Rami Malek, Lakeith Stanfield
Rating: [4.5/5]
It goes without saying the trauma sustained as a child can carry on with you for many years, which makes intervention and a safe system to process it so important. Unfortunately, this benefit does not exist for everyone, especially those who do not have the support system to sustain it. Short Term 12 brings us to a facility filled with kids with nowhere else to go but introduces a community filled with so much care making for such a heartwarming story.
In the Short Term 12 facility, children who need to be held somewhere prior to potential foster care, Grace (Brie Larson) serves as the supervisor. Her team takes care of these kids in this intermediate phase of the system. When a new girl comes into the facility dealing with seemingly the same issues Grace did when a young girl it begins to rehash her past trauma.
There should be a record of how many Academy Awards a film sprung from a cast of relative obscurity after looking at the team assembled for Short Term 12. It brings together a group of actors operating in the early stages of their careers who exploded afterwards. Here you have Academy Award winners Brie Larson and Rami Malek as well as Academy Award nominee Laketh Stanfield. I guess Kaitlin Dever, Stephanie Beatriz, and John Gallagher, Jr. should get ready for their turn. Sure, the success they experienced could derive from their talent or the more likely scenario of working on such an endearing and excellent project addressing a very important topic when looking at those kids left behind and who catches them.
The kids in this facility have nowhere else to go thus making this an essential service for what operates as a last but intended short-term resort before they go off somewhere more permanent. The atmosphere built there emanates such a warmth even with each of these kids battling their own internal and external demons. The staff comprised Grace, Mason (John Gallagher, Jr.), Jessica (Stephanie Beatriz), and newbie Nate (Rami Malek) help in creating this atmosphere and what they deal with would certainly not be withstood by many. Whether it’s kids constantly trying to run away or having one of them spit at you, they have to take everything on by providing support.
Building this atmosphere works because of the characters we explore. Some certainly receive more attention than others but each of them contributes to this story in a meaningful way. You have the new guy Nate, who while good-intentioned puts his foot in his mouth far too much. One particular scene gives a level of second-hand embarrassment that will leave you burrowing deep into your clothes but it displays a mindset of individuals who want to help but perhaps let the quiet part out loud for some naive reason. Each of these individuals has their reasons but most of the emotional arc this story has to offer comes through Grace and her past trauma reentering her life following the news her father will be released from prison soon. It becomes plainly obvious he went to jail for horrendous actions involving her, which makes this news particularly difficult to stomach, which does not get alleviated when Jayden (Kaitlyn Dever) arrives at the facility.
Dever, from the beginning, has demonstrated she’s an absolute phenom and what she accomplishes as Jayden brings forth this incredibly guarded girl who needs a safe space in order to truly let herself connect with others. The head-to-heads between her and Grace demonstrate the skill Grace has in working with children who have suffered through trauma but others would certainly not possess the patience to work through it. Perhaps audience members could play a game of raising their hands when they would have been fed up and just quit the position of working in the facility based on what the staff has to deal with.
Enough cannot be said about the exceptional job done by Brie Larson in this role as Grace, the supervisor of the facility. Larson shows the incredible promise of her ability as she shortly did go on and win her Academy Award. I yearn for the days when she would dive deep and make something as small and emotionally potent as this feature because she absolutely shines brightly amongst a group of actors all bringing their A-games to their roles. Larson carries the soul of the story and proves as a fantastic caretaker in displaying the vulnerabilities of the character with such good effect.
Delivering this smash hit based on his experience working at a similar facility, Destin Daniel Cretton masterfully creates something special with this feature. He introduces these employees and all of these kids and manages to have the ability to provide a level of resolution for each of them thematically all in the span of 96 minutes. Something where the end of the film arrives and you feel both satisfied but would not have minded much more time with these characters. He handles the sensitivity of the subject matter discussed here with so much care giving them the chance to sit with the audience and never get to an exploitative level, especially because it involves children. Truly an exceptional job in juggling it all.
Short Term 12 feels like one of those films many people have not seen but exists as this incredible little gem with so much heart ready to leave an indelible mark on anyone who happens to find and experience the beauty of what occurs in this story. Incredibly patient, lovable, and certainly difficult to watch in moments, this feature brings out the best of everyone involved in the project and makes it difficult for Destin Daniel Cretton to outdo himself with this only serving as his second film. Hard to get any better than this.
Films with Josh 
