Documentary Shorts (1/17/09)

I was to go to at least one shorts program this trip, and apparently I chose the completely rando one, Documentary Shorts. It had about 5 different shorts, most of which were 5-10 minutes with the last one being about 40. They ranged from stories about the biggest shopping mall in the world to a man who got off to chopping off fingers and toes. The ending one was basically an E! True Hollywood Story on John Cazale, an actor who only did five films (each earning him Oscar nods) and died of lung cancer at 42. He was Fredo in the Godfather films, and starred alongside greats like DeNiro and Pacino.

The short program was very eccentric. The first was about storage units and the meanings held in each. I didn't really enjoy the film, as it didn't explore what the characters kept in their units, or the lives of the characters at all. It turned out to be very boring, and lasting 3 minutes too long.

The ones dealing with atomic bombs and internet censorship were interesting, but nothing that I hadn't seen on YouTube. I was waiting to see the director go farther with the film, and make it different than all the others I'd seen. The ideas were great, but need to be taken a step further.

The man chopping off his fingers and toes was disgusting, and was clearly only there for shock value. The film was made poorly, and in my opinion could have been made by any amateur. I think the director thought by just having this strange man, he'd have an alternative short.

I did enjoy both the mall and John Cazale shorts. The mall made me laugh; such a pointless skyscraper! I feel bad for those who have to work there. I like the Godfather films, and so Cazale's piece was quite interesting. I loved hearing from greats like Streep and Pacino, and was pleased to hear the story of an actor who clearly did not get enough credit in his short life.