Greetings again from the darkness. "An indie gem" is meant to be a term of respect for a little movie that manages to make an emotional connection, usually while being screened at a film festival or in a very limited and brief theatrical run. The best ones drive us to encourage everyone we know to take the time to see it. Such is writer/director Destin Cretton's latest.

Some movies offer a promising premise and then let us down with faulty execution. Short Term 12 is actually better than its premise would lead you to expect. Credit goes to Mr. Cretton's quasi-documentary directorial style, tremendous acting from support characters played by John Gallagher Jr (Mason),Kaitlyn Dever (Jayden),and Keith Stanfield (Marcus),and a stunning lead performance from rising star Brie Larson (Grace).

Grace and Mason help run a foster care facility. We witness first hand their daily work with the kids, some of it quite mundane ... though other moments incredibly powerful. Grace and Marcus have their own personal connections to this way of life, and also happen to be in a relationship that seems built on avoiding the communication and connection that goes into their daily jobs.

The use of art as a communication device plays a role throughout. Marcus uses his rap lyrics, newcomer Jayden draws and writes children's stories. These two kids are particularly important because they also mirror the inner sanctum of Mason and Grace, and we see these people all battle demons in hope of living a "normal" life. This is not a story of saints and sinners ... these are just people coming to grip with the deck they've been dealt.

You will recognize Gallagher from his work on HBO's "Newsroom", and Dever made quite an impression in her time on "Justified". Larson's star is on the rise thanks to her presence in The Spectacular Now and Don Jon, as well as some upcoming projects. She IS what critics have been trying make Greta Gerwig ... an actress who breathes life into character we feel we know.

At its core, Short Term 12 is a film about kids looking after kids. That youthful always-learning energy gives it a warmth and sincerity that's extremely endearing and a joy to watch these vulnerable and intriguing characters. It's about outcasts fitting in together and finding their place making it relatable for whenever you've felt alone and brings in a welcoming sense of community. It's Brie Larson's protagonist Grace who heads the entire ensemble on her shoulders. She gives a heartfelt performance, tough on the outside, swirling chaos on the inside, and she's able to get that on screen and develop it in every scene. In the way she is written, she shows the value of a nurturing character and how that can get the audience's sympathy regardless of any negative behaviour. The screenplay is terrific, juggling its arcs very efficiently and delivering comedy and drama in equal doses.

It can get too comical or sentimental at times but its overall maturity cancels it out. With its hand-held photography, it has a raw aesthetic that cuts through potential contrivances and predictability and gives it an involving sense of authenticity. The majority of the scenes are long and dialogue driven, often reflecting on short sharp outbursts or telling stories within the story be it an anecdote, rap or children's story read aloud. It provides an ideal pace and length it to feel brisk yet able to breathe and feel like a fulfilling 90 minutes. It's a film about catharsis and connection after deep repression, and the fact it's about young people makes the tragedies hurt more and the sense of hope more touching. It does have a bad habit of using the cliché of misplaced anger a bit too often, where a character furious at someone will instead hit those closest to them, but the deep rooted empathy for these characters allows those moments to feel at least somewhat justified as we feel that intense release with them.

The supporting performances are also fantastic, characters that although may follow a convention feel like they're coming from a genuine place. It's not often that a film like this would start its story with a relatively optimistic relationship as that dials down the potential for conflict, but John Gallagher Jr. and his chemistry with Larson makes it one we love watching and dread that moment where it inevitably goes wrong. Keith Stanfield is a standout from the younger crowd of actors whose powerful tenderness constantly gave me chills and Kaitlyn Denver who navigates around cliché and provides an earnest and passionate performance. Short Term 12 knows its deck has familiar cards, but it plays them just right. It's nice to have a film that knows that an original perspective is more engaging than original content. Despite its flaws, it's a really great emotional film and definitely the type of film I'd love to make.

8/10

Brie Larson stars as Grace. She and her boyfriend work in a residential program for teens though through the course of the film you start to realize that Grace is just as screwed up as many of these kids. Because Grace grew up being sexually abused, she has a hard time separating herself from her clients and projects many of her problems onto the kids...and sometimes behaving VERY unprofessionally. All this becomes more of a problem because Grace is pregnant--and how can a woman who never worked through her own parent/child issues possibly raise a child of her own?

This is a slow but engaging film. The more you watch it, the more you're pulled into the film and Grace's world. As a guy who once worked in residential programs for teens, I can say that the filmmakers did a good job of capturing what these places are like as well as the sort of folks that work in them. 'Walking wounded' workers isn't an unusual phenomenon at all. Well worth seeing and well made, though I HATED some of the shaky cam, especially early in the film. Why is it that young filmmakers think that bad camera-work is a good thing?!?! Most audiences don't want to have motion sickness while they watch a movie!!!

FYI--The film had a mistake that I noticed. Grace's father is getting out of prison and the probation department calls her to inform her. This SHOULD have been the parole department--as folks coming out of prison are never put on probation but on parole.