Urs

This is one of two films of merit that were shown along with the five Academy Award-nominated animated shorts. I was excited to see it, as it's another animated short from the Film Academy of Baden-Württemberg--a film school that has a TON of wonderful films to its students' credits (including Oscar-winning "Das Rad").

While "Urs" is a good film, it clearly was not as distinguished a film as the nominees. The most obvious difference is the animation. While it is stylistic, it's also rather simple. This can also said about the story itself--very simple. I wasn't all that impressed by it but my friend who went to the show with me that it was great--and he enjoyed the sentimental tale about a man who moves with his elderly mother from their home to a new home in a valley across the mountains. My verdict is that it's a very impressive student film and I'd love to see more from them once they gain more experience. Great for a student piece.

Beautiful, touching, precise simplicity at the level of story and animation. A short film about the care of a son for his aging mother and the desire of new beginning. A long and difficult travel and the precise portrait of real new level of life of Urs. Short, a good film , reminding, resurrecting noble emotions and proposing the fundamental truth defining each of us in beautiful manner.

'URS': Three Stars (Out of Five)

One of the two films of honorable mention that were shown with the five 2010 Oscar nominated animated short films in their current theatrical run. It was written and directed by Moritz Mayerhofer and is a pretty simple German tale with simplistic animation and little to no dialogue. It's a heartwarming story about a young man named Urs, a bit of brute that's long looked after his elderly mother, that one day decides to move the both of them up a mountain to hopefully a better life. The film is a bit of an adventure, although short, with a sympathetic outcome. There's nothing overly special here, it's ten minutes well spent I'd say but nothing too memorable.

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