Short Term 12 is an independent film that was released in 2013 and directed by Destin Daniel Cretton. The film takes place in a group home and shows the focuses on the journey of Grace who was physically, mentally, and sexually abused as a young child by her father and her boyfriend/fiancé Mason who grew up as a “punk kid” in foster care. The two put attempt to put their own lives aside when they both work at the group home in an attempt to better the lives of the troubled youth they work with at the home. The film maker in Short Term 12 was trying to communicate the problems the adolescents experience, and also how problems from our youth such as abuse can be carried into our future if we don’t take care of ourselves and the issue. Grace in …show more content…
the film never sought out counseling, and never dealt with her serious issues with her father.
He was sent to jail when she was young because of all the abuse. Now years later, she is notified that her father is being released from jail and Grace’s world comes crashing down around her. She struggles with her pregnancy and she also struggles with the adolescents at the group home. Specifically, Jessica, because she can relate to her the most. Because she never had proper counseling and didn’t address how she was feeling, it proved to be too much for her. There are multiple themes in Short Term 12. The themes that the film is concerned with is abuse in teens/children. The majority of the teens/children that were in the group home experienced some type of abuse at some point in their lives. Many of them were placed in the group home because of the abuse they inured. Pregnancy is another theme in the …show more content…
film, it shows the stress a woman can feel when they are pregnant and the emotions it can bring up. Grace was impregnated by her father when she was young. Now, years later when she is expecting a child with her boyfriend, Mason, the stress begins to be almost unbearable and she debates on aborting the baby. Another theme that is concerned with the film is the boundaries in the film and where people are ranked in the Mental Health field. I have been studying in the field for five years now, and it was easy to pick up some of the boundary issues. For example, Grace got too involved with Jessica at some points, going to hour house unannounced, and of course destroying Jessica’s father’s car with a bat. There were also the issues of some workers not being listened too. Grace knew that Jessica was being abused and she she brought it to her boss who gave her a lecture that it wasn’t her “place” to say, and that he couldn’t do anything unless she had solid evidence. We also saw Grace’s boss ignoring Grace’s requests because Jessica’s father was a “good friend”. Grace had went to her boss on multiple occasions requesting him to do something and he refused. Until the end of the film, when Jessica herself came forward with Graces support. This shows how all workers in the field should be taken seriously. The film was an accurate portrayal of the group home.
The scenes in the group home were accurate to what you would see in a group home. The group home itself seemed to be cramped and cluttered with not a lot of space. All the rooms in the group home were quite small, the living space was also quite small. The home did have a yard for the teens/children to play. It wasn’t the cleanest place but it wasn’t too gross and un clean either. The rules they set such as teens with a history of self harm weren’t allowed to shut their doors. The film wasn’t bright and cheerful, the color tones all seemed to be de-saturated and cool. There were colors, but nothing vibrant. This set the mood for the film serious. A time when the film seemed bright, and happy was when Mason was home with his foster parents and foster brothers and sisters celebrating. This scene in the film seemed to be more bright, colorful, and full of joy. Other than the boundaries between Grace and Jess in the film the film accurately portrayed what actually happens in a group
home.
In the novel, Saving Grace, author Lee Smith follows the life of a young woman who was raised in poverty by an extremely religious father. In this story Grace Shepherd, the main character, starts out as a child, whose father is a preacher, and describes the numerous events, incidents, and even accidents that occur throughout her childhood and towards middle age, in addition, it tells the joyous moments that Grace experienced as well. Grace also had several different relationships with men that all eventually failed and some that never had a chance. First, there was a half brother that seduced her when she was just a child, then she married a much older man when she was only seventeen, whose “idea of the true nature of God came closer to my own image of Him as a great rock, eternal and unchanging” (Smith 165). However, she succumbs to an affair with a younger man that prompted a toxic relationship. What caused her to act so promiscuous and rebel against everything she had been taught growing up? The various men in Grace 's life all gave her something, for better or worse, and helped to make her the person she became at the end of the novel.
When they met it was very awkward for the both of them. Maya´s family was obviously very wealthy and Grace´s parents were even shocked. The moment Grace saw her sister, she was so excited because they looked so alike. They had the same exact hair and smile. Once she started seeing Maya more often Grace´s whole mindset of things changed because she realized that her mother did not give her away because she did not want her, it was because she could not give her a stable life. Grace did the same thing with her newborn daughter and realized that adoption is a beautiful thing. Grace became more open to her foster family about everything from how she felt about her childhood and what she wanted to do next. To add to that, Grace and Maya then figure out they have a brother named Juaquin. They both set up a email and he agrees to meet them. Grace then became terrified because there weren't just two of them now, it was three. Grace decided she wanted to find their birth mother. Maya and Juaquin did not agree at all. Grace started to search for her mother by herself. She then started to feel lonely all over again. She felt like Maya and Juaquin were complete strangers to
There were many themes illustrated throughout the memoir, A Long Way Gone by Ishmael beah. These themes include survival/resilience despite great suffering, the loss of innocence, the importance of family/heritage, the power of hope and dreams, the effects of injustice on the individual, and the importance of social and political responsibility. Every theme listed has a great meaning, and the author puts them in there for the readers to analyze and take with them when they finish reading the book.
Boyz N the Hood was a film created to convey an anti-gang message as well as to provide societal members an in-depth look at life in “the hood” so he or she can expand their culturally awareness of identifying societal issues (Stevenson, 1991). Upon the debut of “Boyz N the Hood” violence erupted at theaters across the nation, resulting in multiple shows pulling the film from scheduled showings to alleviate future violent behaviors (Stevenson, 1991). The film profoundly illustrates the realty of the events revealed within the storyline that frequently occur on a daily basis within every impoverish community; however, is overlooked by the individuals who are not directly involved and or affected (Leon-Guerrero, 2016) Children of lower socioeconomic status often are raised in ghetto neighborhoods where they often witness, crime, violence, gang activity, abuse, and drugs (Leon-Guerrero, 2016). Ghetto communities envelop tumultuous cycles of violence and substance abuse creating a pervasive occurrence within the residents of the community. This is prevalent in lower developed communities that unfortunately many children and the youth populace indirectly inherit and sadly conform to, as there are no other means to an end for them (Leon-Guerrero,
“The Trusty” is a work of fiction, written by Ron Rash, that tells the story of a man and a woman who try to escape their lives. In this short story, Sinkler is depicted as a scandalous but also as a distressed character. Many painted events lead to the illustration of a peculiar setting in which Sinkler is experiencing some abnormal instances. Sinkler is not dead, and his characterization has lead the audience to believe his flawed mental state is the reason why.
One could easily dismiss movies as superficial, unnecessarily violent spectacles, although such a viewpoint is distressingly pessimistic and myopic. In a given year, several films are released which have long-lasting effects on large numbers of individuals. These pictures speak
This film contains some classic examples of the kinds of real life issues adolescents deal with. Issues such as popularity, peer relationships, family/sibling relationships, sex, and struggles with identity are all addressed in this ninety-minute film.
Moreover, habitually ignoring the obvious has succumb them to a life of denial, which only exacerbates the inner turmoil of the teenagers. Ultimately, “parents can help teens who feel helpless by being present” (Clinton, Clark, & Straub, 2010). Furthermore, aside from the possible emotional and/or personality disorders demonstrated, such as Bobby’s incessant hand-washing, an underdeveloped prefrontal cortex, which is potentially stagnated due to their excessive drug use, it is obvious as there is no sense or fear of consequences, which is apparent in not only their sexual promiscuity, but their nonchalant demeanor as they devise a plan to commit murder. Although, God has gifted us with free will, which is clearly exhibited by the teens in this movie, parents are obligated to God to provide a strong foundation based on faith, love and guidance so as to ensure the gift of free will is not misused. Therefore, as the prefrontal cortex is not fully developed until their mid-twenties, abuse of drugs and lack of parental guidance will ultimately have detrimental outcomes. As scripture states “The rod and reproof give wisdom, but a child left to himself brings shame to his mother” (Proverbs 29:15
Teenage films are often thought of films focused on issues such as teen angst, conflict with parents, coming of age, and most notably rebellion. Nicholas Ray’s Rebel Without a Cause(1955) is one of the first films that could be classified as such. In today’s times, many films that fall into this genre follow the same structure as Rebel without a Cause in that perceptions and activities of youth defy what is considered to be a seemingly more stable adult life. Prior to Rebel Without a Cause, there wasn’t a film that challenged the ideas of masculinity in society and the struggles that teenagers endured in that era, so it is no surprise that the film is considered to be the poster child of youth rebellion in the 1950’s. Ray brings to light a
Instead of providing a safe and loving environment for her daughter, she built up anger towards her and eventually lashed out, physically and emotionally abusing her. Mary carries resentment towards Precious because Carl preferred having sex with Precious rather than Mary. The resentment continued and progressively became more aggressive as the movie went on. Child abuse is a major social issue in not only the United States but all over the world. Cases of child abuse and neglect that involve black children are reported and are approximately twice that of the cases that involve white children. This film sheds light on negative social issues that occur in young African- American children lives, and how these characters within this movie gained power and ultimately decide to peruse a positive life for themselves. Out of the 7.4 billion people in this world, forty million children are abused each year; that is only the amount of reported cases and does not include unreported cases. In the United States, a child is abused every ten seconds. Abuse typically leads to an unsuccessful life, despite your race or ethnicity. Statically speaking, child abuse victims have a 38% increase arrest rate for violent crimes; and 84% of all prison inmates had been abused as a child. As her mother beats her; Precious dreams of a better life and eventually takes the necessary steps to achieve that dreamed about life. The director
The Room itself represents the author’s unconscious protective cell that has encased her mind, represented by the woman, for a very long time. This cell is slowly deteriorating and losing control of her thoughts. I believe that this room is set up as a self-defense mechanism when the author herself is put into the asylum. She sets this false wall up to protect her from actually becoming insane and the longer she is in there the more the wall paper begins to deteriorate. This finally leads to her defense weakening until she is left with just madness and insanity. All of the characters throughout the story represent real life people with altered roles in her mind. While she is in the mental institute she blends reality with her subconscious, forming this story from events that are happening all around here in the real world.
In this documentary, it was clear that Millie’s mental illness took a toll on her family’s dynamic. Millie was not diagnosed with a mental disorder until much later on in her life. At that point, her family was already destroyed. Millie and her husband went through a divorce. The two daughters were left to live with their mother. The girls did not know any other way of life, so they thought the lives they lived with their mother were just like lives other children had with their parents.
Throughout the entire film, there are lessons that are being taught. Whether is the central theme of not judging someone by their skin color but by their character or showing the essence of what the meaning of family really is. Through the setting, acting, and relationships shown it all comes together to make the perfect film. I recommend this film be seen by everyone at least once in their lifespan, because the lessons that are depicted in there are valuable. It is the perfect movie to go see with your family and makes you grateful and thankful for everyone that you have in your life. The film brings joy, happiness, tears, laughter and much more. I can truly say that the movie is worth purchasing and viewing.
Sarah passed through three different foster homes over the course of a year and a half, an...
Non judgmental and Compassion was a message in this movie. If more people would have compassion for others we would live in a better world. It is important to be non judgmental because people never know what happens in a person's life to cause them to act out in a certain way. Mrs. Erin Gruwell’s students were separated along racial lines and had few aspirations beyond street survival. Many people warned her that her students were all criminals who couldn’t be taught. With all odds stacked against her, she accepted the teaching position at Wilson High School. Erin Gruwell saw more in the students than a future as criminals and gang members; she saw them as people who have lost their ways in life. Instead of turning her back as society had done, she held out a helping hand. She had compassion and was non judgmental toward the children’s actions and hatred for one another. Being judgmental...