Joe's Violin (2016)

A different way of telling a story

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

This short story delivers emotions, history and music in a very effective way. The history behind the violin makes it very unique and emotional. Its quite remarkable how it makes you feel sadness, happiness and hopeful in a very short amount of time.

it is far to be the right word. because the story itself remains speechless. Joe. miss Kokoe. and Brianna. a violin. like bridge between generations. like testimony. and legacy. it is not easy to write about this film who is a box with unique stories. because the story of Joe is, in fact, the story of an entire century. the happiness, the Shoah, the desire to change a life, the survive, the opportunity for a talented and sensitive young violinist. and this does this film a must see. only see it. for discover the world. in the right light.

In this heart warming story Joe,a 91 year old holocaust survivor, realizes that his time with the violin he had traded for a pack of cigarettes after the war is coming to an end decides to give it away to a New York school. The instrument ends up in the hands of Brianna, a 12 year old girl with a natural talent to express herself through the violin. A must see story about legacy and appreciation that is absolutely worth the 24 minutes running time.

"Joe's Violin" is a 24-minute live action documentary from the United States and this one premiered last year in 2016. It received a solid deal of awards recognition and it is among the five Oscar nominees in the Best Documentary Short category. This is the forth from the bunch I have seen so far, the only one still missing is "Watani". I find it extremely difficult to make a prediction who is going to take home the crown this year as I would say quality-wise they are all very much on the same level. I was not really stunned by any of them, but all were pretty decent. And honestly, this one here is not only about the Holocaust, which the Academy always loves as a subject, but also about music, namely about playing the violin and music has been a very successful subject recently, especially in the documentaries ("Amy", 20 Feet from Stardom, "Lady in Number 6" and there is certainly more). It is also very difficult to predict because all the film (try to) make an emotional impact, some more some less and this one here is certainly among those who do more. Maybe it is sometimes a bit too much, but nonetheless some sequences are pretty effective, like the actual meeting between the Holocaust survivor and the young violin player who received his instrument. Also with all the ethnic backgrounds in here (not just the two, also the teacher for example), the film is a statement on diversity and I would not be surprised at all if it gets director Kahane Cooperman the Oscar.