This drama set in a group home for at-risk adolescents sounds like archetypally grim film-fest fare (it won the grand jury prize at South by Southwest) but is far more appealing than that, thanks to a breakout performance by Brie Larson.
Larson shines as an adult staffer assigned to keep these self-destructive kids safe while they work with therapists.
But she has a dark secret in her past that causes her to become too personally invested in the fate of a goth newcomer (Kaitlyn Dever), who she fears is poised to return to a sexually abusive father.
Filmmaker Destin Daniel Cretton pulls off a tricky balancing act in “Short Term 12,’’ which could easily have become a colossal downer if played to melodramatic excess.
Larson’s subtle, unsentimental work draws you into her character’s conflicts, which threaten to sabotage plans to have a child with her patient, longtime boyfriend.
Another staffer, he’s winningly played with some much-needed humor by John Gallagher Jr.