by Sean Donovan
Let's celebrate the 25th birthday of rising actor Keith Stanfield, sometimes billed as LaKeith Lee Stanfield. The young actor has shown an impressive versatility and command of the screen in a brief string of memorable appearances. He’s occupied the supporting casts of such attention-grabbing films as Dope and Miles Ahead, acted as a flashpoint for community grief as Jimmie Lee Jackson in Ava DuVernay’s Selma, and even appeared as a young Snoop Dog in Straight Outta Compton. But those of us who have kept an eye Stanfield as “one to watch” fell in love with his vital supporting work in Destin Daniel Cretton’s 2013 film Short Term 12.
In our post-Room world, Short Term 12 feels like a more and more essential document, serving for many as the introduction to the true depth of leading lady Brie Larson’s talents before she found Oscar glory two years later...
Not for nothing, the tiny adult supporting cast of the 2013 film also includes Stephanie Beatriz and Rami Malek, both of whom found starring roles on television shortly thereafter in Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Mr. Robot respectively. Fortune smiles on the Short Term 12 cast). Larson plays Grace, the supervisor of a group home for at-risk youth, housing, among others, the solemn monosyllabic Marcus (Stanfield). Marcus is a victim of domestic abuse and a long-term resident of the Short Term 12, who, when the film begins, is about to turn 18, thereby aging out of the home’s services. Marcus is staring down the prospect of living independently with fear and anxiety, his own history of trauma still a gaping wound in his life. Marcus’ choice of a birthday present from Grace is having his hair shaved, an act he requests in a heart-breaking attempt to reconcile external reality with his inner lingering mentality of abuse. Marcus is shocked there are no bruises underneath his hair. The injuries might heal, but their psychological wake is powerful. Both Larson and Stanfield received nominations here at TFE’s awards for their superlative work.
Short Term 12 is an enormously well-intentioned film, depicting the self-sacrificing work of Grace and her co-worker/love interest Mason (John Gallagher Jr.) with all the adulation it deserves. Rami Malek serves as the film’s negative example, making a lot of tone-deaf comments about “underprivileged youth” that reek of self-congratulation, lending the film a very clear “do this/don’t do this” ethics of helping victims of abuse. But the insurance isn’t needed: if anything swerves Short Term 12 away from the potentially dangerous minefield of the white savior complex, it is Keith Stanfield’s performance, which never once reduces Marcus to a diagnosable stereotype, instead presenting his anxiety, fear, and heroic resilience in all its hard-earned specificity. We are not watching the story of the white people who helped Marcus and felt better about themselves afterwards. This is Marcus’ story. Stanfield’s performances reaches its height in a gorgeously unbroken, almost three-minute shot where Marcus raps about his trauma:
Beautifully rich, detailed work from a young actor whom I can’t wait to see find the praise he deserves. And we’ll certainly see more from him coming up: most immediately Stanfield will grace our screens in Oliver Stone’s Snowden, coming up later is the thriller Death Note by indie horror notable Adam Wingard (You’re Next, The Guest) and David Michôd’s satire War Machine also starring Brad Pitt and Tilda Swinton. But perhaps most exciting is Stanfield’s starring role in FX’s highly anticipated series Atlanta, created by and starring Donald Glover.
Happy Birthday Keith, and here’s to many more years of great performances!