The more impressive collection resides on the animated side. The clear favorite features mild-mannered inventor Wallace and his faithful dog Gromit in “A Matter of Loaf and Death.” In this latest installment from filmmaker Nick Park, Wallace and Gromit have opened their own bakery and named it “Top Bun.” They provide dough-to-door delivery of their products. The cereal killer is on the loose, having murdered 12 local bakers. Will Wallace be the unlucky 13th victim, making it a baker’s dozen?

Wallace makes a daring rescue of Piella Bakewell, the former Bake-O-Lite girl, after her bicycle brakes fail. He falls madly in love with her. This leaves Gromit in charge of running the bakery and uncovering the identity of the mystery killer.

Piella’s adorable poodle Fluffles is also part of this winning recipe.

The claymation form of animation is top drawer with a clever assembly line, assorted gizmos and nifty signage playing up the flour-heavy theme. Park is adept at combining elements of comedy, romance, action and suspense.

There is genius in every aspect of filmmaking even extending to the musical selections that culminate with a rendition of “Puppy Love.” Its robust running time of 30 minutes gives it the advantage of a broader scope and a more developed story than the other much shorter competitors.

It has already won the prestigious Annie and BAFTA Awards for Best Animated Short.

A strong runner-up is “Logorama.” The creative gag at work here is to envision Los Angeles comprised entirely of registered trademarks and corporate brand names. The cast of characters includes the Pillsbury Doughboy, the Esso Girl, M & Ms, the Green Giant and Mr. Clean.

Foul-mouthed cops, Michelin Men Mitch and Mike, pursue an armed and dangerous Ronald McDonald. There is a high speed chase and a gunfight. Bob’s Big Boy is taken hostage. The carnage includes an earthquake and a giant oil spill. A bald eagle flies off to safety in the final frame.

The movie contains lots of profanity and subtitles in French. The closing song “I Don’t Want to Set the World On Fire” is performed by The Ink Spots. This movie is a satirical indictment of the rampant consumerism prevalent in America.

The shortest entry at only six minutes is “Granny O’ Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty.” Kathleen O’Rourke wrote the story and is the voice of the seemingly sweet old lady. She tells her own version of the classic bedtime story to her frightened granddaughter. She expresses her bitterness about feeling rejected and left out for just being a senior citizen. The film blends computer graphics with traditional animation, cutting back and forth from the bedside setting to her twisted version of the fairytale.

An uptight businessman drinking coffee in a Parisian café discovers that he has lost his wallet in “French Roast.” In order to hide his embarrassment, he runs up a tab by ordering multiple cups of coffee. Visual interest in this simple scenario comes from the appearance of a homeless beggar, a nun with a secret disguise in her purse and a portly policeman. The film ends with a surprising gotcha moment.

The Spanish entry “The Lady and the Reaper” was co-produced by actor Antonio Banderas. A sweet old lady living alone on a farm is ready to join her dead husband in heaven. She goes to sleep one night and her spirit begins to leave her body. As the Grim Reaper appears and guides her to the white light, she is suddenly pulled back to life by a handsome, arrogant doctor in a hospital emergency room. A tug of war continues in this comedic farce between the doctor and the agent of doom. A surprise ending is accompanied by “We’ll Meet Again” performed by The Turtles.

All the entrants on the live action side were filmed outside the United States.

My favorite in this category is “Kavi,” which was shot entirely on location in Maharashtan, India, by director Gregg Helvey. The title character is a cute little boy (Sagar Salunke) who is forced to work along with his parents in a brick kiln. He dreams of going to school and playing cricket with other kids.

The slave labor facility is run by a cruel taskmaster. Kavi’s father owes the owner a large sum of money.

This simple narrative features traditional Hindustani and Carnatic music and benefits from the scenic location. This Indian youngster makes a heroic choice and leaves his footprint on the story.

This short feature takes an activist stand in pointing out that 27 million people around the world are trapped in a modern-day form of slavery. The dialogue is in Hindi with English subtitles.

This heart-tugging short of just 19 minutes was Helvey’s USC thesis project. It has won five major awards including the Crystal Heart and the Student Academy Award.

The likely winner is “The Door” from Russia. This true story opens with a man carrying a wooden door on the back of his motorcycle. He had to steal the door from his own apartment.

The movie flashes back to the man, his wife and young daughter forced to evacuate their home as the result of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in 1986. In narration, the man indicates that their whole world was lost on that day. They didn’t realize that they had all become ticking time bombs.

This emotionally powerful story brings the tragedy home with very little dialogue. This memorable film written and directed by Juanita Wilson of Ireland is dedicated to the real-life Russian father and his daughter. It was filmed on location in the Ukraine. It is based on the book “Monologue About a Whole Life Written Down on Doors.” It has already garnered several accolades with four impressive film festival awards.

“Miracle Fish” from Australia opens with a mother dropping her 8-year-old son Joe (Karl Beattie) off at school. It’s his birthday so she puts a surprise in his lunch box. It is an unusual, red-colored paper fish.

The kids at school call him a loser and a liar. They also delight in pushing him around. He goes to the nurse’s office and lies in bed. He wishes that everyone in the world would just disappear. When he wakes up from a nap, he finds the school completely deserted.

The surreal narrative takes an unexpected turn when a voice on a cell phone tells this young elementary school student to find a place to hide.

Troubling real-life imagery rears its ugly head at the conclusion in the form of a demented man with a rifle.

“The New Tenants” is a strange story with a sick sense of humor. Frank and Peter have just moved into a new apartment and are surrounded by a bunch of boxes. A crazy old lady comes to their door asking to borrow some flour. After she departs, the doorbell rings again. An angry and irate husband from upstairs brandishing a tire iron comes looking for Jerry, the former occupant. It seems that Jerry met a tragic fate and supposedly had an affair with the husband’s wife, Irene.

The next member of the welcome wagon to show up is Zelko, a drug-dealing thug carrying a rifle. He is looking for his kilo of heroin that he stashed in the apartment.

Finally, a stoned Irene makes her entrance. Irene also happens to be the granddaughter of the old lady.

This comedy of circumstances ends with Frank and Peter dancing out the door into the street while the end credits display a recipe for the cinnamon buns that the old lady was baking from scratch.

This has to be the worst moving day ever caught on camera. It is funny, frightening and unexpectedly romantic. Thomas, age 25, practices a scary and suspenseful form of magic in “Instead of Abracadabra.” When one of his tricks goes horribly wrong, he meets Monica, a nurse at the hospital. He is strongly attracted to her beauty and flirts with her. She also happens to have recently moved in next door with her young son.

Thomas’ dad wants his son to grow up and get a real job. Thomas agrees to look for gainful employment if he can put on a magic show at his dad’s 60th birthday party. He invites Monica to the party to impress her with his talents. He says the word “Chimay” instead of “Abracadabra” whenever he waves his wand.

This frivolous and frothy comedy benefits from an endearing lead turn from Simon J. Berger as the absent-minded but lovable amateur magician.

A hilarious ending involving a bouquet of flowers brings the story full circle.

This impressive showcase of cinematic treasures awaits you this weekend exclusively at the Tivoli in Westport.

Review By:
Keith Cohen "The Movie Guy"