LATALKRADIO.COM – BROAD TOPICS
February 19, 2012
Movie Guys Paul Preston and Karen Volpe stopped in on LA TALK RADIO’s “Broad Topics” to preview The 85th Oscars, covering six of the major categories with picks and predictions, and the jokes fly. (13 min. 59 sec.)

Listen to Broad Topics HERE.

OSCAR RANT 2013

(Honoring the films of 2012)

Rant by Paul Preston

Not a great year.

I really had trouble putting together a top ten.

That being said, there were many good films, but I saw too many flaws in the “upper tier” of 2012’s well-regarded films to take ten and put them leagues above the rest. Unlike in past years where I really labored over whether “Inglourious Basterds” was better than “Up”, my 2012 top ten is a #1 that I LOVE, and #2-10 that are good. The commercial successes that really took off were pretty impressive, and the art films that could have overwhelmed ended up leaving me wanting more.

Again, not a great year.

Here we go:

10. INTOUCHABLES – This French box office sensation translated quite well to this overseas viewer. The story of an unusual relationship between a wealthy invalid and his street-smart caretaker nimbly straddles the line between authenticity and schmaltz…..some would tell you. I bought it all. The two lead performers, Omar Sy and Francois Cluzet, have a palpable chemistry, they are the authenticity, but the script puts them in some “movie” situations that might be considered cheesy. Not this guy. Funny, touching, and at times powerful, “Intouchables” (which means ‘untouchable’) is entertaining as hell with a great payoff.

9. FLIGHT – Thank god Robert Zemeckis made a real movie again. He’s cut with shit with that motion capture stuff that only he championed, and just like that, he’s back in my top ten. “Flight” is a story of addiction, and it’s told with a fascinating backdrop: the main character and addict is a commercial airline pilot. The film begins by showing, back to back, scenes of heinous drug use, then incredible skill behind the wheel of a jet. Denzel Washington, still a wizard at making it look easy, nails the charm and weakness required to make us want to see the story of this man who is both horribly flawed and yet always interesting. A lesser actor and I might’ve stopped caring about an asshole addict early on. Or a lesser director and I might’ve stopped watching, too. Zemeckis’ really seems to have rallied against his animated films here by making a hard R drama that is challenging and surprising and keeps you wondering if this is a redemption story right until the end.

8. DJANGO UNCHAINED – If you’re wondering if director Quentin Tarantino has put out a new film any given year, just look in my top ten list and you’ll know. He did, in fact, make a new film this year, and here he is once again. “Django” isn’t quite the film “Inglourious Basterds” was (which made my #1 in 2009), I thought “Django” had a couple of endings. But when “Django” is moving, it is it’s own beast. Which is to say that this movie doesn’t give a FUCK what you want, what you expect and I doesn’t care about you at all. It’s rolling out its story, doing it’s thing and it don’t give a FUCK. And MAN, is that refreshing. You know what? I’m gonna put Rick Ross’s “100 Black Coffins” in the middle of my western. Suck on that. Oh, and ‘80s icons Tom Wopat, Lee Horsley and Don Johnson will be cast in substantial roles. So blow me. Tarantino breaks rules all over the damn place, and where I’ve crapped on some directors for shifting TONE slightly in a movie, I just can’t fight against what Quentin is dishing out. Ever. It’s best to just give over. And when you do, you open yourself up to a master who consistently makes the most unique quality movies today.

7. THE DARK KNIGHT RISES – “The Dark Knight” (my #1 film of 2008) was so universally lauded by critics, people wondered why it wasn’t nominated for an Oscar (YEAH, I wondered, too). So the next year, in one of those “Hey, let’s make the MLB All-Star game mean something” kind of moves, the Academy ‘fixed’ what wasn’t broke, by expanding the number of nominees from five to “up to ten”. This was a blatant attempt to include popular movies in the nominee mix and expand the number of people who give a damn about the Oscars. I get that when they nominated “The Reader” instead of “The Dark Knight”, they won over NO viewers, but then they opened themselves up to nominating the pedestrian “The Blind Side”, which knocks their cred quite a bit. POINT – if “The Dark Knight” deserved an Oscar nomination, where’s the love for “The Dark Knight Rises”? If I had TEN slots to put Best Pic nominees in, there’s definitely room for Christopher Nolan’s sprawling, epic, DARK story of the final challenges of a legendary hero. Upon first viewing, I definitely had issues with Bane. Despite a menacing performance by Tom Hardy, there were major issues with the sound recording (and re-recording) of his voice that were distracting. His voice sounded removed from location, laid over top all the other audio, but this is mended somehow in the home video setting. Upon second viewing, I could settle in more for a thorough UNsettling. This film just got under my skin. Gotham has become really, really unpleasant by the third film in this series, and it made for a complex story thick with character and mood. Plus, this trilogy has been blessed with good actors, and the usual quality of Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman and Gary Oldman was on display, and is now coupled now with Joseph Gordon-Levitt and the surprising talents of the she-annoys-me-in-real-life Anne Hathaway. There wasn’t as much humor here as when The Joker ran Gotham, but it’s nevertheless as compelling as the other films in this remarkable trilogy. Good luck to the poor bastard who takes over this franchise.

6. THE INVISIBLE WAR – Kirby Dick’s documentary does what all good documentaries should do – it gets you really fired up! And really pissed off. Dick set out to expose the military’s dirty little secret – an epidemic of rape cases amongst the soldiers. Mostly women, but there are stories of men being raped by other heterosexual men documented as well. Regardless, it is a violent act that is being treated by the military the same way the church is handling the molestation of young boys – by handling it internally and under-punishing perpetrators with as little press as possible. This doc wins in who it’s participants are. There are many brave women who tell their stories in the film, and each of them is fascinating and strong and you want to root for them, and just the right things happen to them, for better or worse, to make the doc vastly compelling. Outside of a score being a bit too ambitious at times, Dick has paced this film expertly, compiled intriguing archival footage and gets the occasional moment every doc filmmaker loves when the right person being interviewed puts their foot in their mouth. It’s one of those making-the-world-better-‘cause-it-exists films.

5. ARBITRAGE – Richard Gere was made for this part. The majority of his career’s success has come from playing white collar guys, especially in his later career, from “Pretty Woman” to the lawyer in “Primal Fear” to Billy Flynn in “Chicago”. Nowadays most white collar guys are considered assholes. So it’s only right that now Gere is totally convincing here as a white collar ASSHOLE! And with that being said, he also makes him human, making this thriller compulsively watchable. As the film starts, Gere’s character is trying to close a big corporate deal and have it all, like these greedy bastards often do. But his greed has mortal consequences and he spends the rest of the movie trying to cover everything up. Tim Roth shows up to look like a seedy cop and crawl up his ass, and he looks like he’s having a blast being shlubby. So it’s shlubby vs. asshole. You don’t get any more current that that. This is the first big feature for Nicholas Jarecki, yet it’s directed with impressive confidence, and he builds real suspense as Gere tries to hold his career together. Once again, as with “Chicago”, Gere’s been Oscar-snubbed for one of the best performances of his career. Shame.

4. LOOPER – Rian Johnson, would you mind telling me why you thought you could even make this film? Having never touched this genre before, writer-director Johnson fashioned a distinctive sci-fi effort worth multiple views. Loopers, in our near future, are assassins who line themselves up at stations and wait for people to appear from the future. Upon their appearance, they are shot and disposed of, thus creating a murder in the future that will leave no traces or body. Follow? It might be tough to follow some of this film, but the film itself has a very cavalier attitude about its adherence to time travel philosophy. It sets up some rules, follows them best it can and then just makes with the action. And the film is better for it. Remember the “Back to the Future” sequels, with all their schematic diagrams and whatnot trying to explain how time travel works? Then they went and broke their own rules anyway (but not in a good way). In short, the “Back to the Future” films say that events can spark new timelines that are followed and people can end up on two different timelines even if they started in the same place. However, when old Biff steals the DeLorean to deliver the sports almanac to young Biff, he returns the DeLorean to the same timeline. He shouldn’t have. His action should’ve propelled him forward to a new timeline where he would NOT have reunited with Marty and Doc and Marty and Doc would’ve been stranded in their future Hill Valley. Follow? See how little you want to listen to all that shit? Wouldn’t you rather just see JGL and Bruce Willis kick ass? Plus, there are moral dilemmas to deal with, too, as Levitt and Bruce Willis, who plays Levitt’s older self, fight to make different futures, and both bring valid ideas tot he table. So, it’s littered with cool sci-fi, great dialogue, unique action sequences AND it’s smart? Sign me up.

3. THE AVENGERS – WHERE IS THIS FILM ON ALL THE CRITICS’S LISTS? So back in May it’s OK to sit in your shorts and T-shirt and give “The Avengers” a 92% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but when December rolls around it’s time put on a tux and start hailing the virtues of “Les Miserables” and “Amour”? PUH-LEEZE. “The Avengers” is a towering achievement, a mass-audience entertainment that is heavy on humanity and wit. And if “The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King” (one of the worst Best Picture statues ever given out) is an award for the trilogy, then can we get some kind of special award for the feat pulled off by Marvel here? “The Avengers”, as a capstone to a series of superhero films, is faithful to those movies and improves on the whole string of adventures in the process. Joss Whedon manages, oh, sixty or seventy ICONIC shots in this movie, and he makes all the characters interesting. There’s no wading through a Jar-Jar to get to the good stuff. Plus, the casting goes a long way. It’s been reported that Robert Downey, Jr. is fully aware of where his bread is buttered and will play Tony Stark as long as they’ll have him. This is good for all of us. Plus, Jeremy Renner and Mark Ruffalo are Oscar-nominated actors bringing solid work to their parts and this is easily the best work of Chris Evans’ career. “The Avengers” avoids melodrama and camp, and everywhere you think it will fail, it gets better.

2. SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS – Oh Martin McDonagh, TWO films into your career and you’re already one of my heroes. The writer/director of the not-enough-people-have-seen-it “In Bruges” returns with another exercise in idiosyncratic dialogue and characters. With a parallel career as a Tony-nominated playwright, I was hoping for great dialogue, he delivered, but “In Bruges” showed he could sculpt an artful film, too. But “Seven Psychopaths” also proves that he can think big. This film has a more expansive landscape and he deftly moves from story to the stories within the story smoothly. And the ride is so much goddamn fun. Colin Farrell, continuing his best work in indie films, plays a struggling screenwriter who gets embroiled in a dog-napping ring. This story of lunatics involving time-tested psychopaths Christopher Walken, Sam Rockwell & Woody Harrelson sidetracks to the stories of the screenplays Farrell and Rockwell are working on, and eventually the worlds collide, not in a “Purple Rose of Cairo” fantasy way, but in an ingenious, “Adaptation”-but-more-fulfilling-for-me kind of way. Wildly gory, wickedly profane and the most original of the year’s films, “Seven Psychopaths” is awesome.

1. ARGO – I’ve had “Argo”’s back since it was released in September. I kinda feel like that guy who, when ‘The Joshua Tree’ came out, said, “Sure, now all of America’s in love with U2, I’ve liked them for four albums now!”. So after singing its praises for three months, the rest of the awards’ season kudos are getting in line with me: “Argo” is the year’s best film. It’s time to put the “Did Ben Affleck really write ‘Good Will hunting’?” rumors to rest. He’s an immense talent. Just a second, please, myself from the year 2002 is freaking out at the last sentence I just typed. After impressive turns with “Gone Baby Gone” and “The Town”, Affleck earned the right to take a swing at this unique script about a detailed attempt to extract American hostages from Iran in 1979 by pretending they’re part of a film crew making a Sci-Fi movie. This story benefits from a finale that isn’t universally known (seriously, did you really know the details of this event before you sat down to watch “Argo”?). More good casting here (it’s about time we had an Oscar for this) in that the cast is filled with stalwart supporting actors doing great work – John Goodman, Alan Arkin, Bryan Cranston – and in many other supporting roles (the hostages), actors who are not household names don horrendous ‘70s hair and clothes, delivering authentic performances laced with fear, anger and bewilderment. Affleck is great here on screen, too, showing a subtlety and confidence we haven’t seen yet, to the point where, when I saw John Krasinski in “Promised Land”, I thought, man, BEN AFFLECK would be better in that part. BEN AFFLECK?!?! There’s first-rate re-creation of place and time in the costume and production design as well as a skillful combination of suspense and humor, as the events unfold in Iran alongside the CIA’s attempt to work with Hollywood (where the humor comes in) to withdraw the hostages. The whole creation from scratch of the bogus film campaign is hilarious. But the film wins in creating palpable tension out of URGENT events being done at EVERYDAY pace. It’s fascinating.

RUNNERS-UP:
LINCOLN – Spielberg avoids most of the oversentimentality of some of his previous works like “Amistad”, and comes into this project with a great script and a tour-de-force lead performance. A little long and sometimes ploddy, but a real smart, adult work overall.
ZERO DARK THIRTY – Despite knowing the outcome, there’s real tension in the hunt for Osama bin Laden. The investigation gets a little analytic and methodical to always be exciting, but Kathryn Bigelow can make a hell of a movie.
THE IMPOSSIBLE – A lovely family reunion movie. Oh, and it’s coupled with some of the most horrifying storm footage ever to explode on the big screen.
MAGIC MIKE – Charming as all hell and a movie that just looks EASY. Soderbergh, please don’t retire.

THE WORST
These were easier to put together than the best:
AMOUR – I get that the pace was supposed to be indicative of the slow torture an old couple went through as one of it’s members dies. But it’s patience-testing to stick to that pace when you’re really offering NOTHING to watch. NOTHING really happens here, and then characters will write or describe to others the nothing that just happened. It’s horrible. The worst film of the year, and the worst Best Picture nominee since “Ghost”.
RED DAWN – This movie is just horrible all ‘round, but mostly it sucks ‘cause of Josh Peck, who looks like he’s falling asleep WHILE he’s saying his lines and making Chris Hemsworth look like Daniel Day-Lewis.
THE WATCH – Somebody tell the generally enjoyable lead actors in this film that they shouldn’t have to work so hard. New material, please.
WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN YOU’RE EXPECTING – Moms puke, babies puke, there’s a car race with someone in labor who is screaming for drugs. If these scenarios are fresh to you, you’ll love it.
THE HOBBIT – Shit, there are two more movies of this slow-moving nonsense?
HYDE PARK ON HUDSON – Great performance from Bill Murray in an awkward, cheese-fest of a flim
THE ODD LIFE OF TIMOTHY GREEN – Pedestrian on every level, and, hey, there’s one of those scenes where the family is all dancing together in the living room! E-mail movieguysla@aol.com if that has EVER happened to your family.

SPECIAL CATEGORY
JOHN CARTER – Look around. This “massive failure”, “total bomb” and “egregious flop” isn’t on many ten worst lists. It’s not that bad.

THE OSCARS:

BEST PICTURE
“Amour”
“Argo”
“Beasts of the Southern Wild”
“Django Unchained”
“Les Misérables”
“Life of Pi”
“Lincoln”
“Silver Linings Playbook”
“Zero Dark Thirty”

Glaring Omission: I thought “Moonrise Kingdom” had a shot here. It won early award in the season like Best Picture at the Gotham Awards, but then it kind of faded out. But “Les Miz” won no Best Picture awards anywhere, yet here it is. I also thought “The Sessions” might benefit from the large number of nominees and be the indie choide, but there was only room for one indie, and “Beasts” took that spot. Other than that, you saw my top ten, I’d keep two and switch out seven of the nominees.
Runners-up: “Seven Psychopaths”. I bring his name up here – Martin McDonagh – ‘cause you will hear it again.
Great Inclusion: “Django Unchained”. What an unconventional Best Picture. What if it wins? Has anyone thought for a second how much of a revolutionary move that’d be?
Will Win: “Argo” – it’s sweeping the Guild Awards, not to mention the Globes, Critics’ Choice and BAFTA awards. People will also be looking to reward the Best Director-snubbed Affleck in other ways.
Should Win: “Argo” – see my #1 film of the year.

BEST ACTOR
Bradley Cooper in “Silver Linings Playbook”
Daniel Day-Lewis in “Lincoln”
Hugh Jackman in “Les Misérables”
Joaquin Phoenix in “The Master”
Denzel Washington in “Flight”

Glaring Omission: Before I launch into any of this acting stuff, let it be known that there’s no way to pick the “BEST” Actor unless everyone is performing the same role. That aside, wrongfully omitted here is Richard Gere in “Arbitrage”. This last decade has seen many unheralded GREAT performances from Gere, including “The Hoax”, “The Hunting Party” and “Chicago” and this is right up there. He’s PERFECT as the kind of corporate prick you could easily hate, but then the script makes him the main character, so you have to want to watch him, despite the unpleasantries. I think Gere in the role is 90% of the reason that totally works.
Runners-up: John Hawkes in “The Sessions”. Thought he had a real shot here. I might’ve put either of the above in, replacing Joaquin Phoenix, who brought truth to his role, but the role did NOTHING for me. And if you’ve read this far, you know I’m a fan of Omar Sy and Francois Cluzet from “Intouchables”, as well.
Great Inclusion: Bradley Cooper, who nailed that frantic energy of his character, and despite being the guy from “The Hangover” and “Wedding Crashers”, I bought it! Good on you, Bradley. I think he surprised all of us.
Will Win: Daniel Day-Lewis
Should Win: Daniel Day-Lewis, whose performance made thousands of struggling actors quit the business, ‘cause what’s the point if he’s out there doing THIS?

BEST ACTRESS
Jessica Chastain in “Zero Dark Thirty”
Jennifer Lawrence in “Silver Linings Playbook”
Emmanuelle Riva in “Amour”
Quvenzhané Wallis in “Beasts of the Southern Wild”
Naomi Watts in “The Impossible”

Glaring Omission: Nothing GLARING here, I hate to say it was not a great year for lead female performances. Last year I could think of three or four that got omitted, and I also felt really strong about the contentders (Streep, Close, Viola Davis, Michelle Williams, Rooney Mara). This year, I’m sort of…meh about this category. I didn’t always buy Chastain and Jennifer Lawrence’s character was a little too odd for me. “Amour” was just awful and in “The Impossible”, as good as Watts was, the film had her just playing victim a lot. The only actress left out might be Marion Cotillard, nominated for other awards this season for “Rust and Bone”. Helen Mirren in “Hitchcock” is a long-shot, but the SAG actors nominated her over Wallis, which says a lot for the prestige of her name, which could’ve carried her to a nomination in a film that was universally pretty trashed.
Runners-up: Judi Dench in “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” maybe? I’m reaching, here…
Great Inclusion: Quvenzhané Wallis, who carries this movie with nothing to rest on. We don’t know her as an actress, she doesn’t bring skills we know about, like humor, she just comes out of nowhere and nails it.
Will Win: Probably Lawrence, just edging out Chastain. I think the Academy, despite admiring Chastain for her talent, is excited to make Jennifer Lawrence the Golden Girl of the evening.
Should Win: Wallis, the rawest performance, whose character risked the most.

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Alan Arkin in “Argo”
Robert De Niro in “Silver Linings Playbook”
Philip Seymour Hoffman in “The Master”
Tommy Lee Jones in “Lincoln”
Christoph Waltz in “Django Unchained”

Glaring Omission: Nothing glaring here, either. Lots of good performances in this category this year, and these five have been nominated in pretty much all pre-Oscar awards. The outsider’s chance included Javier Bardem in “Skyfall”, perhaps one of the first Bond films ever to be recognized for ACTING! However, maybe the best supporting actor turn I’ve seen all year, yet not recognized ANYWHERE, is Tom Holland as Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor’s son Lucas in “The Impossible”. As a young man forced to become the man of the family in the face of a tragedy, he delivers a big performance.
Runners-up: Jason Clarke in “Zero Dark Thirty”, totally believable as a soldier who is really good at torture, yet seems slightly tired of it. Matthew McConaughey in “Magic Mike”, recognized here so that he can be encouraged to stop appearing in bullshit movies and work more with Soderbergh and other quality directors. And not for nothin’, god DAMN I loved Tom Cruise in his out-of-place performance in the otherwise wretched “Rock of Ages”.
Great Inclusion: Philip Seymour Hoffman. “The Master” is a polarizing movie, but in the middle of it are two authentic performances. And Hoffman is so consistent from project to project, it’s crazy-impressive.
Will Win: Tommy Lee Jones
Should Win: Hoffman. Nowadays, if he’s nominated, he should win. He’s that good. Perhaps the best, most emotionally invested actor out there.

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Amy Adams in “The Master”
Sally Field in “Lincoln”
Anne Hathaway in “Les Misérables”
Helen Hunt in “The Sessions”
Jacki Weaver in “Silver Linings Playbook”

Glaring Omission: Apparently I need to see this movie “Compliance” and see if Ann Dowd is truly amazing in it. She’s gotten a lot of pre-Oscar buzz to where she had a shot to be nominated here. I also thought Maggie Smith might squeak through with a nod for “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel”.
Runners-up: Judi Dench in “Skyfall”, maybe? I’m reaching here…
Great Inclusion: Sally Field in “Lincoln”. Once an actor goes to TV (“Brothers and Sisters”), it’s never a done deal that they can return to the big screen triumphantly. Field’s turn in “Lincoln” is just that.
Will Win: Hathaway, she’s on a roll.
Should Win: Hathaway. And let me go on record for a couple of things. First, it’s NOT a big deal that she sang a whole song without cutaways. Actors (perhaps MORE talented) do that every night on stage in a production of “Les Miserables” somewhere in the world. Secondly, every giggling live appearance I see of Hathaway pretty much annoys me, capped off by her “please like me” hosting gig on The Oscars. Based on those appearances, there’s no way she should’ve pulled off Catwoman, but she did. And there’s no reason she should’ve had the gravitas required to play Fantine, but she did. She continues to surprise me.

BEST DIRECTOR
“Amour,” Michael Haneke
“Beasts of the Southern Wild,” Benh Zeitlin
“Life of Pi,” Ang Lee
“Lincoln,” Steven Spielberg
“Silver Linings Playbook,” David O. Russell

Glaring Omission: This sounds like a broken record if you’ve read my Oscar rants before, but missing here are four more nominees! A movie doesn’t achieve a Best Picture nomination by the producer’s vision alone. Ever since Rob Reiner said (when he wasn’t nominated in this category for Best Picture nominee “A Few Good Men”) that a Best Picture winner should mean Oscars for the producer AND director, I’ve agreed with that. Who’s behind the masterful vision of “Django Unchained”? Harvey Weinstein? Yet, if it wins, people like Reginald Hudlin and Michael Shamberg will get statues. Doesn’t seem right. But let’s get to the real injustice here. Ben Affleck, winner of the Director’s Guild Award, the BAFTA, Critic’s Choice and Golden Globe Awards, wasn’t NOMINATED? Michael Haneke, whose first screw-up as a director was to fail to hire an editor, gets nominated? Travesty.
Runners-up: Tarantino and Kathryn Bigelow, from another Best Picture nominee, “Zero Dark Thirty”, that apparently directed itself. Bigelow brought fierce authenticity to “The Hurt Locker”, and does so again here.
Great Inclusion: David O. Russell. While Lily Tomlin has faded into obscurity, Russell continues to swing for the fences with every project. And as impressive as it is to make an epic or a period piece or an effects-laden film, it’s just as admirable to draw great performances out of your actors, to where they’re nominated in every acting category this year.
Will Win: Spielberg. With Affleck incapable of a write-in, I think the race is between Spielberg and Lee, who already both have Oscars.
Should Win: Russell. Spielberg still fell into the mildest of cheeses here and there, so Russell squeaks out a win in my book.

“Amour,” Austria
“Kon-Tiki,” Norway
“No,” Chile
“A Royal Affair,” Denmark
“War Witch,” Canada

Glaring Omission: “Rust and Bone”, “Intouchables”
Runners-up: I gotta go with “Intouchables” here. It seems like this year’s nominees are all ‘meaningful’ films. It’s be nice to see a comedy-drama sneak up and steal a spot amongst all this importance.
Great Inclusion: “No”
Will Win: “Amour”, sadly. It’s been WINNING PREVIOUS AWARDS LIKE THE LA FILM CRITICS and the PALME D’OR WHICH MAKES MY HEAD EXPLODE!! WTF??!?!?!
Should Win: “No”, if for no other reason, to say “No” to “Amour”.

BEST ANIMATED FILM
“Brave,” Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman
“Frankenweenie,” Tim Burton
“ParaNorman,” Sam Fell and Chris Butler
“The Pirates! Band of Misfits,” Peter Lord
“Wreck-It Ralph,” Rich Moore

Glaring Omission: Pretty good year for animated films. The only nominee I wasn’t too impressed with was “ParaNorman”. The jokes landed flat, the tone was just too odd to enjoy and the kid-who-sees-the-dead-in-order-to-help-them thing was done better in “The Sixth Sense”.
Runners-up: Well, the best animated film I saw all year was “Finding Nemo 3D”. Does that count?
Great Inclusion: “The Pirates! Band of Misfits”. Did you see this movie? No? You should have. HILARIOUS. Great voice acting and a loose sense of humor that Aardman Animation is known for. And although I liked “Arthur Christmas”, it’s good to see Aardman back to stop-motion animation here. They are so ridiculously impressive with it, they deserve some kind of award for finishing these movies in the first place.
Will Win: “Wreck-It Ralph”. I’m picking “Ralph” ‘cause it won a ton of Annie Awards, even though “Brave” won big at the Visual Effects Society Awards.
Should Win: “Wreck-It Ralph”. I saw “Brave” twice, but that’s because I’m a huge Pixar fanatic. But “Brave” starts out really generic, the ‘ol oppressed-by-my-parents princess tale, but then becomes original halfway through when a spell takes hold of one of the parents. The typical wit and glorious action Pixar is known for is all on display. But “Wreck-It Ralph” is original from the get-go. And although not Pixar, the whole thing, as with all projects now at Disney, is supervised by Pixar legend John Lasseter, so when the film hits you with some heart at the end, “Wreck-It Ralph” hits the heart/laughs/action trifecta, coupled with outrageous animation and loads of inside jokes about video games.

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
“Argo,” Chris Terrio
“Beasts of the Southern Wild,” Lucy Alibar & Benh Zeitlin
“Life of Pi,” David Magee
“Lincoln,” Tony Kushner
“Silver Linings Playbook,” David O. Russell

Glaring Omission: Nothing really glaring here. More interesting is the inclusion of “Beasts of the Southern Wild”. It seems that something like “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” racked up more nominations for other awards leading up to Oscar.
Runners-up: “The Avengers”. Making the scope of that plot understandable, even to The Avengers uninitiated, and filling it with great dialogue while being true to the themes of heroes and Marvel lineage was quite a feat. Also “The Dark Knight Rises” script was a sprawling epic that held everything together nicely and wrapped up everything together cleanly.
Great Inclusion: “Lincoln”. Tony Kushner’s script was the co-star of that movie, and with a lesser actor in the lead, it might’ve been the star itself.
Will Win: “Lincoln”
Should Win: “Lincoln”, as much as I want to give it to “Argo”, the pontificating of “Lincoln” and the smooth-handed way in which a lot of information is relayed by the President is just cool.

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
“Amour,” Michael Haneke
“Django Unchained,” Quentin Tarantino
“Flight,” John Gatins
“Moonrise Kingdom,” Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola
“Zero Dark Thirty,” Mark Boal

Glaring Omission: Speaking of “Wreck-It Ralph”, no animated movies were nominated. “Ralph” is wall-to-wall originality, successfully setting up an entire world, populating it with interesting characters and a never-seen before plot. PLUS great dialogue.
Runners-up: “Amour”? Seriously”? That script is about ten pages long because NOTHING HAPPENS. So if you discard that festering sore of a script, you could replace it with the wildly creative “Seven Psychopaths”, and the Academy wouldn’t even have to feel like they’re pandering to a popular project. Martin McDonagh already has an Oscar for Best Short Film and his script for “In Bruges” was nominated. I would love to have seen the great story-within-a-story creativity of this film in the mix.
Great Inclusion: “Django Unchained”, ‘cause it don’t give a fuck.
Will Win: “Zero Dark Thirty”. I think it barely beats out “Django Unchained”, but a Golden Globes win could mean a “Django” upset
Should Win: “Django Unchained”. When “Zero Dark Thirty” gets a little bogged down in the procedural aspects of its plot, it reminds you that “Django” has no time for that. ‘Cause “Django” don’t give a fuck.

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
“5 Broken Cameras”
“The Gatekeepers”
“How to Survive a Plague”
“The Invisible War”
“Searching for Sugar Man”

Glaring Omission: I will admit to failing to do due diligence and not getting out to see all of these films this year. But I also didn’t see anything that wasn’t nominated, so at least I’m consistent…. But maybe “Bully”? I thought that was an annoyingly-made, yet effective, film.
Runners-up: See above.
Great Inclusion: “The Invisible War”. Hey, I saw that one!
Will Win: “Searching for Sugar Man”, it’s been winning many of the lead-up to Oscar awards
Should Win: “The Invisible War”. ‘Cause I saw it, and ‘cause it was excellent.

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
“Inocente,” Sean Fine and Andrea Nix Fine
“Kings Point,” Sari Gilman and Jedd Wider
“Mondays at Racine,” Cynthia Wade and Robin Honan
“Open Heart,” Kief Davidson and Cori Shepherd Stern
“Redemption,” Jon Alpert and Matthew O’Neill

OK, now I don’t feel too bad now. NO ONE’S seen these.

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
“Anna Karenina,” Seamus McGarvey
“Django Unchained,” Robert Richardson
“Life of Pi,” Claudio Miranda
“Lincoln,” Janusz Kaminski
“Skyfall,” Roger Deakins

Glaring Omission: Maybe “Les Miserables”? I didn’t see all that 48fps nonsense that might’ve made me root for “The Hobbit”, so I’m not left to think anything’s missing here. And certainly, with Richardson, Kaminski and Deakins, you’ve included possibly three of the best EVER shooters that have ever worked.
Runners-up: “The Impossible”, just for the mere task of coupling all the photography with the brilliant visual effects. And any year Wally Pfister shoots a film, you have to take him into account, and “The Dark Knight Rises” looked as good as anything he’s ever shot. Also, “The Master”’s 70MM look was elegant.
Great Inclusion: Roger Deakins. I left “Skyfall” thinking to myself that that was the best shot James Bond movie ever made. It was GORGEOUS.
Will Win: “Life of Pi”. I think this film sneaks past “Lincoln” to win here,
Should Win: “Skyfall”. Deakins DID win the American Society of Cinematographers Award, so he’s got a shot to break the long streak of being nominated and never winning, but that damn “Life of Pi” has been in the mix every time…

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
“Anna Karenina,” Jacqueline Durran
“Les Misérables,” Paco Delgado
“Lincoln,” Joanna Johnston
“Mirror Mirror,” Eiko Ishioka
“Snow White and the Huntsman,” Colleen Atwood

Glaring Omission: Did anyone else make a Snow White movie? No? Then, OK, no glaring omissions. I’m also always put off by having all the nominees be fantasy films or period pieces. How ‘bout “Magic Mike”, huh? GREAT costumes…you gotta admit…
Runners-up: “Moonrise Kingdom”. Once again, Wes Anderson movies defy all place and time and simply exist in Andersonville, where everyone dresses….like they’re in a Wes Anderson movie. His look is so distinct, maybe we throw it an Oscar nod? Also, if we’re gonna go period piece, go “Argo”, those guys were horribly ‘70s.
Great Inclusion: “Lincoln”. The old statehouses of America were filled with guys who looked just like they do in those old paintings. You know the ones.
Will Win: This one’s pretty wide open. I’m gonna go with “Snow White and the Huntsman” ‘cause they loooooooove Colleen Atwood.
Should Win: “Lincoln”, ‘cause Lincoln looked more like I know Lincoln looks than Snow White looked like I know Snow White looks (editor’s note: that is a stupid reason)

BEST FILM EDITING
“Argo,” William Goldenberg
“Life of Pi,” Tim Squyres
“Lincoln,” Michael Kahn
“Silver Linings Playbook,” Jay Cassidy and Crispin Struthers
“Zero Dark Thirty,” Dylan Tichenor and William Goldenberg

Glaring Omission: Outside of the latter half of “Zero Dark Thirty”, where are the action movies? Films like “The French Connection” set the standard for how modern-day, fast-paced films can be expertly edited, but there’s no “Skyfall”, no “Looper”, which edited not only action, but time-jumping, with ease
Runners-up: “Cloud Atlas”. I didn’t like it so much, but it was one of those films that didn’t work for me, but I did admire the effort, and film that jumps many locations and six time periods asked a lot of the editor. I was never lost and the film kept a tight pace.
Great Inclusion: “Argo”, for doing the exact opposite of an action film, and finding a pace that coaxed a real tension out of the movie, without having to move at Jason Bourne-like speed. Plus, there was constant continent-jumping and sharp ability to support a film that can jump tone from tense to light.
Will Win: “Argo”
Should Win: “Argo”

BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
“Hitchcock,” Howard Berger, Peter Montagna and Martin Samuel
“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” Peter Swords King, Rick Findlater and Tami Lane
“Les Misérables,” Westcott and Julie Dartnell

Glaring Omission: “Cloud Atlas”? Nobody’s been singing its praises, but perhaps they should. ‘Cause not only is there a good makeup design here that decorates different worlds and time periods, but the makeup often has to modify the same actor in each of those time periods.
Runners-up: “Looper”, for making JGL look like a young Bruce Willis.
Great Inclusion: “Les Miserables”, for achievement in muck-making
Will Win: “The Hobbit”, probably for the mere AMOUNT of makeup and wigging.
Should Win: “Les Miserables”

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
“Anna Karenina,” Dario Marianelli
“Argo,” Alexandre Desplat
“Life of Pi,” Mychael Danna
“Lincoln,” John Williams
“Skyfall,” Thomas Newman

Glaring Omission: I expected animated scores to be represented here. They’re usually pretty lively and you can whistle ‘em. The “Brave” score, especially, did a fine job of incorporating Scottish musicality into its melodies. And outside of Bond, no real action movies represented, either. I left the theater humming the theme from “The Avengers”. The only composer whose work sticks with me anymore is Michael Giacchino, so to be humming someone ELSE’s music was a big deal (thanks, Alan Silvestri). By the way, Giacchino’s animated score won an Oscar (“Up”).
Runners-up: Well, the best score I heard all year was “Raiders of the Lost Ark” in IMAX. Does that count? Also, “Beasts of the Southern Wild” had a cool score that didn’t entirely mimic the music of Louisiana. It found its own style, often dreamy, and still worked. And is “The Dark Knight Rises” score “original” since it incorporates themes from the previous Batman films? I loved it, and it might be one of the more mimicked scores of the year.
Great Inclusion: “Lincoln”. Is this even a category without John Williams?
Will Win: “Skyfall”. I think it’s got a real chance. And I love all those Bond scores that incorporate old Bond scores AND the theme song into the music.
Should Win: “Skyfall”

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
“Before My Time” from “Chasing Ice,” Music and Lyric by J. Ralph
“Everybody Needs A Best Friend” from “Ted,” Music by Walter Murphy; Lyric by Seth MacFarlane
“Pi’s Lullaby” from “Life of Pi,” Music by Mychael Danna; Lyric by Bombay Jayashri
“Skyfall” from “Skyfall,” Music and Lyric by Adele Adkins and Paul Epworth
“Suddenly” from “Les Misérables,” Music by Claude-Michel Schönberg; Lyric by Herbert Kretzmer and Alain Boublil

Glaring Omission: Once again, no animated films! Not too long ago, animated movies DOMINATED this category, with Alan Menken bleeding gold out of the Academy for nearly a decade. But these aren’t the old days, and even Will Smith put out a “Men in Black” movie and didn’t record a song. We were instead served up a Pitbull tune that’s impossible to listen to.
Runners-up: In fact, there’s only one song outside of one that’s nominated that I even remember hearing, let alone remembering how it goes, and that’s “Live to Rise” by Soundgarden from “The Avengers”. And even that is unremarkable by Soundgarden standards.
Great Inclusion: “Skyfall”, an improvement on whatever the song from “Quantum of Solace” was.
Will Win: “Skyfall”
Should Win: “Skyfall”,

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
“Anna Karenina” (Production Design: Sarah Greenwood; Set Decoration: Katie Spencer)
“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” (Production Design: Dan Hennah; Set Decoration: Ra Vincent and Simon Bright)
“Les Misérables” (Production Design: Eve Stewart; Set Decoration: Anna Lynch-Robinson)
“Life of Pi” (Production Design: David Gropman; Set Decoration: Anna Pinnock)
“Lincoln” (Production Design: Rick Carter; Set Decoration: Jim Erickson)

Glaring Omission: Much like the costume category, there’s a distinct lack of contemporary design. “Skyfall” won the Art Director’s Guild Award, so I thought they might be represented here.
Runners-up: But for my money, the real winner is “Zero Dark Thirty” for the authenticity of not only the bin Laden compound, but all the war zones and foreign locations. “Argo”’s place and time were also expertly recreated in the Hollywood, Washington and Iran locations.
Great Inclusion: “Lincoln”. Spielberg’s team, outside of “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull”, has been on top of their game for years now.
Will Win: “Anna Karenina”, my guess is they’ll award ‘fancy’, just edging out “Life of Pi”, which is mostly visual effects.
Should Win: “Lincoln”

BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM
“Adam and Dog” (Minkyu Lee)
“Fresh Guacamole” (PES)
“Head over Heels” (Timothy Reckart and Fodhla Cronin O’Reilly)
“Maggie Simpson in “The Longest Daycare”” (David Silverman)
“Paperman” (John Kahrs)

BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
“Asad” (Bryan Buckley and Mino Jarjoura)
“Buzkashi Boys” (Sam French and Ariel Nasr)
“Curfew” (Shawn Christensen)
“Death of a Shadow (Dood van een Schaduw)” (Tom Van Avermaet and Ellen De Waele)
“Henry” (Yan England)

One of the great misfortunes of this year was that I missed all the short nominees, except “Paperman”, which got a welcome theatrical run, playing with “Wreck-It Ralph”. “Paperman” is outstanding, a real valentine to love in the big city, with nods to old-school animation and Disney storytelling. Usually, I can make the LA screenings of all the shorts, the Academy itself screens them in their theater with Q&As with the filmmakers, but not this year, sadly. I believe they all show up on iTunes this week, so we all have some homework to do in this category.

BEST SOUND EDITING
“Argo” (Erik Aadahl and Ethan Van der Ryn)
“Django Unchained” (Wylie Stateman)
“Life of Pi” (Eugene Gearty and Philip Stockton)
“Skyfall” (Per Hallberg and Karen Baker Landers)
“Zero Dark Thirty” (Paul N.J. Ottosson)

Glaring Omission: I’m harping on it at this point, but straight-up action and animation are missing again. This category is all about the creation of sounds and sound effects and huge, green screen adventures or animated tales have thousands of visuals that aren’t real that are MADE real by the audio effects. I thought “The Avengers” would be nominated here, as well as maybe “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” or “Wreck-It Ralph”
Runners-up: The best use of audio I heard all year was in “The Impossible”. The re-creation of the 2004 tsunami was horrifying and made most horrifying by the sound effects of breaking, smashing, water, drowning, relentless, smothering – it was palpable. If it’s not too late, see that one in the theater.
Great Inclusion: “Django Unchained”. I saw “Reservoir Dogs” recently, and wasn’t aware just how 1992 that movie was. Tarantino’s technical elements have gone from “that indie feel” to top notch. He’s got a great crew, and the team that built all the western and gunfire FX are no exception.
Will Win: “Life of Pi”. For the Academy, this is like awarding an effects-laden action film, except they can feel smart about it.
Should Win: “Skyfall”. The Bond film with the best production value in the history of the franchise.

BEST SOUND MIXING
“Argo” (John Reitz, Gregg Rudloff and Jose Antonio Garcia)
“Les Misérables” (Andy Nelson, Mark Paterson and Simon Hayes)
“Life of Pi” (Ron Bartlett, D.M. Hemphill and Drew Kunin)
“Lincoln” (Nelson, Gary Rydstrom and Ronald Judkins)
“Skyfall” (Scott Millan, Greg P. Russell and Stuart Wilson)

Glaring Omission: Again “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey”, again “Wreck-It Ralph”
Runners-up: “Les Miz” wasn’t the only musical out there. What about “Joyful Noise”, man? “Rock of Ages”? Something like “Pirates!: Band of Misfits” would do well to be nominated here because of the life the sound mix gave to CLAY!!!
Great Inclusion: “Les Miserables”. The whole let’s-record-the-actors-on-set thing and mix it with the music later was rather ingenious, and brought out the best (and worst) in the actors, so I think for that experiment…
Will Win: …”Les Miz” will win.
Should Win: Sticking by “Skyfall”, ‘cause “Les Miz” did bring out the worst in some of the actors!

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” (Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon, David Clayton and R. Christopher White)
“Life of Pi” (Bill Westenhofer, Guillaume Rocheron, Erik-Jan De Boer and Donald R. Elliott)
“Marvel’s The Avengers” (Janek Sirrs, Jeff White, Guy Williams and Dan Sudick)
“Prometheus” (Richard Stammers, Trevor Wood, Charley Henley and Martin Hill)
“Snow White and the Huntsman” (Cedric Nicolas-Troyan, Philip Brennan, Neil Corbould and Michael Dawson)

Glaring Omission: “THE IMPOSSIBLE”! That tsunami, if I may gush again, was so horrifying, and I gotta believe that very, very little of it was actual water crushing people and buildings. Those long shots of Naomi Watts and Tom Holland floating on a mattress in the middle of a giant wave of water filled with debris and cars and buildings and trees – HOW THE HELL DID THEY DO THAT? And anytime you ask that question – Oscar.
Runners-up: “Cloud Atlas”. Looked great! Not really sure what it was about, but it looked great. “Total Recall” was also super-slick and sharp about its integrated effects. Bought every inch of that weird future world, from minute details in the living spaces to the giant train that roared through the center of the Earth. “The Amazing Spider-Man” benefited from being released in 2012. The effects were noticeably improved from 2002, allowing the director to craft really exciting action sequences that trumped what’s been done in the past with this franchise. And “Wrath of the Titans” LOOKED great. Too bad it really, really sucked.
Great Inclusion: “Prometheus”, if for no other reason than the ‘abortion’ scene.
Will Win: “Life of Pi”
Should Win: “The Avengers”. I was just in New York City recently, and it looked nothing like it did at the end of this movie. That VFX in action.

That’s it! Tune in Sunday, Feb. 24th for the awards, and let’s rejoice that it’s less than three months until “Star Trek: In Darkness” and “Iron Man 3” are in theaters!

Self-congratulation is still the rage in TinselTown. Let’s jump in, shall we? Here are all the awards that will go out week after week until the Oscars, February 24th, 2013.

(In Nominee lists, the winners are in BOLD)

JANUARY 10, 2012
THE ACADEMY AWARDS

BEST PICTURE
“Amour”
“Argo”
“Beasts of the Southern Wild”
“Django Unchained”
“Les Misérables”
“Life of Pi”
“Lincoln”
“Silver Linings Playbook”
“Zero Dark Thirty”

BEST ACTOR
Bradley Cooper in “Silver Linings Playbook”
Daniel Day-Lewis in “Lincoln”
Hugh Jackman in “Les Misérables”
Joaquin Phoenix in “The Master”
Denzel Washington in “Flight”

BEST ACTRESS
Jessica Chastain in “Zero Dark Thirty”
Jennifer Lawrence in “Silver Linings Playbook”
Emmanuelle Riva in “Amour”
Quvenzhané Wallis in “Beasts of the Southern Wild”
Naomi Watts in “The Impossible”

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Alan Arkin in “Argo”
Robert De Niro in “Silver Linings Playbook”
Philip Seymour Hoffman in “The Master”
Tommy Lee Jones in “Lincoln”
Christoph Waltz in “Django Unchained”

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Amy Adams in “The Master”
Sally Field in “Lincoln”
Anne Hathaway in “Les Misérables”
Helen Hunt in “The Sessions”
Jacki Weaver in “Silver Linings Playbook”

BEST DIRECTOR
“Amour,” Michael Haneke
“Beasts of the Southern Wild,” Benh Zeitlin
“Life of Pi,” Ang Lee
“Lincoln,” Steven Spielberg
“Silver Linings Playbook,” David O. Russell

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
“Amour,” Austria
“Kon-Tiki,” Norway
“No,” Chile
“A Royal Affair,” Denmark
“War Witch,” Canada

BEST ANIMATED FILM
“Brave,” Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman
“Frankenweenie,” Tim Burton
“ParaNorman,” Sam Fell and Chris Butler
“The Pirates! Band of Misfits,” Peter Lord
“Wreck-It Ralph,” Rich Moore

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
“Argo,” Chris Terrio
“Beasts of the Southern Wild,” Lucy Alibar & Benh Zeitlin
“Life of Pi,” David Magee
“Lincoln,” Tony Kushner
“Silver Linings Playbook,” David O. Russell

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
“Amour,” Michael Haneke
“Django Unchained,” Quentin Tarantino
“Flight,” John Gatins
“Moonrise Kingdom,” Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola
“Zero Dark Thirty,” Mark Boal

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
“5 Broken Cameras”
“The Gatekeepers”
“How to Survive a Plague”
“The Invisible War”
“Searching for Sugar Man”

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
“Inocente,” Sean Fine and Andrea Nix Fine
“Kings Point,” Sari Gilman and Jedd Wider
“Mondays at Racine,” Cynthia Wade and Robin Honan
“Open Heart,” Kief Davidson and Cori Shepherd Stern
“Redemption,” Jon Alpert and Matthew O’Neill

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
“Anna Karenina,” Seamus McGarvey
“Django Unchained,” Robert Richardson
“Life of Pi,” Claudio Miranda
“Lincoln,” Janusz Kaminski
“Skyfall,” Roger Deakins

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
“Anna Karenina,” Jacqueline Durran
“Les Misérables,” Paco Delgado
“Lincoln,” Joanna Johnston
“Mirror Mirror,” Eiko Ishioka
“Snow White and the Huntsman,” Colleen Atwood

BEST FILM EDITING
“Argo,” William Goldenberg
“Life of Pi,” Tim Squyres
“Lincoln,” Michael Kahn
“Silver Linings Playbook,” Jay Cassidy and Crispin Struthers
“Zero Dark Thirty,” Dylan Tichenor and William Goldenberg

BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
“Hitchcock,” Howard Berger, Peter Montagna and Martin Samuel
“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” Peter Swords King, Rick Findlater and Tami Lane
“Les Misérables,” Westcott and Julie Dartnell

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
“Anna Karenina,” Dario Marianelli
“Argo,” Alexandre Desplat
“Life of Pi,” Mychael Danna
“Lincoln,” John Williams
“Skyfall,” Thomas Newman

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
“Before My Time” from “Chasing Ice,” Music and Lyric by J. Ralph
“Everybody Needs A Best Friend” from “Ted,” Music by Walter Murphy; Lyric by Seth MacFarlane
“Pi’s Lullaby” from “Life of Pi,” Music by Mychael Danna; Lyric by Bombay Jayashri
“Skyfall” from “Skyfall,” Music and Lyric by Adele Adkins and Paul Epworth
“Suddenly” from “Les Misérables,” Music by Claude-Michel Schönberg; Lyric by Herbert Kretzmer and Alain Boublil

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
“Anna Karenina” (Production Design: Sarah Greenwood; Set Decoration: Katie Spencer)
“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” (Production Design: Dan Hennah; Set Decoration: Ra Vincent and Simon Bright)
“Les Misérables” (Production Design: Eve Stewart; Set Decoration: Anna Lynch-Robinson)
“Life of Pi” (Production Design: David Gropman; Set Decoration: Anna Pinnock)
“Lincoln” (Production Design: Rick Carter; Set Decoration: Jim Erickson)

BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM
“Adam and Dog” (Minkyu Lee)
“Fresh Guacamole” (PES)
“Head over Heels” (Timothy Reckart and Fodhla Cronin O’Reilly)
“Maggie Simpson in “The Longest Daycare”” (David Silverman)
“Paperman” (John Kahrs)

BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
“Asad” (Bryan Buckley and Mino Jarjoura)
“Buzkashi Boys” (Sam French and Ariel Nasr)
“Curfew” (Shawn Christensen)
“Death of a Shadow (Dood van een Schaduw)” (Tom Van Avermaet and Ellen De Waele)
“Henry” (Yan England)

BEST SOUND EDITING
“Argo” (Erik Aadahl and Ethan Van der Ryn)
“Django Unchained” (Wylie Stateman)
“Life of Pi” (Eugene Gearty and Philip Stockton)
“Skyfall” (Per Hallberg and Karen Baker Landers)
“Zero Dark Thirty” (Paul N.J. Ottosson)

BEST SOUND MIXING
“Argo” (John Reitz, Gregg Rudloff and Jose Antonio Garcia)
“Les Misérables” (Andy Nelson, Mark Paterson and Simon Hayes)
“Life of Pi” (Ron Bartlett, D.M. Hemphill and Drew Kunin)
“Lincoln” (Nelson, Gary Rydstrom and Ronald Judkins)
“Skyfall” (Scott Millan, Greg P. Russell and Stuart Wilson)

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” (Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon, David Clayton and R. Christopher White)
“Life of Pi” (Bill Westenhofer, Guillaume Rocheron, Erik-Jan De Boer and Donald R. Elliott)
“Marvel’s The Avengers” (Janek Sirrs, Jeff White, Guy Williams and Dan Sudick)
“Prometheus” (Richard Stammers, Trevor Wood, Charley Henley and Martin Hill)
“Snow White and the Huntsman” (Cedric Nicolas-Troyan, Philip Brennan, Neil Corbould and Michael Dawson)

JANUARY 14, 2012
DIRECTOR’S GUILD AWARDS

BEST DIRECTOR, FEATURE
Ben Affleck, ARGO
Kathryn Bigelow, ZERO DARK THIRTY
Tom Hooper, LES MISERABLES
Ang Lee, LIFE OF PI
Steven Spielberg, LINCOLN

BEST DIRECTOR, DOCUMENTARY
Malik Bendjelloul, SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN
Kirby Dick, THE INVISIBLE WAR
David France, HOW TO SURVIVE A PLAGUE
Lauren Greenfield, THE QUEEN OF VERSAILLES
Alison Klayman, AL WELWEL: NEVER SORRY

JANUARY 9, 2012
AMERICAN SOCIETY OF CINEMATOGRAPHERS AWARDS

Seamus McGarvey, ANNA KARENINA
Danny Cohen, LES MISERABLES
Claudio Miranda, LIFE OF PI
Janusz Kaminski, LINCOLN
Roger Deakins, SKYFALL

JANUARY 8, 2012
CINEMA AUDIO SOCIETY AWARDS

MOTION PICTURE – LIVE ACTION
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Les Misérables
Lincoln
Skyfall
Zero Dark Thirty

MOTION PICTURE – ANIMATED
Brave
Frankenweenie
The Lorax
Rise Of The Guardians
Wreck-It Ralph

JANUARY 8, 2012
BAFTA AWARDS

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
ARGO, Chris Terrio
BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD, Lucy Alibar, Benh Zeitlin
LIFE OF PI, David Magee
LINCOLN, Tony Kushner
SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK, David O. Russell

ANIMATED FILM
BRAVE
FRANKENWEENIE
PARANORMAN

CINEMATOGRAPHY
Anna Karenina
Les Misérables
Life Of Pi
Lincoln
Skyfall

COSTUME DESIGN
Anna Karenina
Great Expectations
Les Misérables
Lincoln
Snow White And The Huntsman

DIRECTOR
Michael Haneke, AMOUR
Ben Affleck, ARGO
Quentin Tarantino, DJANGO UNCHAINED
Ang Lee, LIFE OF PI
Kathryn Bigelow, ZERO DARK THIRTY

DOCUMENTARY
The Imposter
McCullin
Searching For Sugar Man
Marley
West Of Memphis

EDITING
Argo
Django Unchained
Life Of Pi
Skyfall
Zero Dark Thirty

BEST FILM
Argo
Les Misérables
Life Of Pi
Lincoln
Zero Dark Thirty

FILM NOT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE
Amour
Headhunters
The Hunt
Rust And Bone
Untouchable

LEADING ACTOR
Ben Affleck, ARGO
Bradley Cooper, SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK
Daniel Day-Lewis, LINCOLN
Hugh Jackman, LES MISERABLES
Joaquin Phoenix, THE MASTER

LEADING ACTRESS
Emmanuelle Riva, AMOUR
Helen Mirren, HITCHCOCK
Jennifer Lawrence, SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK
Jessica Chastain, ZERO DARK THIRTY
Marion Cotillard, RUST AND BONE

MAKEUP AND HAIR
Anna Karenina
Hitchcock
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Les Misérables
Lincoln

ORIGINAL FILM MUSIC
ARGO, Alexandre Desplat
ANNA KARENINA, Dario Marianelli
LIFE OF PI, Mychael Danna
LINCOLN, John Williams
SKYFALL, Thomas Newman

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
AMOUR, Michael Haneke
DJANGO UNCHAINED, Quentin Tarantino
THE MASTER, Paul Thomas Anderson
MOONRISE KINGDOM, Wes Anderson, Roman Coppola
ZERO DARK THIRTY, Mark Boal

OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM
Anna Karenina
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Les Misérables
Seven Psychopaths
Skyfall

PRODUCTION DESIGN
Anna Karenina
Les Misérables
Life Of Pi
Lincoln
Skyfall

SHORT ANIMATION
Here To Fall
I’m Fine Thanks
The Making Of Longbird

SHORT FILM
The Curse
Good Night
Swimmer
Tumult
The Voorman Problem

SOUND
Django Unchained
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Les Misérables
Life Of Pi
Skyfall

SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS
The Dark Knight Rises
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Life Of Pi
Prometheus
Marvel Avengers Assemble

SUPPORTING ACTOR
Alan Arkin, ARGO
Christoph Waltz, DJANGO UNCHAINED
Javier Bardem, SKYFALL
Philip Seymour Hoffman, THE MASTER
Tommy Lee Jones, LINCOLN

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams, THE MASTER
Anne Hathaway, LES MISERABLES
Helen Hunt, THE SESSIONS
Judi Dench, SKYFALL
Sally Field, LINCOLN

JANUARY 7, 2012
VISUAL EFFECTS SOCIETY AWARDS

OUTSTANDING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A VISUAL EFFECTS-DRIVEN FEATURE – MOTION PICTURE
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Prometheus
Life of Pi
The Avengers
Battleship

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING VISUAL EFFECTS IN A FEATURE MOTION PICTURE
Rust and Bone
The Impossible
Argo
Flight
Zero Dark Thirty

OUSTANDING ANIMATION IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE MOTION PICTURE
Brave
ParaNorman
Rise of the Guardians
Wreck-It Ralph
Hotel Transylvania

OUTSTANDING ANIMATED CHARACTER IN A LIVE ACTION FEATURE MOTION PICTURE
The Hobbit: Goblin King
The Hobbit: Gollum
The Avengers: The Hulk
Life of Pi: Richard Parker

OUTSTANDING ANIMATED CHARACTER IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE MOTION PICTURE
Brave: Merida
Hotel Transylvania: Dracula
Wreck-It Ralph: Vanellope
The Pirates: Band of Misfits

OUTSTANDING CREATED ENVIRONMENT IN A LIVE ACTION FEATURE MOTION PICTURE
The Hobbit: Goblin Caverns
Prometheus: LV-233
The Avengers: Midtown Manhattan
Life of Pi: Open Ocean

OUTSTANDING CREATED ENVIRONMENT IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE MOTION PICTURE
Brave: The Forest
ParaNorman: Graveyard
ParaNorman: Main Street
Rise of the Guardians: The North Pole

OUTSTANDING VIRTUAL CINEMATOGRAPHY IN A LIVE ACTION FEATURE MOTION PICTURE
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
The Avengers: Downtown Manhattan
Total Recall: Hover Car Chase
The Amazing Spider-Man

OUTSTANDING MODELS IN A FEATURE MOTION PICTURE
The Avengers: Helicarrier
The Impossible: Orchid Hotel
Men in Black 3: Cape Canaveral/ Apollo Launch
The Dark Knight Rises: Airplane Heist

OUTSTANDING FX AND SIMULATION ANIMATION IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE MOTION PICTURE
Brave
ParaNorman: Practical Volumetrics
ParaNorman: Angry Aggie Ink-Blot Electricity
Rise of the Guardians: Last Stand

OUTSTANDING FX AND SIMULATION ANIMATION IN A LIVE ACTION FEATURE MOTION PICTURE
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Life of Pi: Storm of God
Battleship
Life of Pi: Ocean

OUTSTANDING COMPOSITING IN A FEATURE MOTION PICTURE
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Life of Pi: Storm of God
The Avengers: Hulk Punch
Prometheus: Engineers & the Orrery

JANUARY 4, 2012
WRITERS’ GUILD AWARDS

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
FLIGHT, John Gatins
LOOPER, Rian Johnson
THE MASTER, Paul Thomas Anderson
MOONRISE KINGDOM, Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola
ZERO DARK THIRTY, Mark Boal

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
ARGO, Chris Terrio
LIFE OF PI, David Magee
LINCOLN, Tony Kushner
THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER, Stephen Chbosky
SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK, David O. Russell

DOCUMENTARY SCREENPLAY
THE CENTRAL PARK FIVE, Sarah Burns, David McMahon and Ken Burns
THE INVISIBLE WAR, Kirby Dick
MEA MAXIMA CULPA: SILENCE IN THE HOUSE OF GOD, Alex Gibney
SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN, Malik Bendejelloul
WE ARE LEGION: THE STORY OF THE HACKTIVISTS, Brian Knappenberger
WEST OF MEMPHIS, Amy Berg & Billy McMillin

JANUARY 2, 2012
ART DIRECTOR’S GUILD AWARDS

PERIOD FILM
ANNA KARENINA, Production Designer: Sarah Greenwood
ARGO, Production Designer: Sharon Seymour
DJANGO UNCHAINED, Production Designer: J. Michael Riva
LES MISÉRABLES, Production Designer: Eve Stewart
LINCOLN, Production Designer: Rick Carter

FANTASY FILM
CLOUD ATLAS, Production Designer: Uli Hanisch, Hugh Bateup
LIFE OF PI, Production Designer: David Gropman
PROMETHEUS, Production Designer: Arthur Max
THE DARK KNIGHT RISES, Production Designer: Nathan Crowley, Kevin Kavanaugh
THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY, Production Designer: Dan Hannah

CONTEMPORARY FILM
FLIGHT, Production Designer: Nelson Coates
SKYFALL, Production Designer: Dennis Gassner
THE BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTEL, Production Designer: Alan MacDonald
THE IMPOSSIBLE, Production Designer: Eugenio Caballero
ZERO DARK THIRTY, Production Designer: Jeremy Hindle

DECEMBER 11, 2012
CRTICS CHOICE AWARDS

BEST PICTURE
Argo
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Django Unchained
Les Misérables
Life of Pi
Lincoln
The Master
Moonrise Kingdom
Silver Linings Playbook
Zero Dark Thirty

BEST ACTOR
Bradley Cooper – “Silver Linings Playbook”
Daniel Day-Lewis – “Lincoln”
John Hawkes – “The Sessions”
Hugh Jackman – “Les Misérables”
Joaquin Phoenix – “The Master”
Denzel Washington – “Flight”

BEST ACTRESS
Jessica Chastain – “Zero Dark Thirty”
Marion Cotillard – “Rust and Bone”
Jennifer Lawrence – “Silver Linings Playbook”
Emmanuelle Riva – “Amour”
Quvenzhané Wallis – “Beasts of the Southern Wild”
Naomi Watts – “The Impossible”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Alan Arkin – “Argo”
Javier Bardem – “Skyfall”
Robert De Niro – “Silver Linings Playbook”
Philip Seymour Hoffman – “The Master”
Tommy Lee Jones – “Lincoln”
Matthew McConaughey – “Magic Mike”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams – “The Master”
Judi Dench – “Skyfall”
Ann Dowd – “Compliance”
Sally Field – “Lincoln”
Anne Hathaway – “Les Misérables”
Helen Hunt – “The Sessions”

BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS
Elle Fanning – “Ginger & Rosa”
Kara Hayward – “Moonrise Kingdom”
Tom Holland – “The Impossible”
Logan Lerman – “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”
Suraj Sharma – “Life of Pi”
Quvenzhané Wallis – “Beasts of the Southern Wild”

BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE
Argo
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Les Misérables
Lincoln
Moonrise Kingdom
Silver Linings Playbook

BEST DIRECTOR
Ben Affleck – “Argo”
Kathryn Bigelow – “Zero Dark Thirty”
Tom Hooper – “Les Misérables”
Ang Lee – “Life of Pi”
David O. Russell – “Silver Linings Playbook”
Steven Spielberg – “Lincoln”

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Quentin Tarantino – “Django Unchained”
John Gatins – “Flight”
Rian Johnson – “Looper”
Paul Thomas Anderson – “The Master”
Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola – “Moonrise Kingdom”
Mark Boal – “Zero Dark Thirty”

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Chris Terrio – “Argo”
David Magee – “Life of Pi”
Tony Kushner – “Lincoln”
Stephen Chbosky – “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”
David O. Russell – “Silver Linings Playbook”

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
“Les Misérables” – Danny Cohen
“Life of Pi” – Claudio Miranda
“Lincoln” – Janusz Kaminski
“The Master” – Mihai Malaimare Jr.

DECEMBER 12, 2012
THE SCREEN ACTORS GUILD AWARDS

ACTOR:
Bradley Cooper – Silver Linings Playbook
Daniel Day-Lewis – Lincoln
John Hawkes – The Sessions
Hugh Jackman – Les Misérables
Denzel Washington – Flight

ACTRESS:
Jessica Chastain – Zero Dark Thirty
Marion Cotillard – Rust and Bone
Jennifer Lawrence – Silver Linings Playbook
Helen Mirren – Hitchcock
Naomi Watts – The Impossible

SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Alan Arkin – Argo
Javier Bardem – Skyfall
Robert De Nrio – Silver Linings Playbook
Philip Seymour Hoffman – The Master
Tommy Lee Jones – Lincoln

SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Sally Field – Lincoln
Anne Hathaway – Les Misérables
Helen Hunt – The Sessions
Nicole Kidman – The Paperboy
Maggie Smith – The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

ENSEMBLE CAST:
ARGO – Ben Affleck, Alan Arkin, Kerry Bishé, Kyle Chandler, Rory Cochrane, Bryan Cranston, Christopher Denham, Tate Donovan, Clea Duvall, Victor Garber, John Goodman, Scoot Mcnairy, Chris Messina
THE BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTEL – Judi Dench, Celia Imrie, Bill Nighy, Dev Patel, Ronald Pickup, Maggie Smith, Tom Wilkinson, Penelope Wilton
LES MISERABLES – Isabelle Allen, Samantha Barks, Sacha Baron Cohen, Helena Bonham Carter, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway, Daniel Huttlestone, Hugh Jackman, Eddie Redmayne, Amanda Seyfried, Aaron Tveit, Colm Wilkinson
LINCOLN – Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Hal Holbrook, Tommy Lee Jones, James Spader, David Strathairn
SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK – Bradley Cooper, Robert De Niro, Anupam Kher, Jennifer Lawrence, Chris Tucker, Jacki Weaver

ENSEMBLE STUNTS:
The Amazing Spider-Man
The Bourne Legacy
The Dark Knight Rises
Les Misérables
Skyfall

DECEMBER 13, 2012
THE GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS

Best motion picture – drama
“Argo”
“Django Unchained”
“Life of Pi”
“Lincoln”
“Zero Dark Thirty”

Best performance by an actress in a motion picture – drama
Jessica Chastain, “Zero Dark Thirty”
Marion Cotillard, “Rust and Bone”
Helen Mirren, “Hitchcock”
Naomi Watts, “The Impossible”
Rachel Weisz, “The Deep Blue Sea”

Best performance by an actor in a motion picture – drama
Daniel Day-Lewis, “Lincoln”
Richard Gere, “Arbitrage”
John Hawkes, “The Sessions”
Joaquin Phoenix, “The Master”
Denzel Washington, “Flight”

Best motion picture – comedy or musical
“The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel”
“Les Misérables”
“Moonrise Kingdom”
“Salmon Fishing in the Yemen”
“Silver Linings Playbook”

Best performance by an actress in a motion picture – comedy or musical
Emily Blunt, “Salmon Fishing in the Yemen”
Judi Dench, “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel”
Jennifer Lawrence, “Silver Linings Playbook”
Maggie Smith, “Quartet”
Meryl Streep, “Hope Springs”

Best performance by an actor in a motion picture – comedy or musical
Jack Black, “Bernie”
Bradley Cooper, “Silver Linings Playbook”
Hugh Jackman, “Les Misérables”
Ewan McGregor, “Salmon Fishing in the Yemen”
Bill Murray, “Hyde Park on Hudson”

Best animated feature film
“Brave”
“Frankenweenie”
“Hotel Transylvania”
“Wreck-It Ralph”
“Rise of the Guardians”

Best foreign language film
“Amour” (Austria)
“A Royal Affair” (Denmark)
“The Intouchables” (France)
“Kon-Tiki” (Norway/U.K./Denmark)
“Rust and Bone” (France)

Best performance by an actress in a supporting role in a motion picture
Amy Adams, “The Master”
Sally Field, “Lincoln”
Anne Hathaway, “Les Misérables”
Helen Hunt, “The Sessions”
Nicole Kidman, “The Paperboy”

Best performance by an actor in a supporting role in a motion picture
Leonardo DiCaprio, “Django Unchained”
Alan Arkin, “Argo”
Tommy Lee Jones, “Lincoln”
Philip Seymour Hoffman, “The Master”
Christoph Waltz, “Django Unchained”

Best director – motion picture
Ben Affleck, “Argo”
Kathryn Bigelow, “Zero Dark Thirty”
Ang Lee, “Life of Pi”
Steven Spielberg, “Lincoln”
Quentin Tarantino, “Django Unchained”

Best screenplay – motion picture
Mark Boal, “Zero Dark Thirty”
Tony Kushner, “Lincoln”
David O. Russell, “Silver Linings Playbook”
Quentin Tarantino, “Django Unchained”
Chris Terrio, “Argo”

Best original score – motion picture
Mychael Danna, “Life of Pi”
Alexandre Desplat, “Argo”
Dario Marianelli, “Anna Karenina”
Tom Tykwer, Johnny Klimek, Reinhold Heil, “Cloud Atlas”
John Williams, “Lincoln”

Best original song – motion picture
“For You” (Music by Monty Powell, Keith Urban; Lyrics by Monty Powell, Keith Urban) – “Act of Valor”
“Not Running Anymore” (Music by Jon Bon Jovi; Lyrics by Jon Bon Jovi) – “Stand Up Guys”
“Safe & Sound” (Music by Taylor Swift, John Paul White, Joy Williams, T. Bone Burnett; Lyrics by Taylor Swift, John Paul White, Joy Williams, T. Bone Burnett) – “The Hunger Games”
“Skyfall” (Music by Adele, Paul Epworth; Lyrics by Adele, Paul Epworth) – “Skyfall”
“Suddenly” (Music by Claude-Michel Schonberg; Lyrics by Alain Boublil, Claude-Michel Schonberg) – “Les Misérables”

DECEMBER 10, 2012
AFI’s BEST FILMS OF 2012

Argo
Beasts of the Southern Wild
The Dark Knight Rises
Django Unchained
Les Miserables
Life of Pi
Lincoln
Moonrise Kingdom
Silver Linings Playbook
Zero Dark Thirty

DECEMBER 9, 2012
L.A. FILM CRITICS AWARDS (WINNERS)

Film: Amour. Runner-up: The Master.
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson, The Master. Runner-up: Kathryn Bigelow, Zero Dark Thirty.
Actor: Joaquin Phoenix, The Master. Runner-up: Denis Lavant, Holy Motors.
Actress: (Tie) Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook, Emmanuelle Riva, Amour.
Supporting actress: Amy Adams, The Master. Runner-up: Anne Hathaway, The Dark Knight Rises, Les Miserables.
Supporting actor: Dwight Henry, Beasts of the Southern Wild. Runner-up: Christoph Waltz, Django Unchained.
Screenplay: Chris Terrio, Argo. Runner-up: David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook.
Animation: Frankenweenie. Runner-up, It’s Such a Beautiful Day.
Documentary: The Gatekeepers. unner-up: Searching for Sugar Man.
Foreign-language film: Holy Motors (France). Runner-up: Footnote (Israel).
Cinematography: Roger Deakins, Skyfall. Runner-up: Mihai Malaimare Jr., The Master.
Film Editing: Dylan Tichenor, William Goldenberg, Zero Dark Thirty. Runner-up: William Goldenberg, Argo.
Score: Dan Romer, Benh Zeitlin, Beasts of the Southern Wild. Runner-up: Johnny Greenwood, The Master.
Production design: David Crank, Jack Fisk, The Master. Runner-up: Adam Stockhausen, Moonrise Kingdom.
Douglas Edwards Experimental/Independent Film/Video Award: Leviathan.
New Generation Award: Benh Zeitlin, Beasts of the Southern Wild.

DECEMBER 3, 2012
N.Y. FILM CRITIC’S CIRCLE AWARDS (WINNERS)

Best Film: “Zero Dark Thirty”

Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow, “Zero Dark Thirty”

Best Actor: Bradley Cooper, “Silver Linings Playbook”

Best Actress: Jessica Chastain, “Zero Dark Thirty”

Best Supporting Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio, “Django Unchained”

Best Supporting Actress: Ann Dowd, “Compliance”

Best Adapted Screenplay: “Silver Linings Playbook”

Best Original Screenplay: “Looper”

Best Animated Feature: “Wreck-It Ralph”

Breakthrough Actor: Tom Holland, “The Impossible”

Breakthrough Actress: Quvenzhané Wallis, “Beasts of the Southern Wild”

Best Directorial Debut: Benh Zeitlin, “Beasts of the Southern Wild”

Best Foreign Language Film: “Amour”

Best Documentary: “Searching for Sugar Man”

Best Ensemble: “Les Miserables”

Spotlight Award: John Goodman (“Argo,” “Flight,” “ParaNorman,” “Trouble with the Curve”)

NBR Freedom of Expression: “The Central Park Five”

NBR Freedom of Expression: “Promised Land”

Top Films (in alphabetical order) “Argo” “Beasts of the Southern Wild” “Django Unchained” “Les Miserables “Lincoln” “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” “Promised Land” “Silver Linings Playbook”

Top 5 Foreign Language Films (in alphabetical order) “Barbara” “The Intouchables” “The Kid with a Bike “No” “War Witch”

Top 5 Documentaries (in alphabetical order) “Ai Weiwie: Never Sorry” “Detropia” “The Gatekeepers “The Invisible War” “Only the Young”

Top 10 Independent Films (in alphabetical order) “Arbitrage” “Bernie” “Compliance” “End of Watch” “Hello I Must Be Going” “Little Birds” “Moonrise Kingdom” “On the Road” “Quartet” “Sleepwalk with Me”

DECEMBER 3, 2012
ANNIE AWARDS

BEST PICTURE
Brave – Disney/Pixar
Frankenweenie -The Walt Disney Studios
Hotel Transylvania – Sony Pictures Animation
ParaNorman – Focus Features
Rise of the Guardians – DreamWorks Animation
The Pirates! Band of Misfits – Aardman Animations
The Rabbi’s Cat – GKIDS
Wreck-It Ralph – Walt Disney Animation Studios

BEST ANIMATED SHORT SUBJECT
“Brad and Gary” – Illumination Entertainment
“Bydlo” – National Film Board of Canada
“Eyes on the Stars” – StoryCorps
“Goodnight Mr. Foot” – Sony Pictures Animation
“Kali the Little Vampire” – National Film Board of Canada
“Maggie Simpson in ‘The Longest Daycare’” – Gracie Films in Association with 20th Century Fox TV
“Paperman” – Walt Disney Animation Studios
“The Simpsons – ‘Bill Plympton Couch Gag’” – Gracie Films in Association with 20th Century Fox TV

ANIMATED EFFECTS IN AN ANIMATED PRODUCTION
Andrew Nawrot, Joe Gorski, Grant Laker – “ParaNorman”
Andrew Schneider “Ice Age: Continental Drift”
Andy Hayes, Carl Hooper, David Lipton – “Rise of the Guardians”
Bill Watral, Chris Chapman, Dave Hale, Keith Klohn, Michael K. O’Brien – “Brave”
Brett Albert – “Wreck-It Ralph”
Jihyun Yoon – “Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted”
Joel Aron – “Star Wars: The Clone Wars”

ANIMATED EFFECTS IN A LIVE-ACTION PRODUCTION
Jerome Platteaux, John Sigurdson, Ryan Hopkins, Raul Essig, Mark Chataway – “The Avengers”
Stephen Marshall, Joseph Pepper, Dustin Wicke – “The Amazing Spider-Man”
Sue Rowe, Simon Stanley-Clamp, Artemis Oikonomopoulou, Holger Voss, Nikki Makar, Catherine Elvidge – “John Carter”
Willi Geiger, Rick Hankins, Florent Andorra, Florian Witzel, Aron Bonar – “Battleship”

CHARACTER ANIMATION IN A FEATURE PRODUCTION
Dan Nguyen – “Brave”
David Pate – “Rise of the Guardians”
Jaime Landes – “Brave”
Phillppe LeBrun – “Rise of the Guardians”
Pierre Perifel – “Rise of the Guardians”
Travis Hathaway – “Brave”
Travis Knight – “ParaNorman”
Will Becher – “The Pirates! Band of Misfits”

CHARACTER ANIMATION IN A LIVE-ACTION PRODUCTION
“Life of Pi”
“The Avengers”
“The Amazing Spider-Man”

CHARACTER DESIGN IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE PRODUCTION
Bill Schwab, Lorelay Bove, Cory Loftis, Minkyu Lee – “Wreck-It Ralph”
Carlos Grangel – “Hotel Transylvania”
Carter Goodrich – “Hotel Transylvania”
Craig Kellman – “Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted”
Heidi Smith – “ParaNorman”
Yarrow Cheney, Eric Guillon, Colin Stimpson – “Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax”

DIRECTING IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE PRODUCTION
Genndy Tartakovsky, “Hotel Transylvania”
Johan Sfar, Antoine Delesvaux – “The Rabbi’s Cat”
Remi Bezancon, Jean-Christophe – “Lie Zarafa”
Rick Moore – “Wreck-It Ralph”
Sam Fell, Chris Butler – “ParaNorman”

MUSIC IN AN ANIMATED PRODUCTION
Alexandre Desplat – “Rise of the Guardians”
Bruce Retief Adventures in – “Zambezia”
Henry Jackman – “Wreck-It Ralph”
Joel McNeely, Brendan Milburn, Valerie Vigoda – “Secret of the Wings”
John Powell, Adam Schlesinger, Ester Dean – “Ice Age: Continental Drift”
John Powell, Cinco Paul – “Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax”
Mark Mothersbaugh Hotel – “Transylvania”
Patrick Doyle, Mark Andrews, Alex Mandel – “Brave”

PRODUCTION DESIGN IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE PRODUCTION
Kendal Cronkhite-Shaindlin, Shannon Jeffries, Lindsey Olivares, Kenard Pak – “Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted”
Marcelo Vignali – “Hotel Transylvania”
Nash Dunnigan, Arden Chen, Jon Townley, Kyle McNaughton – “Ice Age: Continental Drift”
Nelson Lowry, Ross Stewart, Pete Oswald, Ean McNamara, Trevor Dalmer – “ParaNorman”
Norman Garwood, Matt Berry – “The Pirates! Band of Misfits”
Patrick Hanenberger, Max Boas, Jayee Borcar, Woonyoung Jung, Perry Maple, Peter Maynez, Stan Seo, Felix Yoon – “Rise of the Guardians”
Rick Heintzich – “Frankenweenie”
Steve Pilcher – “Brave”

STORYBOARDING IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE PRODUCTION
Emmanuela Cozzi, “ParaNorman”
Johanne Matte, “Rise of the Guardians”
Leo Matsuda, “Wreck-It Ralph”
Lissa Treiman, “Wreck-It Ralph”
Rob Koo, “Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted”

VOICE ACTING IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE PRODUCTION
Adam Sandler as Dracula – “Hotel Transylvania”
Alan Tudyk as King Candy – “Wreck-It Ralph”
Atticus Shaffer as “E”Gore – “Frankenweenie”
Catherine O’Hara as Weird Girl – “Frankenweenie”
Imelda Staunton as Queen Victoria – “The Pirates! Band of Misfits”
Jim Cummings as Budzo – “Adventures in Zambezia”
Jude Law as Pitch – “Rise of the Guardians”
Kelly MacDonald as Merida – “Brave”

WRITING IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE PRODUCTION
Chris Butler – “ParaNorman”
Gideon Defoe – “The Pirates! Band of Misfits”
Hayao Miyazaki, Keiko Niwa, Karey Kirkpatrick – “From Up on Poppy Hill”
John August – “Frankenweenie”
Mark Andrews, Steve Purcell, Brenda Chapman, Irene Mecchi – “Brave”
Phil Johnston, Jennifer Lee – “Wreck-It Ralph”

EDITORIAL IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE PRODUCTION
Catherine Apple, “Hotel Transylvania”
Joyce Arrastia, “Rise of the Guardians”
Mark Rosenbaum, “Secret of the Wings”
Nicholas A. Smith, ACE, Robert Graham Jones, ACE, David Suther, “Brave”
Tim Mertens, “Wreck-It Ralph”

DECEMBER 3, 2012
N.Y. FILM CRITIC’S CIRCLE AWARDS (WINNERS)

Best Picture: Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis, Lincoln
Best Actress: Rachel Weisz, The Deep Blue Sea
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow, Zero Dark Thirty
Best Screenplay: Tony Kushner, Lincoln
Best Supporting Actor: Matthew McConaughey, Magic Mike and Bernie
Best Supporting Actress: Sally Field, Lincoln
Best Animated Film: Frankenweenie
Best Cinematographer: Greig Fraser, Zero Dark Thirty
Best First Film: How to Survive a Plague
Best Foreign Film: Amour

NOVEMBER 28, 2012
THE INDEPENDENT SPIRIT AWARDS

BEST FEATURE
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Bernie
Keep the Lights On
Moonrise Kingdom
Silver Linings Playbook

BEST DIRECTOR
Wes Anderson, Moonrise Kingdom
Julia Loktev, The Loneliest Planet
David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook
Ira Sachs, Keep the Lights On
Benh Zeitlin, Beasts of the Southern Wild

BEST SCREENPLAY
Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola, Moonrise Kingdom
Zoe Kazan, Ruby Sparks
Martin McDonagh, Seven Psychopaths
David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook
Ira Sachs, Keep the Lights On

BEST FIRST FEATURE (Award given to the director and producer)
Fill the Void
Gimme the Loot
Safety Not Guaranteed
Sound of My Voice
The Perks of Being a Wallflower

BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY
Rama Burshtein, Fill the Void
Derek Connolly, Safety Not Guaranteed
Christopher Ford, Robot & Frank
Rashida Jones & Will McCormack, Celeste and Jesse Forever
Jonathan Lisecki, Gayby

BEST FEMALE LEAD
Linda Cardellini, Return
Emayatzy Corinealdi, Middle of Nowhere
Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook
Quvenzhané Wallis, Beasts of the Southern Wild
Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Smashed

BEST MALE LEAD
Jack Black, Bernie
Bradley Cooper, Silver Linings Playbook
John Hawkes, The Sessions
Thure Lindhardt, Keep the Lights On
Matthew McConaughey, Killer Joe
Wendell Pierce, Four

BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE
Rosemarie DeWitt, Your Sister’s Sister
Ann Dowd, Compliance
Helen Hunt, The Sessions
Brit Marling, Sound of My Voice
Lorraine Toussaint, Middle of Nowhere

BEST SUPPORTING MALE
Matthew McConaughey, Magic Mike
David Oyelowo, Middle of Nowhere
Michael Péna, End of Watch
Sam Rockwell, Seven Psychopaths
Bruce Willis, Moonrise Kingdom

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Yoni Brook, Valley of Saints
Lol Crawley, Here
Ben Richardson, Beasts of the Southern Wild
Roman Vasyanov, End of Watch
Robert Yeoman, Moonrise Kingdom

BEST DOCUMENTARY (Award given to the director and producer)
“How to Survive a Plague”
DIRECTOR: David France
PRODUCERS: David France, Howard Gertler
“Marina Abramoviæ: The Artist is Present”
DIRECTOR: Matthew Akers
PRODUCERS: Maro Chermayeff, Jeff Dupre
“The Central Park Five”
DIRECTORS/PRODUCERS: Ken Burns, Sarah Burns, David McMahon
“The Invisible War”
DIRECTOR: Kirby Dick
PRODUCERS: Tanner King Barklow, Amy Ziering
“The Waiting Room”
DIRECTOR/PRODUCER: Peter Nicks
PRODUCERS: Linda Davis, William B. Hirsch

BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM (Award given to the director)
Amour
Once Upon A Time in Anatolia
Rust And Bone
Sister
War Witch

NOVEMBER 27, 2012
GOTHAM AWARDS (WINNERS)

Best Feature
MOONRISE KINGDOM

Audience Award
ARTIFACT

Best Documentary
HOW TO SURVIVE A PLAGUE

Best Director
Benh Zeitlin, BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD

Best Actor
Emayatzy Corinealdi, MIDDLE OF NOWHERE

Best Ensemble Award
Emily Blunt, Rosemarie Dewitt, Mark Duplass, YOUR SISTER’S SISTER

Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You Award
AN OVERSIMPLIFICATION OF HER BEAUTY
Terence Nance, director; Terence Nance, Andrew Corkin, James Bartlett, producers

NOVEMBER 22, 2011
What was that middle thing?

With a recent deal going down getting MGM out of some of its financial trouble, John Cleese says the musical of “A Fish Called Wanda” is closer to getting mounted. In fact, he’s on the hunt for a director now. This is one of the funniest movies ever made, they better not muck things up with a bunch of fruity singing.

This, of course, is all according to The Guardian, a British news source, so they’ve gotta know what Cleese is up to, right?
-PP

NOVEMBER 21, 2011
Better days…

“Please… no doctors”
-PP

NOVEMBER 20, 2011
Moviefone has a fun interview with the cast of “The Muppets”, including Segel, Adams, The Frog and Piggy. It’s pretty loose, so they talk over each other a bit, but when they get to Miss Piggy doing impersonation, the bit is so easy and so fun, it’s surprising that they haven’t done it before! Enjoy:

-PP

BEHOLD!

The Movie Guys bring you original videos about nothing but movies, movies, movies. View away, go nuts, and don’t hesitate to check out our YouTube page where you can subscribe to our channel, find embedding info and get more lowdown about the videos.

THE MOVIE GUYS’ SEPTEMBER MOVIE PREVIEW – “NO MORE SUPERHERO MOVIES”

Movie Guys Paul Preston, Lee Kias, David Beach and Jim Sloane give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in September. “No More Superhero Movies” covers the major releases of September 2nd & 9th, 2011, including SHARK NIGHT 3D, APOLLO 18, WARRIOR and CONTAGION.

THE MOVIE GUYS’ AUGUST MOVIE PREVIEW – “OUR IDIOT PREVIEWS”

Movie Guys Paul Preston, Lee Kias, Adam Witt and Karen Volpe give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in August. “Our Idiot Previews” covers the major releases of August 26th, 2011, including COLUMBIANA, DON’T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK and OUR IDIOT BROTHER.

THE MOVIE GUYS’ AUGUST MOVIE PREVIEW – “SEQUELS AND REMAKES AND REBOOTS, OH MY!”

Movie Guys Paul Preston, Lee Kias, Adam Witt and David Beach give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in August. “Sequels and Remakes and Reboots, Oh My!” covers the major releases of August 19th, 2011, including CONAN THE BARBARIAN 3D, SPY KIDS: ALL THE TIME IN THE WORLD and FRIGHT NIGHT.

THE MOVIE GUYS’ CONCERT MOVIE 3D

Movie Guys Paul Preston, Adam Witt, Lee Kias and David Beach give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in August. “The Movie Guys’ Concert Movie 3D” covers the major releases of August 12th, 2011, including 30 MINUTES OR LESS, FINAL DESTINATION 5 and GLEE: THE CONCERT MOVIE 3D

THE MOVIE GUYS’ AUGUST MOVIE PREVIEW – “THERE’S AN APE FOR THAT”

Movie Guys Paul Preston, Karen Volpe and David Beach give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in August. “There’s an Ape for That” covers the major releases of August 5th, 2011, including RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, THE CHANGE-UP and THE HELP.

THE MOVIE GUYS’ JULY MOVIE PREVIEW – “TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON”

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Lee Kias give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in July. Covered: TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON, a spectacle so big, it deserved it’s own preview show.

THE MOVIE GUYS’ JUNE MOVIE PREVIEW – “LATE JUNE WRAP-UP”

Movie Guys Paul Preston, Lee Kias and Steven Lewis give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in June. “Late June Wrap-Up” covers the major late-June movie releases GREEN LANTERN, MR. POPPER’S PENGUINS, CARS 2 and BAD TEACHER.

THE MOVIE GUYS’ JUNE MOVIE PREVIEW – “MAGICAL MYSTERY FILM”

Movie Guys Paul Preston, Adam Witt and Steven Lewis give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in June. “Magical Mystery Film” covers the closely-guarded SUPER 8. Oh, and JUDY MOODY AND THE NOT BUMMER SUMMER comes out, too.

THE MOVIE GUYS: FIRST CLASS

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Adam Witt give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in June. “The Movie Guys: First Class” covers the latest mutant adventure X-MEN: FIRST CLASS.

THE MOVIE GUYS’ MAY MOVIE PREVIEW, PART II

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Lee Kias give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in May. “The Movie Guys’ May Movie Preview, Part II” covers the sequels of May 2011, including: PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES, THE HANGOVER, PART II and KUNG FU PANDA 2.

THE MOVIE GUYS’ MAY MOVIE PREVIEW – “SAVE THE DATES”

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Karen Volpe give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in May. “Save the Date” covers the wedding movie releases of May 2011, including: JUMPING THE BROOM, BRIDESMAIDS and SOMETHING BORROWED.

THE BEAVER: A SPOILER-FREE PREVIEW

Movie Guy Steven Lewis previews the new Mel Gibson movie, “The Beaver”. He is enthusiastic…and slightly misinformed.

THE MOVIE GUYS’ MAY MOVIE PREVIEW – “HERO COMPLEX”

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Adam Witt give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in May. “Heroes” covers the superhero releases of May 2011, including: THOR and PRIEST.

THE MOVIE GUYS’ MAY MOVIE PREVIEW – “INDIE JONES”

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Steven Lewis give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in May. “Indie Jones” covers the major independent releases of May 2011, including: THE BEAVER, EVERYTHING MUST GO, HESHER and MIDNIGHT IN PARIS.

DISNEY’S THE MOVIE GUYS’ APRIL MOVIE PREVIEW

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Justin Bowler give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in April. “Disney’s The Movie Guys’ April Movie Preview ” covers the major film releases of April 29, 2011: FAST FIVE, HOODWINKED TOO!: HOOD VS. EVIL and DISNEY’S PROM.

TYLER PERRY’S THE MOVIE GUYS’ APRIL MOVIE PREVIEW

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Justin Bowler give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in April. “Tyler Perry’s The Movie Guys’ April Movie Preview” covers the major film releases of April 22, 2011: TYLER PERRY’S MADEA’S BIG HAPPY FAMILY, WATER FOR ELEPHANTS and APOLLO 18 (sort of).

APRIL MOVIE PREVIEW – “NEVE CAMPBELL – STILL CUTE”

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Justin Bowler give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in April. “Neve Campbel – Still Cute” covers the major film releases of April 15, 2011: SCREAM 4, RIO and THE CONSPIRATOR.

APRIL MOVIE PREVIEW – “ANOTHER NATALIE PORTMAN MOVIE”

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Justin Bowler give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in April. “Another Natalie Portman Movie” covers the major film releases of April 8, 2011: ARTHUR, HANNA, YOUR HIGHNESS and SOUL SURFER.

APRIL MOVIE PREVIEW – “THEY’VE GOT TO BE KIDDING”

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Justin Bowler give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in April. “They’ve Got to be Kidding” covers the major film releases of April 1, 2011: HOP, SOURCE CODE and TRUST.

NICOLAS CAGE: WTF?

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Justin Bowler give the “Career in Review” treatment to Nicolas Cage and wonder when things got weird.

MARCH MOVIE PREVIEW – “NOT SCREENED FOR CRITICS”

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Lee Kias give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in March. “Not Screened for Critics” covers the major film releases of March 25, 2011, which had no press screenings: SUCKERPUNCH and DIARY OF A WIMPY KID: RODRICK RULES.

MARCH MOVIE PREVIEW – “EPONYMOUS”

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Steven Lewis give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in March. “Eponymous” covers the major film releases of March 18, 2011: PAUL, LIMITLESS and THE LINCOLN LAWYER.

MARCH MOVIE PREVIEW – “ALIENZ N THE HOOD”

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Adam Witt give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in March. “Alienz N The Hood” covers the major film releases of March 11, 2011: BATTLE: LOS ANGELES, MARS NEEDS MOMS and RED RIDING HOOD.

MARCH MOVIE PREVIEW – “MARCH MADNESS”

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Karen Volpe give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in March. “March Madness” covers the major film releases of March 4, 2011: RANGO, BEASTLY, TAKE ME HOME TONIGHT and THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU.

TO & FROM: “THE KING’S SPEECH”

Join Karen Volpe and Vanessa Whitney as they share their feelings on “The King’s Speech” in this thinly-veiled love letter to Colin Firth, while traveling to and coming from a screening of the movie. Will the movie be worth its Best Picture cred? Will it be historically accurate? Those questions may not be answered, but Colin Firth will look good.

FEB. MOVIE PREVIEW – “3D OR NOT 3D”

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Steven Lewis give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in February. “3D or Not 3D” covers the major film releases of February 25, 2011: THE LION OF JUDAH, HALL PASS & DRIVE ANGRY 3D.

FEB. MOVIE PREVIEW – “FUCK THESE MOVIES, PART II”

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Karen Volpe give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in February. “Fuck These Movies, Part II” covers the major film releases of February 18, 2011: UNKNOWN, I AM NUMBER FOUR, VANISHING ON 7TH STREET and BIG MOMMAS: LIKE FATHER LIKE SON.

BIG MOMMAS: LIKE FATHER LIKE SON: A SPOILER-FREE PREVIEW

Movie Guy Steven Lewis previews the new Martin Lawrence movie, “Big Mommas: Like Father Like Son”. He is enthusiastic…and slightly misinformed.

FEB. MOVIE PREVIEW – “FUCK THESE MOVIES”

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Lee Kias give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in December. “Fuck These Movies” covers the major film releases of February 11, 2010, GNOMEO & JULIET, JUST GO WITH IT, THE EAGLE and JUSTIN BIEBER: NEVER SAY NEVER.

FEB. MOVIE PREVIEW – “HERE ARE THE MOVIES YOU DIDN’T SEE LAST WEEK”

Movie Guys Paul Preston and Adam Witt give you the lowdown and their thoughts on what’s happening movie-wise in December. “Here are the Movies You Didn’t See Last Week” covers the major film releases of February 4, 2010, SANCTUM, THE ROOMMATE and the wide release of FRANKIE & ALICE.

OSCAR RANT 2011

(Honoring the films of 2010)

Rant by Paul Preston

I think I can safely say that despite the quality of some of the year’s best movies, it was not a great year. The strangest trait all the major Hollywood releases share is that the worst movies of the year were some of the biggest blockbusters. This is not a good sign because it sends a signal to filmmakers that they can keep shooting low and underwhelming and we’ll keep going. Sadly, I don’t think it’s in the best interest of my personal health to hold my breath for the day the biggest money-makers are also the year’s best.

Some kudos to the ticket-buying public, however, because in the middle of the wreckage, “Inception” and “Toy Story 3” were blockbusters, and even “The Social Network” made a bundle.

Now that I’m talking good films, let’s begin there, shall we? My list of the Top 10 Films of 2010:

10. SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD – If you’ve read my rants before, you know I always include the funniest movie of the year in my Top 10. The jokes, gags, and references flew fast and furious out of the screen creating a cacophony of freakitude unlike anything I’ve ever seen. In the capable hands of Edgar Wright, this was a wonderfully modern hipster-fest that never slowed down for you to catch up. You either stayed with it or fell behind and for those who stayed, it was quite a trip.
Click here for a full-length review.

9. INSIDE JOB – Charles Ferguson’s dynamic look at the cause of the current recession angered the shit out of me. But please don’t say, “I have no desire to go to a movie and leave angry”. The truth is, you leave smarter, because Ferguson, as he did in the also-great “No End in Sight”, delivers the facts without pretension in an easy-to-digest manner, singling out the culprits whose greed has run the country’s economy into the crapper. But I should say the facts will make you angry…

8. GET LOW – Forgotten by most year-end lists, this wonderful comic fable has an extraordinary heart and smooth direction by Aaron Schneider that keeps it floating above cheese. Always helping to keep any project from slipping into cheesedom is the presence of the great Bill Murray, who manages to walk the fine line of being authentically period and authentically hilarious. Robert Duvall only gets a lead role once in a while anymore (it’s been seven years since “Secondhand Lions” and “Open Range”), but it’s always worth taking notice, as he underplays his character of the town hermit to perfection, delivering a finale that is soaked in history and emotion.

7. WAITING FOR “SUPERMAN” – Davis Guggenheim looks at the failing American school system, and not only delivers the goods any doc should exposing the foibles of incompetence in the government, but he stumbles upon very effective subjects to follow. The young girl who wants to be a doctor, the boy in a poor, crime-ridden neighborhood, the student caught in the tracking system, they all can upgrade their educations to charter and private schools if the public lottery chooses them. This provides more drama than “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse” ever could, which made a hundred bazillion more dollars than “Waiting for ‘Superman’”.

6. THE KING’S SPEECH – A solid effort from all involved, “The King’s Speech” is anchored by a fantastic script from David Seidler, that not only chronicles a large expanse of British history, but effectively personalizes it and litters it with whip-smart, crackling dialogue. Just like they told me in acting class, whether the country needs uniting or the monarchy is in chaos, it all comes down to relationships, and it doesn’t hurt to have a very-well seasoned and accomplished cast, led by Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush and Helena Bonham Carter.

5. THE FIGHTER – This movie wins for straight-up most entertaining flick of the year. ‘Cause I thought, “What’s the guy who made ‘Spanking the Monkey’ going to do to make me care about the very well-trod realm of the boxing picture?” By the end, I was totally invested and really rooting for Mickey Ward, even though I disagreed with some of the dumb decisions he made on his path to success! I also know the people portrayed in Lowell. Even though I grew up five hours west of there, in Upstate NY, the power that a group of people like Mickey’s family can wield, the power to stunt growth, to pull you down, to keep you at their level of mediocrity was familiar. It’s refreshing to see it portrayed so authentically.

4. SHUTTER ISLAND – Lest you forget, MARTIN SCORSESE released a film in 2010, and lest you forget, HE’S COMPLETELY AWESOME. Marty doesn’t disappoint with this hyper-kinetic asylum story. More controlled than any commercial thriller he’s ever made (“Cape Fear” was a little much, no?), the final half hour packs a huge punch. Always up for exploring the dark side, Leonardo DiCaprio once again steps it up and exceeds what’s asked of him as the tone shifts from out and out thriller to heartbreaking mystery, with a final scene that kicked my ass.

3. TOY STORY 3 – Well, surprise, surprise, Pixar made my Top 10 again (he said sarcastically). It’s getting ri-goddamm-diculous how successfully Pixar is maintaining their winning streak, but they prove their greatness again by not coasting for a second with what seemed like a easy return to a popular franchise, after challenging audiences with the likes of “WALL-E” and “Up”. Instead, “Toy Story 3” feels as fresh as the original film, with a storytelling skill that allows the introduction of a whole bunch of new characters that never seems as crowded as a “Shrek” movie. I know more sequels are in the works (“Cars 2” isn’t surprising, since the first film has not made EIGHT BILLION DOLLARS worldwide in sales and merchandising), but I hope the high standards for the studio stay intact.
Click here for the full-length review.

2. THE SOCIAL NETWORK – The script for “The Social Network” by Aaron Sorkin is a thing of beauty. The film moves with lightning speed through moments of procedure, audacity and humor, driving the film to the point where if you can’t hang on, it’s best to just get out of the way. Up to the task of jumping through time and place at ludicrous speed is director David Fincher, who has crafted an of-the-moment masterpiece exceeding other films that will define the last ten years like “Crash” and “The Hurt Locker”. Every element of filmmaking here is of the highest quality. It’s full of drama, suspense, backstabbing and wit, just like Facebook.

1. INCEPTION – My choice for number one in a tough year to choose, but if cons against some of the other options included “Toy Story 3”’s revisiting of familiar themes or “The King’s Speech”’s material not being too edgy or challenging, “Inception” triumphs with a story that’s so insane to think up, that the only thing more insane is conjuring up the balls to pull it off. “Inception” is wildly original, challenging, bold, and emotionally galvanizing. You know a review is serious when it uses “galvanizing”, but seriously, many people dismissed “Inception” as impressive, but not involving. I disagree. The Cobb/Mal relationship is at the core of everything, and it runs the gamut of deep emotion – lovely one moment, painful the next, with an ending that calls out the complexities of Cobb’s character that any lesser film wouldn’t even have written. Plus, “Inception” is ground-breakingly cinematic, imagining and PULLING OFF scenes that will make your head spin with exceptional visual effects that serve the story and amaze at the same time. An action movie, a drama, a sci-fi mindbender, it’s everything for everybody in glorious 2D.

RUNNERS-UP:
THE COMPANY MEN – A criminally underappreciated human drama from John Wells that expertly conveys the effects of the 2008 economic downturn.
BLUE VALENTINE – The fireworks in the end credits of this film are the last of two hours worth of acting pyrotechnics from Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams
GREEN ZONE – Probably number eleven on my list, Paul Greengrass makes another crazy-exciting action movie that made me frustrated as hell over the misuse of our troops in the Middle East.
HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON – DreamWorks Animation’s best story and best movie yet!

THE WORST
THE LAST AIRBENDER – M. Night Shyamalan’s filmmaking skills have gotten so bad, it’s time to forget, “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”-style, that he ever made “The Sixth Sense”
PREDATORS – Adrien Brody is a man-whore.
THE EXPENDABLES – Never has a man done so little with so little.
LITTLE FOCKERS – This movie is absolutely wretched. Poop, vomit, erections, it’s all here, except humor.
SOMEWHERE – Dull self-indulgence of the highest order.
JONAH HEX – The Megan Fox era is over. Rejoice.
CLASH OF THE TITANS – Sound and fury signifying nothing.

THE ABSOLUTE WORST
PRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME – This movie is completely ridiculous, and I know you’re not expecting serious and sensible from a “Prince of Persia” movie, but this movie makes NO SENSE, in our world, in their world, in the world of filmmaking and storytelling, it’s baffling. This film, from the usually great Mike Newell, is bad in every facet of filmmaking.

THE OSCARS:

BEST ACTOR
Javier Bardem in “Biutiful”
Jeff Bridges in “True Grit”
Jesse Eisenberg in “The Social Network”
Colin Firth in “The King’s Speech”
James Franco in “127 Hours”

Glaring Omission: Ryan Gosling, for a brazenly authentic performance in “Blue Valentine”. Bridges, although creating an indelible character, doesn’t deal with a character arc as impressive and excitable as Gosling’s. Actually, Gosling’s complicated performance is better than everyone in this category.
Runners-up: Robert Duvall in ‘Get Low”. He brings his decades of experience as an actor to the pathos and mystery of this character to great effect. Leonardo DiCaprio was outstanding in both “Inception” and “Shutter Island”, mining tragic and sad corners of his personality and was grossly overlooked. Kevin Spacey was funny in “Casino Jack”, but the film lacked gravitas. If they had a comedy award, like the Globes, he could be considered.
Great Inclusion: Eisenberg. A lot of people are writing this off as “playing himself”. I doubt Eisenberg is anything like the way he played Mark Zuckerberg. And he’s built a memorable performance the way Hannibal Lecter and Anton Chigurh can be imitated. That counts for something in the world of character development.
Will Win: Colin Firth, front-running in most every pre-Oscar award.
Should Win: Firth, it’s a great leading-man performance that has all the class and style of the Oscar-winning greats.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Christian Bale in “The Fighter”
John Hawkes in “Winter’s Bone”
Jeremy Renner in “The Town”
Mark Ruffalo in “The Kids Are All Right”
Geoffrey Rush in “The King’s Speech”

Glaring Omission: Ben Mendelsohn in “Animal Kingdom”. Our site’s review by Mary Gent summed up Mendelsohn’s performance well, saying that after the movie, you have to read an article, find a video, SOMETHING to prove to yourself that Mendelsohn’s stay-in-your-bones creepy performance was, in fact, just acting. If the Academy went so far as to recognize the little-seen “Animal Kingdom” for Jacki Weaver’s performance, than Mendelsohn deserved a nod, too. It’s more memorable than Ruffalo, who was solid, but Mendelsohn’s part was career-peaking.
Runners-up: Tommy Lee Jones in “The Company Men”. For an actor who built a career as a tough guy, he now embodies sadness better than any actor his age. I think Matt Damon is one of our finest actors, always delivering solid performances. But he does it without the Day-Lewisy transformations, so notice is not always given. But take notice of his great role in “True Grit”. He’s a true western original, even in a remake. And how do you not nominate Armie Hammer as the Winklevai? In “The Social Network”, Hammer nailed the pomposity of the privileged brothers and somehow found a way to make them empathetic, not to mention his skill at pulling off playing twins. Sam Rockwell will get an Oscar someday, if there’s any justice in the world, but “Conviction” was such a modest film, his GREAT performance in the middle of it somehow sidestepped awards contention. And I have to shout out to Richard Jenkins in “Eat Pray Love”, who broke my heart with one monologue. Perhaps not worthy of a nomination, but certainly worthy of a shout out.
Great Inclusion: Geoffrey Rush. He commands the screen just as much as Firth and lobs the tennis ball back with great skill. I’m just happy to see him come out from under the shadow of those horrible pirate sequels to appear in another prestige project.
Will Win: Christian Bale
Should Win: Bale. And the timing’s perfect. He’ll put that embarrassing on-set tirade behing him, he’ll get the Oscar now, while he’s young instead of waiting for some career-achievement award (‘cause he’s always good), and he DESERVES it. Every time he was on screen, he did something surprising, and so nailed the final scene, he brought a real humanism back to what was otherwise a standard boxing movie finale.

BEST ACTRESS
Annette Bening in “The Kids Are All Right”
Nicole Kidman in “Rabbit Hole”
Jennifer Lawrence in “Winter’s Bone”
Natalie Portman in “Black Swan”
Michelle Williams in “Blue Valentine”

Glaring Omission: Hilary Swank in “Conviction”. I thought maybe there’d be a nod here ‘cause The Academy loves her (as they love Nicole Kidman) and she had some pre-Oscar nominations. Wisely, they went with Michelle Williams.
Runners-up: Swank, plus Julianne Moore, equally as good as Bening in “The Kids Are All Right”.
Great Inclusion: Kidman. If you can stop looking at her jacked-up botox face for two seconds, there’s a very impassioned, complicated performance there.
Will Win: Natalie Portman. Oscar wants to anoint here.
Should Win: Williams. Portman was certainly game for a complex series of whatever-that-was that happened in “Black Swan”, but Williams broke my heart with a painfully truthful performance as a wife and mother in a downward spiral of a relationship.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams in “The Fighter”
Helena Bonham Carter in “The King’s Speech”
Melissa Leo in “The Fighter”
Hailee Steinfeld in “True Grit”
Jacki Weaver in “Animal Kingdom”

Glaring Omission: Mila Kunis, quite good in “Black Swan”, was a FRONTRUNNER! Now, she’ll be staying home on Sunday. I was a little shocked by that.
Runners-up: Marion Cotillard provides the emotional core of “Inception”, and her character’s gamut-running of feeling is superbly portrayed. I’d probably pull Adams out here (despite my crush) and give Cotillard the nod. Just ‘cause it’s action and special-effects-packed, don’t discount the high level of acting in “Inception”!
Great Inclusion: I thought I’d mention Jacki Weaver here, for being noticed for such a small film. But awards tracking shows that she’s been recognized quite a bit in pre-Oscar awards. So, I’m happy Hailee Steinfeld is nominated here. It’s an odd category for a story that was ABOUT HER, but even in the wrong category, she was a force to be reckoned with at the front of “True Grit”.
Will Win: Melissa Leo, who was brilliant.
Should Win: This is the year’s toughest category, with a ton of great performances. I think I have to give it Steinfeld.

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
How to Train Your Dragon
The Illusionist
Toy Story 3

Glaring Omission: Two more nominees. Last year broke a trend and gave us five nominees in this category. I thought this year was exceptional in terms of animation: “Despicable Me”, although copying Pixar directly (and perhaps because of copying Pixar directly), was thoroughly enjoyable; “Tangled”’s animation was not as spectacular as some of the other nominees, but many of the great Disney animation elements were present and the overall project was a success; And even “Shrek Forever After” was a better “Shrek” film than the previous sequels. I could’ve easily found room for five nominees.
Runners-up: See above, plus the hilarious and imaginatively good-looking “Megamind”
Great Inclusion: “How to Train Your Dragon” is DreamWorks best film to date. It’s a shame it’s nominated in the same year as “Toy Story 3”.
Will Win: “Toy Story 3”
Should Win: “Toy Story 3”

ART DIRECTION
Alice in Wonderland
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
Inception
The King’s Speech
True Grit

Glaring Omission: “Black Swan”. I think Harry Potter put a spell of stolen nomination on Production Designer Therese DePrez.
Runners-Up: Here’s another slew on nominees who’ve achieved greatness in the field of either fantasy or a period piece. Someone should be recognized for crafting modern-day locations in a film, and for that achievement, I’d nominate “Winter’s Bone” for capturing a Missouri locale that feeds to the desperation and depression surrounding the lead character. I also liked the creepy look of “Shutter Island”, too. The jails, the lighthouse, the barracks, all had a hopelessness to them that doesn’t help the inmates. But if we’re talking period pieces, “Get Low” had a genuine look to it.
Great Inclusion: “Inception”, ‘cause it should win.
Will Win: Did somebody say “Inception”?
Should Win: “Inception”. The look design of the film blended seamlessly with the visual effects in creating a very demanding list of places required by the complex script.

CINEMATOGRAPHY
Black Swan
Inception
The King’s Speech
The Social Network
True Grit

Glaring Omission: “127 Hours”. Recent winner for “Slumdog Millionaire” Anthony Dod Mantle did a great job of helping director Danny Boyle keep “127 Hours” as dyamic as possible, serving up great visual treats with little in the way of multiple locations and large casts to help.
Runners-Up: “Rabbit Hole”. The preview for this film made it look like the artsy-est of art house art films, but the experience of watching the film was more the result of a cinematographer working creatively than a DP showing off. The film, for not having a garish story, had a gorgeous look. Combined with the art direction, I thought “Get Low” told a simple story simply to the story’s benefit. Also, when does Robert Richardson do bad work? He doesn’t. And “Shutter Island” is another example of that. I also liked the
Great Inclusion: “Black Swan”. First of all, I don’t know how you design the photography of a film where the majority of the scenes take place in a rehearsal hall full of mirrors?!! When Matthew Libatique’s camera spins around and around the dancers in “Black Swan”, the result is as dizzying as the day is for Nina Sayers.
Will Win: “True Grit”’s Roger Deakins desperately needs an Oscar. His body of work is among the finest cinematography ever shot. Even the American Society of Cinematographers gave him a career achievement award this year. But he was beat out for this year’s ASC award by Wally Pfister, and that will happen at the Oscars, too. Perhaps as gorgeous as it was, the world of “True Grit” was a landscape previously covered by “No Country for Old Men”.
Should Win: “Inception”. The world of “Inception” was all new to me, and Pfister’s capturing of it helped make it palatable for everyone. Creative work that was just what the script needed.

COSTUME DESIGN
Alice in Wonderland
I Am Love
The King’s Speech
The Tempest
True Grit

Glaring Omission: “Black Swan”! I’ve never seen “Swan Lake”, so I’m not sure if the costumes in “Black Swan” are just the costumes you’d normally get in any “Swan Lake” show, but I thought they were amazing. I guess there’s some controversy over some of the ballet outfits being designed by a label that’s not part of the Costume Designer’s Guild, and that may have contributed to the lack of a nomination. These type of particulars kill some of the best work year after year (more of this bullshit to come in the music categories), and it killed the best costume design of the year in 2010 from getting a nod as far as I’m concerned. Should I also mention “Sex and the City 2”?
Runners-Up: “The Company Men”. The blanditude, if I may coin a phrase, of the working stiff in this movie was well exemplified by their dress-code-inspired outfits.
Great Inclusion: “True Grit”. Mary Zophres is a Coen Brothers favorite, and if there’s one thing the Coens nail every time, it’s tone, and that tone is often set visually by Zophres’ great clothes.
Will Win: “The King’s Speech”, I think they’ll choose the pretty and pristine over…
Should Win: …”True Grit”, which revels in the dusty and worn.

BEST DIRECTOR
Darren Aronofsky, “Black Swan”
David O. Russell, “The Fighter”
Tom Hooper, “The King’s Speech”
David Fincher, “The Social Network”
Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, “True Grit”

Glaring Omission: CHRISTOPHER NOLAN!!! “Inception” is a towering achievement in direction, in that it:
- juggles a very challenging story exceptionally well
- makes a heady, formidable concept palatable for mainstream audiences (to the tune of $300 million domestically)
- with equal skill handles direction of actors, visual effects and continuity
Sure, maybe, just MAYBE he doesn’t win. But he doesn’t get NOMINATED? A travesty!!
Runners-Up: Lee Unkrich, for “Toy Story 3”. Not only is Unkrich’s helming of a Pixar feature a new thing (directing up till now had been left to only four major Pixar players, so a newer name built the studios biggest film), but it’d be nice to animated film direction get recognized. Martin Scorsese deftly handled the demands of a sprawling, emotional story, so if I had my way, I’d nominate Nolan, Unkrich, Scorsese, Fincher and Russell.
Great Inclusion: Fincher, because “The Social Network” is a true Fincher film, worthy of a nomination, as opposed to “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”, which was a too-eager awards ploy.
Will Win: David Fincher. If he does win, however, it still won’t be known if “The Social Network” is making a run, or if he’s splitting the awards with “The King’s Speech”, which could go on to win Best Picture.
Should Win: With Nolan out of the race, Fincher takes it.

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Exit through the Gift Shop
Gasland
Inside Job
Restrepo
Waste Land

Glaring Omission: “Waiting for ‘Superman’”. If you scour the internet, you’ll find some stories exploring some inauthentic moments from this movie, that director Davis Guggenheim re-created some scenes for dramatic effect. If that’s true, that really, really sucks and is a black mark on an otherwise great documentary. But I can only take the film at its word for now, and it’s excellent.
Runners-Up: I’m a little under-educated in the docs this year.
Great Inclusion: Most of the nominees, because they’re socially-minded. I like when a film sticks in your gut for a long time, and these films about the recession, the Afghan War, pollution and natural gas drilling do that.
Great Inclusion: “Inside Job”. Great movie.
Will Win: “Inside Job”
Should Win: “Inside Job”. Charles Ferguson SHOULD HAVE won for “No End in Sight”. He’ll win here for a film of equal quality.

DOCUMENTARY SHORT
Killing in the Name
Poster Girl
Strangers No More
Sun Come Up
The Warriors of Qiugang

Every year The Motion Picture Academy has a screening of the live action and animated short film nominees…they should do the same with the documentary shorts…

FILM EDITING
Black Swan
The Fighter
The King’s Speech
127 Hours
The Social Network

Glaring Omission: “Inception”! “The Social Network” duly impresses for its time-and-place-jumping, but even that very good film doesn’t approach the time-and-innerspace-jumping of “Inception”, managing a crazy-complicated story.
Runner-Up: “Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World”. The fast pace of this comedy is pushed along by the editing.
Great Inclusion: “127 Hours”. The aggressive style of Danny Boyle is displayed by his editor’s work.
Will Win: This is a tough one with no clear front-runner. All the work in this category is exceptional, but I’ll go with “The Social Network” as the American Cinema Editor’s Guild did.
Should Win: “The Social Network”, just beating out “Black Swan”

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
“Biutiful”, Mexico
“Dogtooth”, Greece
“In a Better World”, Denmark
“Incendies”, Canada
“Outside the Law (Hors-la-loi)”, Algeria

Despite my running around, watching movies like a madman, I only saw “Biutiful” in this category, so I’ll just say good luck nominees!

MAKEUP
Barney’s Version
The Way Back
The Wolfman

Glaring Omission: I thought I’d see “Alice in Wonderland” here, but maybe even the makeup was computer-generated. They plan to computer generate The Green Lantern’s outfit on top of Ryan Reynolds in the upcoming film, so, apparently, anything’s possible.
Runners-Up: “Black Swan”. Nutty ballerinas dressed up all nutty needed nutty makeup to boot, and I thought the “Black Swan” team delivered the goods.
Great Inclusion: Can this category even exist without Rick Baker?
Will Win: “The Wolfman”
Should Win: “The Wolfman”. Horrible, horrible movie, but, as ever, Baker cuts a mean monster.

ORIGINAL SCORE
How to Train Your Dragon
Inception
The King’s Speech
127 Hours
The Social Network

Glaring Omission: “True Grit”. One of my favorite parts of that film was the old-school western feel of the production design, coupled with the great music. Well, I guess there was another one of those dopey technicalities where composer Carter Burwell employed some themes from old hymns, so then they declared him ineligible for not creating EVERY piece of the score. Bullshit. That music was a first-responder for putting the audience in the correct place and time.
Runners-Up: This isn’t such a GLARING omission because NO ONE is talking about this score, but the “Tron: Legacy” score is one of the best of the last few years. How this gets passed over is beyond me. Daft Punk fashioned a real grinding, hi-tech score that seems like it would be something we not only hear as filmgoers, but I think the music just continually plays in the world of the film, providing ongoing soundtrack to the people living in “the grid”.
Great Inclusion: “The Social Network”. Atticus Ross and Trent Reznor find the perfect score that conveys sadness & loneliness when necessary, a Harvard party the next minute, and the driving beat of an impending corporate breakdown the next.
Will win: “The Social Network”
Should win: I gotta admit a “The Social Network” win here would be great, but I can’t get the “Inception” score out of my head, and it’s been parodied a thousand times online, a sign that something’s a classic, no? The pounding, Hans Zimmer musical droning punches the drama in Nolan’s masterpiece.

ORIGINAL SONG
Coming Home, “Country Strong”
I See the Light, “Tangled”
If I Rise, “127 Hours”
We Belong Together, “Toy Story 3″

Glaring Omission: This category is very confounding this year. These are just not great nominees. For example, the memorable, anthemic song from “Country Strong” is the title track. That’s what I would have nominated. It says a lot about the story and characters in the film, whereas Coming Home in the film is a routine country track, and feels like one in this category, too.
Runners-Up: The Disney run on Best Original Songs is long over and is not threatening to get back on track this year, as the “Tangled” and “Toy Story 3” offerings aren’t nearly as strong as something like “You’ll Be in My Heart” and “You’ve Got a Friend in Me”. So why not nominate Shine, the original John Legend tune from “Waiting for ‘Superman’”?
Great Inclusion: I really can’t think of one. And is it wrong to be happy that no songs from “Burlesque” were nominated even though I didn’t see it?
Will win: A.R. Rahman gets another Oscar for “If I Rise”
Should Win: “If I Rise”

BEST PICTURE
Black Swan
The Fighter
Inception
The Kids Are All Right
The King’s Speech
127 Hours
The Social Network
Toy Story 3
True Grit
Winter’s Bone

Glaring Omission: With ten nominees now, they nominate everything, don’t they? I suppose the film that probably ended up on the most Top 10s that isn’t nominated is “The Town”, Ben Affleck’s superb crime drama. Polanski’s “The Ghost Writer” was also critically hailed and might’ve found it’s way into a nomination, but seemed to have been squeezed out by “Winter’s Bone”.
Runners-Up: If you’ve seen my Top 10, you know what I’d love to see here – a little “Shutter Island”, a little “Get Low” and some “Scott Pilgrim”.
Great Inclusion: “Toy Story 3”. Another masterpiece from Pixar. If any company is going to break through and actually WIN the Best Picture Oscar for an animated film, it’s Pixar, so I always like to see them in the mix.
Will Win: “The Social Network”. I know “The King’s Speech” is making a run, but it may not be enough.
Should Win: “Inception”. Shooting higher, hitting higher.

ANIMATED SHORT
Day & Night
The Gruffalo
Let’s Pollute
The Lost Thing
Madagascar, carnet de voyage (Madagascar, a Journey Diary)

Glaring Omission: It may not be GLARING, but the new Wile E. Coyote short, “Coyote Falls” that played in front of “Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore”, captured well the mayhem of the original Road Runner shorts. I enjoyed it more than the travelogue short that showcased a lot of cool animation, but never told a story or had any moments of real importance.
Runners-Up: See above.
Great inclusion: Need I go on with the Pixar lovefest?
Will Win: I think “The Gruffalo” has a shot to upset Pixar.
Should Win: “Let’s Pollute”, for being FUNNY! Could FUNNY win, for the love of god?

LIVE ACTION SHORT
The Confession
The Crush
God of Love
Na Wewe
Wish 143

Glaring Omission: Can’t come up with one.
Runners-Up: Nope, nothing’s coming to me.
Great Inclusion: “God of Love”, again in support of the comedy
Will Win: I’m probably going against tradition which would make one think that The Academy will go with the politically-charged short, in this case “Na Wewe”, and pick “Wish 143”, which I also think…
Should Win: “Wish 143”

SOUND EDITING
Inception
Toy Story 3
Tron: Legacy
True Grit
Unstoppable

Glaring Omission: Maybe another animated film? In a year with many good animated films, I thought maybe “Megamind” or “Despicable Me” might get on the board here, but it would be tough to eliminate any of the current crop of nominees.
Runners-Up: Like David Fincher, Ridley Scott always delivers films that have the highest quality tech elements, and the sound of “Robin Hood”, with the air-cutting arrows and rumbling armies was impressive.
Great Inclusion: “Toy Story 3”. Again, there’s NOTHING at the beginning of the filmmaking process with a CGI film, then the sound effects bring the majority of it to life.
Will Win: “Inception”. A sprawling epic with numerous special effects that have to meld with real-world sound F/X.
Should Win: “Inception”

SOUND MIXING
Inception
The King’s Speech
Salt
The Social Network
True Grit

Glaring Omission: Another blockbuster? It seems like there’d be more room here for a project that has to smooth out and mix sound coming from a hundred different sources instead of, say, “The King’s Speech”. Maybe “Iron Man 2”?
Runners-Up: “Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World”, an off-the-rails visual fest needs audio mixing to keep up with it. “Tron: Legacy”, for all it lacked in story, certainly had all its tech fundamentals in place.
Great Inclusion: The Coen Bros. team from their best films are still gettin’ it done to great results, and “True Grit” is no exception.
Will Win: “Inception”
Should Win: “Inception”, in the ongoing tech awards sweep that makes up for being shortchanged on the big awards.

VISUAL EFFECTS
Alice in Wonderland
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
Hereafter
Inception
Iron Man 2

Glaring Omission: “Tron: Legacy”. I thought it would get a nomination, but I’m glad it didn’t. I never bought the computer-generated young Jeff Bridges, despite their best efforts. And if I NEVER buy him, I’m OUT on half the film. And I was. But I figured if the shitty F/X from “The Golden Compass” and its rubbery animal characters can win, anything’s possible.
Runners-Up: “Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World”, the only film, if it was nominated, that would’ve had real FUN with special effects. Instead, we ONLY get the F/X that deliver serious action, disaster or darkness.
Great Inclusion: “Iron Man 2”, a better than the love it got from critics action film.
Will Win: “Inception”
Should Win: “Inception”. The effects here caused wonder-filled stares in the theater in even the most jaded moviegoers.

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
127 Hours
The Social Network
Toy Story 3
True Grit
Winter’s Bone

Glaring Omission: Nothing exactly glaring, but maybe “The Town” gets a nod here?
Runners-Up: “Rabbit Hole”. Although mired in sadness, the dialogue and arguments in this script were authentic and crackling. After I saw “Fair Game”, I was paraphrasing the Joe Wilson speeches in that film for weeks. It’s a smart story with a script that’s equally adept at developing relationships. I’m also a fan, obviously, of “Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World”. There’s something to be said for VOLUME of jokes. Also, the “Shutter Island” script left my head screwed up for a month.
Great inclusion: “True Grit”. One of the Coen Brothers’ best assets as writers is that they can hit a tone right on the head, but still find the space for their signature humor and dialogue, and never sacrifice time and place. “True Grit” had loads of humor, but it never winked at the audience, to the betterment of the production.
Will Win: “The Social Network”
Should Win: “The Social Network”. Aaron Sorkin’s script is a phenomenon, truly the main character of the film, with every other aspect dancing around it.

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Another Year
The Fighter
Inception
The Kids Are All Right
The King’s Speech

Glaring Omission: “Black Swan”. For a film so lauded with nominations in other categories, you’d think the script would get a nod. A brazenly original film.
Runners-Up: There was a LOT of good work that would fall in this category in 2010 – “The Company Men”, “Get Low”, “Blue Valentine”
Great Inclusion: “The King’s Speech”. Writer David Seidler whips up dialogue that’s as fun to watch as any crazy visuals a summer blockbuster could drum up.
Will Win: “Inception”. More often than not, what really is the year’s BEST film (in my opinion), if it’s due to get overlooked for Best Picture, will get an Oscar for writing – “Fargo”, clearly the best film of 1996. Lost to “The English Patient”, won Best Original Screenplay. “Pulp Fiction”, one of the best films of the last twenty years. Lost to “Forrest Gump”, won Best Original Screenplay. “Sideways”, “L.A. Confidential”, etc. “Inception” will lose Best Picture, and win here.
Should Win: “Inception”

So, let’s go to the board. Award numbers, by film.

MY PREDICTIONS:
INCEPTION – 6
THE SOCIAL NETWORK – 4
THE KING’S SPEECH – 2
THE FIGHTER – 2
BLACK SWAN – 1
TOY STORY 3 – 1
INSIDE JOB – 1
THE WOLFMAN – 1
127 HOURS – 1

IF I HAD MY WAY:
INCEPTION – 8
THE SOCIAL NETWORK – 3
TRUE GRIT – 2
THE KING’S SPEECH – 1
THE FIGHTER – 1
BLUE VALENTINE – 1
TOY STORY 3 – 1
INSIDE JOB – 1
THE WOLFMAN – 1
127 HOURS – 1

-PP

Movie Reviews by Paul Preston and Mary Gent
Reviews in alphabetical order

BREAKFAST ON PLUTO (**)

Neil Jordan’s latest film is certainly his most outlandish. And here’s a guy who made “Interview With the Vampire” and “The Crying Game”. Cillian Murphy plays man-cum-woman Patrick “Kitten” Braden, a transgender of sorts in search of his birth mother. Patrick’s journey is not as interesting as that of Bree in “Transamerica” or Burt Munro of “The World’s Fastest Indian”, previously mentioned in other reviews, but there’s something likable about Kitten that makes his story worth watching. In his travels, Kitten gets a job as a costumed character, a magician’s assistant, a conspirator for the IRA, and, seriously, he has his story told by birds, whose chirps are translated into subtitles for us to read. Uh, OK… The most interesting character in the story is the Priest who took him in as a child, played by the GREAT Liam Neeson. Kitten is such a frail man/woman he is right on the border of being very annoying. But he has a real desire to find his mother, and that carried my interest. I just found the adventure on the whole a little uneven.
-PP

BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN (**1/2)

Here’s a film that affected me only moderately in the theater, but I reflect on it very kindly. Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal play cowboys whose loneliness comes (literally) to a head and leads to a gay affair. The affair plays out throughout their lives as they travel paths that simply will not allow their love to continue. This leads to sad scene of sacrifice and emotional distress after sad scene of sacrifice and emotional distress. The mere idea of this movie is what is most provocative about it. However, I find the execution of this idea to be far too laconic and stoic to garner enormous praise. The cowboy is that one last symbol of America (besides the Presidency) not to be re-imagined with a homosexual slant till now. And the time (1960s) doesn’t allow for these two young men to experience the love they have to the fullest. And, as said before, that’s sad. And as they MARRY…WOMEN, it just gets sadder. Despite top notch jobs by ALL in the acting, directing and tech departments (except maybe that score, which I find won’t leave my head, but not always for the best reasons), I think I need more kinetic stimulus in the theater, especially gay theater! (he said jokingly…)
-PP

CASANOVA (***)

Turn off your editor and enjoy yourself. There have been films truer to time and place. There have been films truer to dialogue of the period, but “Casanova” is Lasse Halstrom’s most lively film in years, and I had so much fun, I tossed out judgment for the two hours I followed the adventures of the world’s greatest lover. Remember when Tom Cruise was so sexually pent up in “Eyes Wide Shut” that it seemed therapeutic for him to follow it up with his sex magnet in “Magnolia”? Heath Ledger gets to follow up his repressed gay cowboy in “Brokeback Mountain” with a role as the man with the most female sexual conquests in history. Um, good for him. This film takes an unexpected look at Casanova in that it explores the years he remained fairly monogamous, and pursued a beauty played by Siena Miller. She is a real challenge for him to conquer, and a challenge is new to Casanova. The thrill of the chase is the audience’s as well. Also adding to the plot is the ongoing chase the Catholic Church gives Casanova and his sinful ways. Following it all is a great time. Heath Ledger is unassuming, yet sexy in the main role, and Jeremy Irons is hilarious, growing angrier and angrier as Casanova eludes capture. The romantic entanglements and plot twists are very engaging. I hope this movie can evade the stigma of being a “period piece” when, in fact, it is a very accessible romantic comedy.
-PP

THE CHUMSCRUBBER (1/2*)

Director Arie Posin seems to have a lot to say about the suburbs in “The Chumscrubber”, but what specifically is being said is lost in mire of excess. The GREAT Jamie Bell leads a wicked ensemble as a bored teen whose best friend (and fellow school loser) kills himself, leaving a cache of prescription drugs unpeddled. Great actors like Glenn Close, Ralph Fiennes and Rita Wilson (perhaps doing the best work in the film) can’t raise the quality of the material, which at times is pointed satire, but mostly meanders as random scenes of the bizarre. Fiennes plays the town’s Mayor who is about to wed, but instead goes insane. Reason? Unknown. Character growth due to the insanity? Not developed. The Chumscrubber of the title refers to a video game often played by the kids in the movie wherein a post-nuclear headless figure beats mutants to death with his own head. Unfortunately, the graphics in this game aren’t sophisticated enough to buy, but the worst part of the game is that it’s supposed to be some metaphor, and it really FEELS like it SHOULD BE a metaphor for what’s going on in the film, but it’s lost on me. The botched drug deals lead to one kid going nuts at the sound of a clock – HUH? – and child-on-child violence which just doesn’t resonate as either entertaining or social comment. Amongst all the noise and insanity, the story occasionally returns to the kid who feels lost now that his friend has committed suicide. When the suicide is addressed (as in a great scene where Bell & Close finally come to grips with it), the film has pockets of success. I wish the whole film were that heartfelt more routinely.
-PP

A Second Opinion…

THE CHUMSCRUBBER

CHUM: an intimate friend or companion, or sidekick; bait usually consisting of chopped up oily fish
ground up and scattered on the water.

I have lived my 35 years surrounded by the nuclear family on some level or another. As the years passed, the idea of “family” evolved or, in my own personal opinion, devolved. One thing is for certain, cinema will forever try to capture that unconditional dysfunction by any means necessary. Within the bubble of societal ideas of the family exists the children, and, inevitably, the teenager. Some say that teens have become monstrous parodies of their parents and that the 21st century has ushered in the teen as more violent, sexually active, aggressive and rebellious than it’s kinder, gentler predecessors. In some circles, this proves to be true. There are many more technological distractions than when I was a teen, and advances in technology is the scientific bastard son of isolation. I also believe the nuclear family has disintegrated into absentee parenting and negligent discipline due to some sort of baby boomer guilt. Whatever the problem, teens get a bad rap.

“Chumscrubber” is just the sort of birth control anyone needs if this is what the world is like for children. Because that is exactly what teenagers are: CHILDREN. Unfortunately, in this self-absorbed media driven, sexually repressed yet charged environment, these kids wear apathy as a birthright. It will never be good enough for them. They could never have enough: things, gadgets, drugs, clothes, sex, love. The movie paints a grim and somewhat nauseating picture of current suburban life. In fact, I wasn’t sure I even liked it until I realized I wasn’t supposed to. It begins with the discovery of the suicide of Troy, best friend to Dean (Jamie Bell). Troy was the king drug dealer at school, pushing all the best pills to troubled teens who need to feel good. Upon finding Troy hanging from the ceiling in his very cozy guest house while his mother is having a barbeque, Dean immediately turns, leaves and never says a word. His response later to his therapist father was that he didn’t think the adults would care. This sets the tone for what type of people we are surrounded by for the next two hours.

Hillside is the fictional upper class, track housing community that these people live in (reminiscent of the neighborhoods in “E.T.”). Brand new houses whose only flaws are the monsters that occupy them. There is a robotic, almost Stepford feel to this community and the humans that live there. Everyone has their mask on, representing well bred, polite and perfect specimens of the All-American family.

The underbelly reveals two dimensional relationships amongst the adults and terrifyingly adult like behavior from the children. Dean is an admirable character who doesn’t care that he has no friends because he would rather be by himself than belong to a group who is satisfied with torturing others. However, Dean is also troubled and has a father (my favorite, William Fitchner) who feeds him pills to help him cope, a brother (baby Culkin) who plays video games all day and a mother (thank god for Allison Janney) who puts Martha Stewart to shame. Then, of course, there are the bullies. Crystal, Billy and Lee (newcomer Lou Pucci) who are determined to force Dean into procuring the drugs that Troy had hidden in his room. In doing so, they kidnap Charlie, who they believe is Dean’s younger brother. Turns out it’s the wrong Charlie but the disgusting Billy (played by Justin Chatwin) decides to keep him anyway.

Throughout all this drama are other horrific characters such as the completely selfish and shallow design guru Terri Brately (deliciously played by Rita Wilson!), gearing up for her second marriage to the Mayor of Hillside, Michael (another creepy performance by Ralph Fiennes) who seems to have had some sort of epiphany about life. Then, of course, there is the beautiful and voluptuous Jerri Falls (Carrie Anne Moss), mother to previously mentioned delinquent Crystal, who can’t seem to come to terms with her lack of a man or her age. And finally, the belle du jour of all great actresses, Glenn Close (playing Carrie Johnson) who is simple perfection as the blonde, bubbly, repressed and grieving mother of Troy. In a beautiful exchange at Troy’s memorial she looks at Dean and tells him it is her fault, that she didn’t even know her own son. In return, he tells her about Troy and everything that he was. This struck a chord in my already broken heart. It is the same story for millions of teenagers all over this country whose parents will NEVER know them and aren’t sure they want to. And how tormenting and confusing to the child who never asked to be here in the first place.

Eventually in “Chumscrubber”, all of the organized chaos comes to a tumultuous climax as everyone’s worlds begin to take on a third dimension and the hard, cold reality of life stomps impatiently at their doors.

Ironically, I also had the pleasure of watching “Heathers” again (now that’s my generation!). For a movie that was made in 1989, it holds up incredibly well and touches on all of the above mentioned subject matter.

Case in point, time will continue to wage its war, with or without us, but the issues, regardless of the century or decade for that matter, are the same.
-MG

THE DESCENT

Claustrophobic Darwinism at it’s finest.

“The Descent” was a film I was originally apprehensive about. Reasons being:

1) I was under the assumption that this was another stupid horror film I had no idea it was a “foreign” film. Yes, I pigeon-hole the UK into the foreign film market and thank god!
2) Two, the trailer is so misleading (what else is new in America) that it looked ridiculous. For example, if I have to see the trailer for “Pulse” one more time I might actually start digging my own grave.
3) Although the trailer is shown rather frequently, there is no press on this film. Why, you ask? Simple: HOLLYWOOD DIDN’T MAKE IT. Yes, Lionsgate Films picked it up but it was made by a British director, filmed on location in Scotland and then at Pinewood Studios in London and uses an eclectic cast of unknowns (at least in America).

Okay, so those were my uneducated excuses. I, as you may or may not know, am a horror aficionado. I understand the genre and all its inconsistencies. It is not easy to make a “good” horror film. When dealing with the human psyche and fear, it takes a master to control that in a way that is convincing and horrific. So, there are always going to be horror films that don’t have the chops but are still scary in their own way and that’s just fine with me. It seems that the new school of making scary movies is undermined by CGI technology, fast cut edits and overall poor scripts. So when a film doesn’t necessarily follow these rules, then I’m intrigued and impressed. Films such as “Cabin Fever”, “Hostel”, “Wolf Creek” and now “The Descent” have given me hope that there are true auteurs of horror making good films.

From the opening scene and credits of “The Descent” (silly as it may sound), I KNEW in my bones that this was going to be good, if not great! The quiet, strange atmosphere of the credits to the misleading happy first scene was a setup for two hours of intense fear. I couldn’t have been more on target! There are very subtle references to other films (a tipping of the hat perhaps!), and I won’t get into that, but I will say the beautiful aerial shots of what is supposed to be the Appalachians are crippling and chilling, much like the beginning of “The Shining”. Setting up isolation from the beginning is pure genius.

The story is simple. Six girls get together once a year for some adventurous trip. They are strong women who aren’t afraid to take risks, as is apparent from their previous vacations. No Club Med for these gals!

One year after a devastating accident happens to one of the girls, they decide at the request of their uber-competitive friend Juno to go spelunking in the Appalachians. Sharon, who was the victim of the accident, is trying to overcome the gigantic emotional walls that have trapped her from life. Fragile though she may be, she is a fighter and is more than happy to oblige on this adventure.

Another indication of the maturity of this film was the relationship between the women. They are all just as dynamic as the next and just as ferocious in their competitive yet loving nature. There was not one gratuitous nude shot through the entire film. That separates the boys from the men for sure. The director focused on them as humans, not sex objects being led to their demise by a knife wielding madman! Bravo. Furthermore, they are bright and intelligent women. No big breasted, scantily clad bimbos here. There are, however, secrets among them and this eventually will lead to base, human alpha decisions. Competitiveness will never outweigh the immense power of emotion.

The film is beautifully shot, creating claustrophobic situations for a good part of the film. The cave shots are intense and the lighting is used from whatever tools the women have as opposed to camera lighting. You see exactly what they see, when they see it, making it all the more nerve jangling.

What it is that they encounter is a form of Darwinism at its basest. Creatures that have fine-tuned their adaptation to their enclosed and permanent residence. It begs to ask the question of altered human life that we are not even aware of.

The remainder of the film is brutal survivalist behavior. The women immediately succumb to their instincts and use them to stay alive. There is plenty of blood and violence in the nature of a gory horror film, however, in this movie it doesn’t seem unnecessary, just part of the experience you are sharing with the characters. Not for the weak of stomach! All the elements work. Tight, enclosed space isolated from the rest of the world, encountering a monster of sorts and allowing survival to overcome any obstacle without the typical American annoying soundtrack. Silence is golden here. “The Descent” is an excellent horror film and gives me hope for the future of this genre.
-MG

DOMINO (*)

A total mess. Tony Scott is a gifted filmmaker. He’s made GREAT films like “True Romance” and “Crimson Tide”. Why does he feel it’s necessary to screw with EVERY SINGLE FRAME of “Domino”. He did the same thing with “Man on Fire”. Every single scene contains shots with filters, shaky-cam, slow-mo, subtitles, everything thrown into an obnoxious mix. It’s just so annoying, it was impossible for me to enjoy the film. That being said, what I was watching was the rise of Domino Harvey (Keira Knightley) from suburban kid to bounty hunter. Domino’s story seems easy to manage at first, but soon becomes a web of too many characters, not many of whom we care about. There is a climax in a popular Vegas hotel that is a thing of beauty, a la “True Romance”, but the road there is unbearable. Domino’s story is buried under Scott’s increasingly patience-testing cinema style. I really know precious little about her or bounty hunting. There is some humor in the film that works (most of Mo’Nique’s Jerry Springer appearance), but the appearance of “90210”’s Brian Austin Green and Ian Ziering wears thin after a while. Their role should’ve been a cameo. I was also disappointed in the misuse of Mickey Rourke, on a HUGE upswing after his GREAT performance in “Sin City”. It seemed like he could’ve been a good father figure for Domino if Scott took TWO FREAKIN’ SECONDS to develop characters instead of developing a new level of seizure-inducing editing. Years ago, I thought Tony Scott films were too glossy. I’m talking about the “Days of Thunder”/”Beverly Hills Cop II” days when his flashy, VISA commercial look dominated the writing. He has “advanced” his style to the point of masturbation at the expense of the work of hundreds of other artists involved in the movie. The real Domino Harvey passed away last summer and never got to see this film. But she needn’t worry, the story of her life has still yet to be told.
-PP

DOOM (*)

I love The Rock, but unfortunately I’m still waiting for the first GREAT Rock movie. “The Rundown” was probably the closest, but it was mired in so much excess, it became cumbersome. “Doom” is pretty much all bad. The dialogue is bad, the action is uninspired, the sets and effects seem fast-foody and cheap. But mostly, the dialogue is bad! That really is the worst part of the film because it doesn’t allow The Rock to be as charismatic as he can be. He’s given flat, lame-o things to say that want to impress because they’re profanity-laced rather than clever. Shame. The Rock deserves so much better. Have ANY screenwriters listened to The Rock deliver a speech in the middle of a WWE ring? Brilliant. Simply brilliant. To date, however, his current material hasn’t allowed him to recapture that brilliance on screen. Actors like Karl Urban and Rosamund Pike are good enough in the film, but they can’t elevate the hackneyed feel of the whole film. There is a good twist at the end, the film handles its stars in ways you wouldn’t think. There’s also a 10-15 minute sequence that recreates the first-person-shooter POV of the video game “Doom” on which the film is based. It’s fun for about a minute or two until you realize that watching someone else play a game is never as entertaining as playing it yourself. But this sequence does encapsulate the movie as a whole, in that I never told you the plot of “Doom”, and I don’t need to. The movie’s much more focused on you watching stuff get blowed up…real good.
-PP

DREAMER (***1/2)

OK, I admit to being drawn into this sentimentalized girl-and-her-horse movie. I loved it. I cried like a child and I’m not kidding. Director John Gatins has fashioned an unabashedly emotional and winning underdog story that got me totally involved. Dakota Fanning continues her run as Hollywood’s best and most believable actress as a young girl who has unending faith in a broken-down race horse and her broken-down father. I have continually berated the mishandling of kids in movies, but this role is challenging and smart. Fanning delivers big, never being coy or “kiddie”. She’s still a kid, though, she doesn’t act beyond the character’s years. It’s a great performance. If you saw her on the SAG Awards Ceremony on TV, she’s growing up and read the teleprompter better than anyone else that night with dignity and demeanor, promising more and more years of her being a strong Tinseltown talent. Also great is Kurt Russell as her father, Ben Crane, another great role following “Miracle”. It’s good to see the days of “Soldier” and “3,000 Miles to Graceland” behind him. The script does a good job of finding obstacle after obstacle for the characters, who are trying to nurse an injured horse back to health, leading to an ending that is cheer and tear inducing. The other aspects of the film aren’t to be discounted, either. The cinematography captures excitement (the horse races) and beauty (the heartland countryside) with equal prowess. The score by John Debney is sweeping, following the tender and dramatic moments step for step. There are some clunky lines, most are delivered by Elisabeth Shue, as Russell’s wife. Stuff like, “Remember dreams? Cale does.” Those lines were quickly forgotten as I got wrapped up in the passion Fanning’s character shows from start to finish. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, then you’ll stay through ALL the end credits to wipe your tears away so, when the lights come up, nobody sees that you were tearing up.
-PP

ELIZABETHTOWN (*1/2)

Dammit! I want every Cameron Crowe movie to be great. His “Say Anything…” is the best movie I’ve ever seen about teenagers and “Singles” and “Almost Famous” are certainly two of the best rock n roll movies ever. It’s a shame that this most personal film of his failed to connect with me. There’s something about Kirsten Dunst that doesn’t connect with me, either. I didn’t find her “free spirit” flight attendant loosening up corporate burnout Orlando Bloom to be all that authentic. Example, Rachel McAdams did it better in “The Notebook” and even Drew Barrymore in “The Wedding Singer” was just so loveable, you wanted to date her, and you certainly wanted the main character to end up with her. I’m not so much about Dunst in this movie. I’ve already mentioned in a previous review that the best roles for Bloom are period pieces. Yeah, that’s true. He was genial and fairly empathetic in this part, but overall just a bit waify in look and emotion for the character (the developer of a new sneaker that bankrupts a company). This and the death of his father makes Bloom’s character return home to Elizabethtown, KY. There are some true Crowe-esque characters, especially a couple staying at Bloom’s hotel who are throwing an event wedding, and the brother character is fun, too. But nothing seems to happen as naturally in “Elizabethtown” as it did in other Crowe films, and not just Dunst’s performance. A memorial service at the end of the film has some garish events take place that probably seemed good on paper, but watching played out clunky, like a pie fight in a movie that didn’t have an ending. Then a cross-country coda doesn’t reverberate like it should, unfolding slowly and all-too painstakingly when I wanted resolution and fast. Susan Sarandon gives another quality matronly performance, using her trademark wit to punch some of Crowe’s better lines. This seemed like good territory for Crowe to mine after the awful “Vanilla Sky”, but “Elizabethtown” ends up being just another reason not to go to Kentucky.
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THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE

Possession in a spiritually depressed society…

As you all are beginning to realize, I am a devout fan of the horror genre. Gore, violence, blood, psychological mind games, supernatural forces, monsters, vampire, lycanthropes, serial killers….nothing I can’t handle. But there is one corner of the genre that absolutely brings me to my knees with fright: POSSESSION. Perhaps it was my rigid Catholic upbringing or my curiosity with the book “The Exorcist” at a very tender age, forcing my parents to hide it or just the knowledge of the documented occurrences that cause me pain. Whatever the reason, masochistically I find myself drawn to these stories. With that said I broke down and rented “The Exorcism of Emily Rose” with expectations of it being mediocre at best. I was premature in my judgment. It actually is a solid film with an impressive cast and a very intense albeit sad story.

The film is a blend of courtroom drama and horror which actually seems to work. In a series of cross examinations the director visualizes the story for us. The story of Emily is based upon the events that happened from 1970-1976 to Anneliese Michel, a German girl who was thought to have been possessed by 6 or more demonic forces. Anneliese was a devout Catholic who was diagnosed as epileptic and was hospitalized in the Psychiatric Clinic in Wurzburg for two years. During this time, she began to see demonic visions or faces while she was praying. She was released and was able to finish her secondary education as well as attending the University of Wurzburg in 1973. Her condition worsened as she began to hear voices to add to the visions she was having. Being a strict Catholic, she attributed these occurrences with demonic possession. After four years of medical treatment, the Michel family turned to the church for help. They were refused the Roman Ritual of Exorcism due to the lack of evidence of Infestatio (possession) and the seriousness of the ritual itself. A local priest, Father Ernst Alt, known as a specialist in exorcism, proclaimed Anneliese possessed and received approval to perform the rite of exorcism by Bishop Josef Stangl. Eleven months before she died, a secret exorcism was performed weekly and all medical treatment was stopped.

“Anneliese presented what she claimed were six separate demons possessing her, including Lucifer, Cain, Judas Iscariot, Nero, Legion, and Belial. During her last exorcisms, Anneliese talked about wanting to die in order to save the souls of others. She stopped eating, rejected all medical help, and relied solely upon the priests to deliver her from the demons she believed were attacking her. Eventually, Anneliese’s knees were destroyed through obsessive genuflection. She contracted pneumonia and died at age 23 from starvation (by the time of her death, she weighed only 31 kilograms or 68 lbs). The autopsy report said that her death was caused by the malnutrition and dehydration that resulted from almost a year of semi-starvation during the rites.” -From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The family and priest were then sentenced to six months probation for manslaughter and negligence.

The movie places us in the present in an unknown location (Anytown, USA) and creates an atmosphere of tension and sympathy for the horrific situation. Jennifer Carpenter plays Emily with such force and dedication that limited special effects were used. Her ability to contort her body into unnatural poses lend to the authenticity of her performance. I found her face to be intangible, almost chameleon-like. I never could see what she truly looked like. A brilliant and beautiful actress that brings Emily to life.

The rest of the cast is nothing short of outstanding. Laura Linney in a truly pure performance as Erin Bruner the defense for Father Moore, played flawlessly by Tom Wilkinson, with a rigid and repressed Campbell Scott as Ethan Thomas, the prosecutor for the people.

The interesting thing about this film is the overwhelming sadness I felt while watching it. Yes there are scenes that made me want to assume the fetal position and yes there are plenty of creepy religious overtones but honestly the isolation that I experienced outweighed my fear. It felt hopeless. Erin Bruner’s character is independent and driven yet at the end of the day she goes home alone. Father Moore’s absolute conviction has led him to a cold and lonely prison cell where his only companion is the truth he so vehemently defends. And Ethan Thomas’s supposed Christian beliefs have forced him into a spiritual corner where it’s apparent he feels trapped.

Ultimately I felt that the spirituality of humanity was on trial. The faceless millions whose belief systems have been shattered by mainstream consumerism. Whose honesty has been replaced by shrewd lifestyles. Whose souls have been diminished by technology’s master plan to isolate us all from each other. Father Moore’s beautiful honesty is almost archaic in today’s society and god knows there isn’t a whole lot of room for real spirituality. Emily was perhaps a modern day saint who suffered so we would believe again. 100 years ago she may very well have been canonized and the populace would have called it a miracle. Today we call it mental illness, acting out, over dramatic behavior etc. and we actualize it away.

This movie may never be a classic like it’s predecessor “The Exorcist” but in 2006 it raises some serious questions about the spiritual crisis we are in and ultimately that is what moved me the most.
-MG

THE FAMILY STONE (***)

Sarah Jessica Parker gives her best performance in years in this family Christmas comedy that is unexpectedly affecting. Parker plays a stuffy New Yorker brought home to an ultra-liberal upstate family with a daughter who has it out for her. The film is loaded with good actors – Diane Keaton, the GREAT Craig T. Nelson, Dermot Mulroney, Luke Wilson and hottie-on-the-rise Rachel McAdams. Lots of characters, lots of plotlines – the mother’s illness, Parker’s sister visits, trysts abound and, did I mention ultra-liberal? There’s actually a brother who is gay and deaf and dating a black man, and they’re trying to adopt a child. The writing never gets out of hand till the end, when there’s a little too much slapstick used in a failed attempt to wrap things up. Once the slapstick is over, the movie returns to the tried and true writing that entertained us in the first place, and thank god for that. Despite some similar themes to your own holidays, the movies version of holidays always seems a little unrealistic. Parker’s character grounds this particular story. You feel for her (I’ve been there) and you’re amazed at how tightly wound she is (I’ve been there, too). She walks the line vividly between antagonist and victim. Great performance, good film.
-PP

FUN WITH DICK AND JANE (***)

Once again, Jim Carrey makes me laugh so much, I am inclined to put aside all rational criticism I have for movies and just say, “If you like Jim Carrey, you’ll like the movie”. That’s proved true for me. The guy is just FUNNY. Also refreshing is the advancement of Tea Leoni as a real talent. She has a number of great laughs here after a brilliant performance in the overall disappointing “Spanglish”. I hope she continues to be sought out for roles instead of filling in gaps as the wife or girlfriend. If you’re familiar with the original film starring Jane Fonda, Dick and Jane get down on their luck and resort to robbery to support themselves. I think the updating of this story to reflect the current miserable corporate trends of today works well, with loads of liberal potshots at the current government. These took me by surprise in a movie that, otherwise, never sought to be too sophisticated. The best of which is Alec Baldwin, as a crooked CEO, really paralleling Bush in dufus-disregard-for-the-little-man mode when the press interrupts him on a hunting trip. Funny. I was also happy with the way the filmmakers handled Dick & Jane’s relationship. They never really fight, despite their hardship, and that makes it easier to follow them on their wacky adventures. It’s subtle at first, but when the movie is at it’s peak, you realize that they really love each other and it’s easier to have fun with them.
-PP

GRIZZLY MAN (***)

This is my first Werner Herzog movie, and it makes me want to see more. Herzog has an unapologetic documentary style in which he firmly plants himself in the film as a character, not as obtrusive as Michael Moore, but he jumps onscreen every once in a while to interact with his subjects. This is a strange choice, but after a while, when Herzog’s voice-over is so compelling as commentary to what he’s showing us, you’re glad he’s leading us through this film. “Grizzly Man” is about Timothy Treadwell, a grizzly bear activist who lived with bears in Alaska for years until a demise at the hands of those he loved the most. And Treadwell REALLY loved these bears. Herzog compiled hours and hours of footage that Treadwell shot himself, that consisted of fascinating footage ranging from close encounters with the grizzlies to outrageous rants against those who hunt bears and ravage the Alaskan landscape. To learn more about this mesmerizing individual, Herzog interviews all the right people, from Treadwell’s family and contemporaries, to the pilots that flew him around the Alaskan hills and members of the Alaskan Wildlife Preserve. On the downside, for some reason Herzog stages scenes that don’t need it. For example, one of Treadwell’s watches is given to a fellow co-worker, and instead of just filming it, the participants in the watch exchange are uncomfortably aware of the nearby camera. There are a few questionable moments like that in “Grizzly Man”, but overall I was entranced by the life Treadwell chose to live. It’s simply fascinating.
-PP

HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE (***1/2)

Here’s a franchise that gets better with each film. A lot of people are down on “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban”, but I thought Alfonso Cuaron’s take on the young wizards growing older was fresh after two gee-whiz passes at JK Rowling’s classic material by Chris Colombus. Cuaron made the magic at Hogwart’s seem lived in and everyday, yet still containing power and mystery. Mike Newell (“Donnie Brasco”) has the helm for “Goblet of Fire” and he gets to work within the best story structure yet for a Potter film – the TriWizard Tournament. Everything unfolding in this new story does so under the umbrella of the Tournament, and it makes Rowling’s complex plotting (this was her longest book yet) easy to follow and makes for the most adult challenges for Harry yet. Harry not only has to fight a giant dragon (a scene of awesome spectacle), but he also has to figure out who to take to the dance! Michael Gambon seems even more comfortable as Dumbledore here than his first outing, which makes sense. Some fans get on him because he hasn’t done a Richard Harris impersonation, but I like what he’s done with the role. If you look at the “Goblet of Fire” poster, Harry Potter is starting to look like a badass. Well, guess what, he IS a badass. But my favorite character has always been Ron Weasley, who was hilarious as the always-scared best buddy to Harry. Now he’s hilarious as an older Weasley who has a put-upon stoner quality with long hair, and all three young actors have become very deft in their parts. More of the world’s greatest British actors have come on board for this film, including Miranda Richardson and Ralph Fiennes. And please remember and repeat the name Brendan Gleeson. He is GREAT in everything he’s been in from “Braveheart” to “28 Days Later” and he is fantastic as Mad Eye Moody. “You Know Who” makes an appearance at the end of this film and after four films of waiting for a rematch between him and Harry, their battle isn’t necessarily breath-taking, but, like “The Empire Strikes Back”, the stage is set for what I hope will be the continuing improvement of this franchise.
-PP

THE ICE HARVEST (**1/2)

I unfairly reviewed this film among friends until now. I don’t really watch previews because I think they give too much away, but even looking at the poster for this movie, it’s touted as “From the director of ‘Groundhog Day’”. Don’t be fooled. “The Ice Harvest” is unlike any other Harold Ramis movie. It plays out more like the Coen Brothers. John Cusack co-masterminds a bank heist with Billy Bob Thornton and it leads to twist after turn after murder in a truly dark drama. I wouldn’t even call it a dark comedy, and that threw me so much that I ended up looking at the screen in such astonishment I couldn’t even wrap my brain around liking what I saw. Reflecting on it, this film is a pretty solid piece of work. I was a little confused to see some seemingly meandering scenes never really work back into the framework of the story. Again, I was just shocked to see a real lack of laughs here, I mean, they called it a film from the director of “Analyze This”! I need to see it again, ‘cause many critics praised this film. I’m sure I missed something…
-PP

IN HER SHOES (**1/2)

Toni Collette and Cameron Diaz lead the charge in this story of two completely opposite sisters who find their mother and find a way to connect with each other. Collette plays Rose, a straight-laced New Yorker who always has to save her party-girl sister’s ass. Diaz’s partying Maggie is so unlikable, it’s tough to even care for her during her sporadic moments of redemption. Such is the theme of the film, I suppose, that family isn’t easy to maintain, but sometimes it’s all you have. The material seems familiar, and not always enjoyable, but there are some good laughs when Shirley Maclaine comes aboard as the mother. She and her friends in a Florida retirement community are funny in that hey-aren’t-old-people-funny kind of way. Collette really shines here again (after the MISERABLE “Japanese Story”). She has some sharp dialogue and easily carries the load as the film’s moral and emotional center. I suppose this film could get three stars as easy as two and a half, it’s good while you watch it, but you don’t take too much away. The film is put together very well, as you would expect from Curtis Hanson (“LA Confidential”). He did a similarly solid job with “Wonder Boys”. Between that male flick and this chick flick, I guess his next project should be about hermaphrodites. “In His Pumps?”
-PP

JARHEAD (***1/2)

Sam Mendes’ does great work with every script that comes his way. “Jarhead” is his latest, and I’m glad he helmed it. Here’s why. For me, there’s not so much that a war movie can show me anymore. It seems like I’ve seen a ton of war movies and they’ve ranged from patriotic themes to depressing with social comment, making the soldier seem noble and tragic. So, if I see a new war movie, all I can ask is that it’s made well. To my surprise, “Jarhead” is not only extremely well made, but it does tell a new and interesting story about war. “Three Kings” proved that the first Gulf War provides unique soldier stories. “Jarhead” looks more straightforwardly at a Marine’s involvement in the Kuwaiti conflict, from Basic Training to sniper missions. The Marine we follow is Anthony Swofford (Jake Gyllenhaal), whose book the film is based on. “Jarhead” is unique in that it is a combat-less film. Swofford’s patience and sanity are tested not due to intense warfare, but due to the inaction, the festering in the desert, the misguided cause and the goddamn HEAT. Jamie Foxx is good as a the head of Swoff’s platoon, given a load of good lines running his group of soldiers, and the cast is stacked with good actors – Peter Sarsgaard, Chris Cooper, Dennis Haysbert and more. Mendes has another phenomenal lineup of the bidness’ best working behind the camera: Roger Deakins (cinematographer of “Fargo”), legendary editor Walter Murch (who edits on Final Cut Pro!), and Dennis Gassner (Production Designer from “Barton Fink”). There are images that stuck with me long after the movie ended (particularly when it was literally raining oil on the soldiers). Mendes’ is one of Hollywood’s surest things for crafting a first-class drama. Regardless of the genre, location or theme, he nails it, that’s why I’m glad he has taken on a war film. Between Mendes’ outstanding direction and an fresh vision reflecting the new face of war, “Jarhead” leaves and impression.
-PP

JUST LIKE HEAVEN (***)

This is a sweet romance that gets better and better the more you stick with it. I was not expecting much, not really being a fan of previous Reese Witherspoon vehicles like “Sweet Home Alabama”, but her teaming with Mark Ruffalo is inspired and the laughs are quite genuine. Witherspoon plays Elizabeth, a nurse whose job dominates her life and minimizes her social life. After a car wreck, her spirit ends up inhabiting her old apartment, now occupied by widower Ruffalo. The film runs along typical lines at first, from gags where both people think they’ve broken into the other’s house, “how the heck can you see me?” dialogue, and a variety of methods in which Ruffalo tries to rid his abode of the apparition. A very unexpected turn comes halfway through the film that freshens everything up, and Ruffalo ends up helping Witherspoon deal with the tumultuous events that have taken place since her car wreck. Ruffalo is a marvel. I distinctly remember his breakout performance in “You Can Count On Me”, and have seen him in movies like “Collateral”, but I hope he finds a niche in comedy. He is hilarious, a combination of Nicolas Cage and my friend Biagio. OK, not many of you can relate to that description, but just watch the scene where he has to perform an emergency medical treatment on a stranger at a restaurant with Witherspoon giving him spiritual advice, and you WILL laugh. What’s impressive is that he turns on a dime to deliver the emotional weight required for some scenes and be a believable romantic lead throughout, and Witherspoon matches him scene for scene. Director Mark Waters finds that same balance of laughs and sentiment to make “Just Like Heaven” a great date film. The film’s ending is smart and challenging, not taking the easy way out for our characters. After “Walk the Line” and this, Reese is back on my watch list. I’ll see whatever she does next.
-PP

KINGDOM OF HEAVEN (***)

Up till now in my reviews, I think I’ve said that I’m not being surprised much. Well, here’s a movie that did surprise me. It’s another movie about the Holy Land, just 2000 years or so before Munich. I’m always impressed by a movie that teaches me something, and I was not aware that the Crusades brought about such a European presence in Jerusalem. Dopey me, I just thought the Crusades moved around Europe, killing people who didn’t like the Christian way. The politics presented in “Kingdom of Heaven” are well scripted and played out and make for a rather exciting Ridley Scott movie. After watching “Elizabethtown”, I am reminded once again that period pieces like this are for what Orlando Bloom is best suited. He, Liam Neeson, David Thewlis and Jeremy Irons are doing the nobleman thing to a T, despite a script that might be just a little to sober for it’s own good. I actually wanted to see more of the religions involved in these land struggles. It’s a 2 1/2 hour movie, but the last 45 minutes are a full-out war at the gates of Jerusalem, and that’s where Ridley does his best stuff. So, if it seems stuffy for a while (and it does), hang out ‘cause this movie goes out with a bang. And, lastly, I must say that my favorite character is the King (See? Who knew Jerusalem had a King?). He is suffering from leprosy and wears an iron mask and is simply fascinating. I couldn’t even tell you who played him, but when he was on screen, I was watching him over everyone else. God, politics suck.
-PP

KING KONG (****)

My pick for best film of the year. No film this year shot so high and achieved its goals. The movie with the biggest scope and most extraordinary vision of any director in 2005. Peter Jackson has made a three-hour masterpiece, and about an hour and forty-five minutes of the movie has to be non-stop ACTION. I left this movie completely and totally FULL. Let me break it down. The biggest joy of the film has to be the passion Jackson injects into every scene. You can tell this is the film he’s wanted to make his whole life, yet it doesn’t get out of control like Francis Ford Coppola’s “Bram Stoker’s Dracula”, a remake with equal passion, but no refinement. Whether it’s the obsession expressed by Jack Black, doing everything possible to make his film, or King Kong desperately roaming the streets of NY in search of Anne, there’s passion in every scene. My biggest peeve with Jackson in the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy was his penchant for melodrama that sometimes slips into downright cheese. There are moments of that here, too, but I was swept up in them this time out, especially the second time I saw the film. Example, the comparisons to Joseph Campbell are a little heavy-handed and some shots late in the film are overdone. However, there is stuff in this movie I have never seen before in my life, and most of the latter half of the film left me breathless. 1920s New York City hasn’t looked this beautiful in the movies ever before. There are effects-heavy shots near the end where Kong climbs the Empire State Building and I know the city, the Empire State Building, Kong, and the sky are all fake, and I bought every minute of it. In fact, I wouldn’t hesitate to say that this film has the best computer graphics I have ever seen. Also, I have, if you’ve ever heard me talk movies before, continually complained about how CGI characters suck. They look false, take me out of the narrative, and, worst of all, are BAD ACTORS. Well, Peter Jackson and Andy Serkis have advanced the work they did with Gollum to create the best CGI character ever in Kong. Kong comes away in this movie as the best actor in it. That’s not to slight the great work of Naomi Watts, but I felt true emotion for Kong and his situation, and any King Kong movie where I’m rooting for Kong to kick everyone’s ass in the end is a good King Kong movie. The first hour is skillfully set up, building characters and setting up the strong theme of destiny, so by the time the crew makes it to Skull Island, they hit the ground running and the dinosaurs, aborigines and bugs they encounter launch “King Kong” into THE action movie of the decade. In the end, “King Kong” is a tragedy, and Jackson, with great love for the story, enhances the emotion to a level not achieved by the previous “Kong” films. When Anne Darrow is first offered to Kong, she’s his latest toy (and there are some exceptionally realized POV shots when Kong first carries Anne through the jungle). Through the outrageous adventure they share, their relationship becomes one of the finest love stories of the year.
-PP

LORD OF WAR

You know who’s going to inherit the world? Arms dealers. Because everyone else is too busy killing each other.

Greetings my fellow movie lovers. I will begin with another lame apology about the lack of weekly columns I am supposed to deliver. However, all excuses aside, I am still here and will deliver as often as is humanly possible.

I’ve rented quite a few movies this week. All of which were quite good. Jim Jarmusch’s “Broken Flowers” (beautiful performances from all), “November” (indie film with Courtney Cox and ghost actor James Le Gros…okay movie, overdone plot line), “Mrs. Harris” (BRILLIANT) and finally “Lord of War”. I loved the last two so much that I had a hard time deciding which to discuss, but once again violence and corrupt behavior win over in my book.

I sincerely believe the fall of man was determined in 1836 when Samuel Colt developed his “revolver”, the first patented gun introduced to the world. Actually, the history of firearms dates all the way back to the 15th century but all were failed attempts at weaponry. It is no surprise then that men have dedicated their lives to the great arms race. “Lord of War” is a grim depiction of such ambitions.

We all live in a world where guns have always been prevalent. Killing machines that rest in the palms of the cowards who carry them. Revolutionaries, armies, gangs, government agencies, protective services, and, of course, individuals. Mainly men who mirror society becoming apathetic and preferring instant gratification without getting blood on their hands. It’s bullshit. I suppose what’s even further disgusting are the death dealers themselves, mercenary freelancers who peddle their wares to third world countries and into the hands of the poorest of men, women and, yes, children. And adding insult to injury, the powers that be, the biggest arms dealers of them all, hire these lone wolves, making sure their own fingerprints don’t touch the sale.

The movie opens with a distressing statement from Nicolas Cage who plays Yuri Orlov, arms dealer extraordinaire. “There are over 550 million firearms in worldwide circulation. That’s one firearm for every twelve people on the planet. The only question is: How do we arm the other 11?” The opening credits then follow a single bullet from its birth on the assembly line to the journey it takes to finally pierce the head of a small African boy.

The son of Russian immigrants who settled in Little Odessa (Brooklyn), Yuri decides the predetermined restaurant business is not for him. With Russian mobsters flooding the local streets with bullets, Yuri realizes that there is money to be made in all this death. He then begins a 20-year career as an arms dealer to leaders of the world. As many gifted individuals who apply themselves usually come to find out that they are really good at what they do. As is Yuri. The movie tracks his lucrative career and the trail of blood and death that seem to follow him. His over-zealous lust for his job begins to isolate him from those he loves as he loses sight of tangible attachments with his family. In order to remain at the top of his game, Yuri has successfully learned to disassociate himself from humanity.

The movie’s ability to deliver on all levels are due to the excellent cast which includes a consistent scene stealing performance from Jared Leto as Yuri’s younger more sensitive brother, Vitaly, as well as solid acting from the innately gifted Ian Holm. The supporting cast is strong as well with a surprisingly good Bridget Moynahan and a truly sinister performance from Eamonn Walker as Andre Baptiste, the West African dictator of Liberia. And yes, even Ethan Hawke as militant Interpol agent Jack Valentine is good.

The closing credits claim that the story is based on actual events. Some say that the fictional Yuri Orlov is loosely based on Viktor Anatolyevich Bout, a Russian arms dealer and former KGB officer. He is nicknamed the “Merchant of Death”. “Bout came to officials’ attention in the 1990s, when he was accused of supplying arms to rebels in West Africa after a cease-fire agreement had been brokered. At that time he owned or was using many airlines, including Air Cess and Centrafrican, which were later forced to shut down by the authorities. He was also the official arms supplier to the deposed regime of Charles Taylor in Liberia.” – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Interestingly enough, although “Lord of War” has the auspices of a big Hollywood movie, there is no American money attached. New Zealand-born director, Andrew Niccol said no American company would go near it. “Since the film does not shy away from stating the facts about the role of the US in supplying arms, it was considered too controversial.” The $US 50 million ($67 million) budget was raised mostly in Europe, by French producer Philippe Rousselet.

The movie left me feeling sad, frustrated, helpless and disgusted. Disgusted and disappointed at the obvious Lord of War: Capitalism. I realize this should come as no surprise in the 21st century but the movie paints the glaringly obvious picture of its reality. The final statements during the ending credits were the most disturbing to me:
The US, UK, China, Russia and Europe are the 5 largest arms dealers in the world. They also hold the 5 permanent seats on UN Council.
-MG

MARCH OF THE PENGUINS (***)

Best thing you can do for any documentary is get Morgan Freeman to be your narrator. Look was it did for the narrative feature “Million Dollar Baby”. Freeman’s V.O. often adds a thoughtful and sincere layer to a story that is transfixing anyway due to the expert work of its filmmakers. Director Luc Jacquet follows Emperor penguins in Antarctica as they fight nature and predators to make the yearly trek to their mating grounds. The access the filmmakers give the audience is impressive, not necessarily unprecedented, but the work that normally gets reserved for the National Geographic Channel looks glorious on the big screen. The penguins have a wonderful humanism about them from their comical waddle to their sensitive parenting techniques that is always remarkable to watch. Part tragic, part triumphant, and, as Freeman says at the top, all love story, “March of the Penguins” has become one of the highest-grossing documentaries of all-time because, in my opinion, it has a great plot. I’ve already reviewed three movies (narratives) about characters who go on great journeys (“Transamerica”, “The World’s Fastest Indian” and “Breakfast on Pluto”), and “Penguins” is memorably in this class, but the real-story aspect of it all has made it appealing to everyone. It’s pretty much a film that’s hard to dislike.
-PP

THE MATADOR (***1/2)

A Great film! I have a feeling a lot of people would love this movie, but the limited release it’s getting is unfair to it’s star power (Pierce Brosnan – 007 for God’s sake!) and accessibility, and it may not get itself in front of too much of an audience. But if you see it on the marquee, GO! Brosnan plays an assassin in the middle of a mid-life and mid-career crisis, suffering from panic attacks that hinder his ability to get the job done. In Mexico, he meets Kinnear’s Danny Wright, who is in town for business meetings. The two get off the ground in prickly territory at first, but soon develop an outlandish friendship where Kinnear becomes fascinated by the life an assassin must lead. From there, the very stylish script by writer/director Richard Shepherd throws in one or two BIG twists that left me very satisfied. The final scene is one GREAT series of conversations and flashbacks. This movie is just COOL. Shot cool, people talk cool, and there’s loads of laughs from Brosnan AND Kinnear. Brosnan’s assassin is so affable and loutish at the same time, it’s not only a great performance, but certainly a 180 from James Bond. Hope Davis is also very good as Kinnear’s wife, equally curious about the new world her husband has discovered. There’s precious little wrong with this film, and I expect more great things from Richard Shepherd.
-PP

MATCH POINT (***)

Here’s some more familiar territory for Woody Allen – infidelity. The plot even handles infidelity in similar ways to his “Crimes and Misdemeanors” from the ‘90s. However, Allen has dipped his customary adults-in-deep-shit story into new terrain. This is the first film Woody has set and shot in London. And am I right in thinking that it’s gotta be the first movie he’s made outside of NY City in over twenty years? Much like John Patrick Shanley, an Irish writer NAILING the thoughts and feelings of an Italian family in “Moonstruck”, Woody has found the style, feel and tone of the Brits better than I thought he would. His plot is very, very, VERY meticulously put together and contains deeper themes than I would’ve imagined from him, too (the most prominent being that of luck). Twists and turns? Haven’t seen that from Woody in a while. This movie is worth seeing to catch a master back in full form, and he’s got a good cast making the material bristle. My favorite in the cast is Emily Mortimer, utterly loveable in her role, and Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, who is such a creepy dude, you know he’s up to something. Don’t get me wrong, it’s very talky, and not so visually exciting, but this film makes me VERY curious to see Woody’s next film, which I believe he’s shooting in Spain. I can finally take the Woody Allen cookie cutter and throw it out, he’s expanding his universe, and the results are good.
-PP

MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA (**1/2)

Wow, this movie really wants you to heap awards upon it. Desperately. The stars were aligned – director Rob Marshall, of the Oscar-winning “Chicago”, headlining a prestigious list of filmmakers, adapting a popular novel to the sounds of John Williams’ sweeping score. But the result is just…blah. I can easily give it two and a half stars for the look and feel of the film, but I didn’t care as much as I wanted to. It started out promising, with two sisters being sent to become Japan’s legendary Geisha girls, but it led to a series of – um, it was hard to make it – well, I tried to – OK, let me be honest. The biggest problem I had with the film was the English dialects of its Asian stars. I found that just DEBILITATING. Such a shame, ‘cause we saw great actors like Michelle Yeoh and Zhang Ziyi shining in “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”, speaking Mandarin. Here, visibly struggling with English, these actors lose the finesse they display in performances in their native tongue. This film should’ve been performed in Japanese, if you ask me. The trouble there is that the Japanese are up in arms because actors from China and Hong Kong have been cast in “Geisha”. So, could they even do Japanese correctly, without debilitating dialect? I DON’T KNOW! So, with all that confusing stuff aside, let me just say that I wish the English wasn’t such a chore for these obviously gifted actors. I’ve really gone on about this, haven’t I? On to other parts of the movie, the overall love story didn’t really get me. I can’t reveal it here, but it’s just creepy. I think the cinematography and score will be remembered for a long while, but the rest of it is already gone from my memory.
-PP

MRS. HENDERSON PRESENTS (***)

When her London theater starts declining, bored British socialite Laura Henderson decides the best way to attract a crowd is for her cabaret dancers to lose their tops, and then some. Such is the premise of this very English comedy and Judi Dench is perfectly cast as Mrs. Henderson, anchoring the film in her trademark sharp tongue and stare (the same one used for dramatic effect in “Pride & Prejudice”). Bob Hoskins, who also produced, has one of his best roles in years as a theatrical producer who butts heads with Mrs. Henderson at every turn. Writer Martin Sherman provides crackling dialogue for all involved, and lots of comedy is gotten out of the bodacious situations of naked chicks in the theater. In the movie’s second act, there are dramatic turns when WWII hits London. It’s a bit jarring, given the first half’s frivolity, but it’s handled with the same sophistication as before. My only other disappointment with the film is the music. For a musical cabaret, I was hoping to hear a few more familiar tunes. Instead, I guess I was introduced to new songs (to me), but none were truly memorable. Wispy and amusing, “Mrs. Henderson Presents” is another fine outing for director Stephen Frears.
-PP

MUNICH (****)

I’ll admit, and I’ve admitted it here before, that I am genetically predisposed to like Steven Spielberg movies. There’s something about the production value and overall prestige of his projects that I am WAY into. However, I don’t think there’s any bias in this review of one of Spielberg’s bravest movies yet. Now here’s an example of a kinetic movie! I expected a movie about the political ramifications of the Palestinian kidnappings and killings in Munich at the Olympic Games, 1972. What I got instead was a spy/espionage thriller of the HIGHEST order, filled with tension and suspense. The intrigue begins when Israel orders a retaliation against the Munich massacre in the form of an elite squad of mercenaries (not all Israeli) to take out the folks responsible. This leads to the controversy surrounding this film, and I want to address that. True, Israelis were killed at Munich, and it seems their vengeance was due. But Spielberg posits that perhaps revenge is not the best solution. This is a bold move for a high-profile Jewish filmmaker. The revenge plot, and how it unfolds on screen, is GREAT for the movie, exciting to watch. But, as we’ve all seen, violence breeds more violence in real life, and the ambiguity with which Spielberg has founded this film is impressive and certainly more challenging than the Nazis-bad/Jews-good angle that anchored one of his other masterpieces, “Schindler’s List”. Let’s face it, in the Middle East, no one is innocent, and no one has ever been innocent, and there will never be peace there, ever. Ever. Back to the movie, the assassination attempts involve botched bombings, double-crosses and more twists and turns, leading to a haunting final scene that lays it all out that politics will reign over value of human life then and now. The cast is impressive, including the brilliant Geoffrey Rush being brilliant again, Lynn Cohen is very good in a small role as Golda Meir, plus the always working and always underrated Ciarin Hinds and, good news, Daniel Craig is great! That’s good news to Bond fans. In this film he played kind of a heavy, more like a Jason Statham-type than the smooth, suave James Bond. But he seemed like a solid actor that could pull off 007. As ever, Spielberg has brought on board the best in the business, from Janusz Kaminski to screenwriter Tony Kushner, and this is certainly one of the year’s best films.
-PP

THE NEW WORLD (**)

Not so new, it turns out. “The New World” is VERY much like Terrence Malick’s last film, “The Thin Red Line”. So it comes down to this: Did you like “The Thin Red Line”. I didn’t. Didn’t like this, either. There’s something to be said for Malick’s distinct film vision, but, for me, the word wouldn’t be “coherent”. Malick has made a “dream film”, in that, as another critic put it, it seems like he gets annoyed that he has to stop to use dialogue! English settlers arrive in Virginia in tall, stately ships, and the Native Indians look on with magical wonder as the ships take to the beach. These scenes, set to a swelling, gorgeous piece of Wagner’s music, have an enchanting quality, but I became detached soon after. The film used the same technique time and again in crucial scenes as the settlers and Indians clash. That technique is long, languid shots of people, most of the time in a field, with voice-over of their thoughts, poetic, not necessarily narrative, over mostly otherwise dialogue-less scenes (same as “The Thin Red Line”). It just didn’t work for me. I was impressed that Malick is dodging traditional narrative, but it left me with no real connection to the characters. Colin Farrell and newcomer Q’Orianka Kilcher looked lost in it all, asked to act a certain way, but perhaps not a certain story. I was intrigued by the second half of the story, which I imagine was drawn from history, about what happened to Pocohontas after her relationship with John Smith, a time of her legend we rarely hear about. But overall, it was a bunch of visuals and story fragments, signifying nothing.
-PP

OSCAR RANT 2006

(Honoring the best films of 2005)

Best Motion Picture of the Year:
Crash (2004) – Paul Haggis, Cathy Schulman
Brokeback Mountain (2005) – Diana Ossana, James Schamus
Capote (2005) – Caroline Baron, William Vince, Michael Ohoven
Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) – Grant Heslov
Munich (2005) – Steven Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy, Barry Mendel
Won: “Crash”
Should’ve Won: “Good Night, and Good Luck”
Well, if you look at my top 10, you’ll see that “Good Night” edges out “Crash”, but only by a hair. I was just happy to see that “Brokeback Mountain” didn’t win because I was not it’s biggest fan. A bit too ponderous for me, and perhaps a story of gay cowboys could be more, I don’t know, exciting. Compared to other years, there’s three Academy picks that match my own picks, so I was pretty happy. Some years I disagree with all five nominations. I was surprised to see “Capote” in there. I didn’t think the FILM had as much hype as Hoffman did. I certainly wasn’t as impressed with “Capote” as I was with the likes of “King Kong” or even “Walk the Line”, which I thought had a chance of a nomination. “Capote” just never surprised me. It set up what would happen, then it happened. “Crash” was certainly more visceral and a much more worthy Best Picture winner. But Clooney’s tale of 1950’s repression and witch-hunting was expertly put together and would’ve won on Oscar night from what was nominated if I was the man.
And one more thing about “King Kong”, why does it get a bad rap when it had more four star reviews than “Crash”?

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role:
Philip Seymour Hoffman for Capote (2005)
Terrence Howard for Hustle & Flow (2005)
Heath Ledger for Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Joaquin Phoenix for Walk the Line (2005)
David Strathairn for Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005)
Won: Philip Seymour Hoffman
Should’ve Won: Terrence Howard
This is a great list of nominees, but, as ever, there are people missing: Pierce Brosnan in “The Matador”, Nicolas Cage in “The Weather Man”, Bill Murray in “Broken Flowers”. Maybe Brosnan deserved a nod, but I thought for sure Russell Crowe deserved and would be nominated for “Cinderella Man”. Is the Crowe backlash really THAT strong? Here’s a guy who is always good. Think about it. ALWAYS. He’s ALWAYS GOOD. The scene where he has to go to all the boxing match financiers and beg alone earned him a spot amongst these nominees. I would’ve not only nominated Crowe, but given him serious consideration for the win. That being said, Hoffman did a great job, but one could make the argument that he hit a note and carried it. Same with the stoic performance of Strathairn. Phoenix always had the “he did his own singing” argument going for him, but unfortunately, the story of Johnny Cash didn’t go anywhere musical biopics haven’t gone before. So that, for me, leaves Ledger and Howard. “Hustle & Flow” gave Howard more to do that he knocked out of the park. Ledger’s performance was SO reserved, bordering on Sling Blade, that I would go with the explosive energy and raw emotion of Terrence Howard as DJay. His clip on the Oscars practically made me cry.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role:
Reese Witherspoon for Walk the Line (2005)
Judi Dench for Mrs. Henderson Presents (2005)
Felicity Huffman for Transamerica (2005)
Keira Knightley for Pride & Prejudice (2005)
Charlize Theron for North Country (2005)
Won: Reese Witherspoon
Should’ve Won: Felicity Huffman, easily
Huffman’s performance asked so much more of her than Witherspoon’s role. Reese gave one of those Oscar-loving performances of a strong woman and she did it well, but have you seen “Transamerica”? Holy balls, that was a great performance! Challenging in nearly every scene, her character is instantly and always demanding your attention. Missing: Joan Allen in “The Upside of Anger” – she was, and is always, GREAT. I thought maybe Claire Danes had a chance, but “Shopgirl” was just too cold to fall in love with the way the Academy needs to. Also, I would’ve made a stronger push for Dakota Fanning in “Dreamer”. She’s the best actress in Hollywood, and if you don’t start nominating her now, get used to it in the future.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role:
George Clooney for Syriana (2005)
Matt Dillon for Crash (2004)
Paul Giamatti for Cinderella Man (2005)
Jake Gyllenhaal for Brokeback Mountain (2005)
William Hurt for A History of Violence (2005)
Won: George Clooney
Should’ve Won: Matt Dillon
I have to admit, though, as much as I didn’t like “Syriana”, it was great to see Clooney win. Whatever the hell his character was doing in that movie (and I doubt even he could tell me), he was fascinating as embodied by Clooney. But I moreover am excited for Clooney ‘cause he is an excellent poster boy for Hollywood. His speech was great, talking about being glad to be in out-of-touch Hollywood, if that’s the place that’s producing issue-driven art like the high-profile films nominated this year. And he’s handsome but self-depricating, serious about his work, but humorous about life (every dig at him from the stage was followed by a Clooney classic take in the audience). Good for him. However, as performances go, in this category they don’t get better than Dillon, as the highly complex and complicated racist cop in “Crash”. A brash performance that garnered both disgust and empathy, he nailed it. It’s good to see Giamatti nominated here, but we all know that Academy screwed up with “Sideways” AND “American Splendor”, and we’ll see if they screw up again when Giamatti has another leading role. Hurt is amazing, but the part’s too small (not seeming to matter to the Academy, who gives awards to Beatrice Straight & Judi Dench for similar-size roles). My craziest nomination here would be to Andy Serkis for playing Kong. I mean, EVERY Oscar winner that won for “King Kong” thanked him. He’s crucial to the film, and what the guy provides the production is unique and invaluable. If you’ve ever seen any behind-the-scenes footage on the making of “King Kong”, you’ll see it’s a supporting performance worthy of an Oscar (plus he played the cook!). Also, can any love be shown to Mickey Rourke in “Sin City”? – he was awesome.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role:
Rachel Weisz for The Constant Gardener (2005)
Amy Adams for Junebug (2005)
Catherine Keener for Capote (2005)
Frances McDormand for North Country (2005)
Michelle Williams for Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Won: Rachel Weisz
Should’ve Won: Amy Adams
My friend Mark will tell you Best Supporting Actress, save for Judi Dench, always goes to the hottest chick nominated – Marisa Tomei, Mira Sorvino, Catherine Zeta-Jones, etc. This year’s no different, as Brit hottie Weisz is the winner. That being said, Weisz’s performance is excellent, but I think it borders on a lead role. I’ve said before and will say again that Amy Adams’ performance in “Junebug” is the best acting I saw in a film in 2005 – that’s any gender, any size role, she was the best. She’s certainly better than Reese Witherspoon. She’s hilarious, warm and arouses such a feeling of compassion and rises to every occasion the script demands. Keep your eyes on her in the future. There’s a GLARING omission in this category, and that’s the raw performance of Maria Bello in “A History of Violence”. As the mother of a family being tested by her husband’s past, she is vulnerable, wounded, strong & patient all at the same time. Without her multi-level performance, and the ability for the audience to feel the loss and hurt of her family through her, the movie wouldn’t work. She’s great – again. There’s also an argument to be made for Toni Collette in “In Her Shoes” and Naomi Watts in “King Kong”, both actresses straight-up delivering. Let’s not forget Katie Holmes in “Batman Begins”, a towering tour-de-force…you know I’m BS-ing, right?

Best Achievement in Directing:
Ang Lee for Brokeback Mountain (2005)
George Clooney for Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005)
Paul Haggis for Crash (2004)
Bennett Miller for Capote (2005)
Steven Spielberg for Munich (2005)
Won: Ang Lee
Should’ve Won: George Clooney
Did I mention “ponderous”? This is not the Ang Lee of “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” or even “Sense & Sensibility”. “Brokeback Mountain” was just dull, folks. Go with Clooney. I say this every year, but I agree with Rob Reiner, whose “A Few Good Men” got nominated for Best Picture, but he didn’t get nominated for Best Director. He said they should announce Best Picture, and give an Oscar to the Producer & Director. This year is one of those years when the nominated films were the same for Director and Picture, but how could the year’s best director not make the best film? Again, this is screwy, so my vote is with Clooney for pic & director. And it would follow suit that I’d choose Peter Jackson over Bennett Miller for a nomination. I mean, c’mon, have you seen “King Kong”? That ain’t easy!

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen:
Crash (2004) – Paul Haggis, Robert Moresco
Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) – George Clooney, Grant Heslov
Match Point (2005) – Woody Allen
The Squid and the Whale (2005) – Noah Baumbach
Syriana (2005) – Stephen Gaghan
Won: Crash
Should’ve Won: Crash
Woohoo! For the first time I’m in agreement. “Crash” was a elaborate mix of numerous subplots that never seemed forced together. And the story of how the script came about from Haggis’ own carjacking makes it all the more flashy. I know it seems like I’m picking the script for a movie not higher on my list of the year’s best films than “Good Night & Good Luck”, and that’s counter to the whole director/picture thing I just talked about. Well, the most impressive writing in “Good Night, and Good Luck” was Murrow’s. That’s a great film, but the true genius of it was written in the ‘50s. Now, why is “Syriana” on this list? Even Gaghan will tell you he doesn’t know what the film’s about. A joke. Slide it and make room for “Junebug” (what one critic astutely observed to be the “least condescending” movie ever made about the south). Also, it’s good to see Woody nominated here in a real return to form for him with “Match Point”.

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published:
Brokeback Mountain (2005) – Larry McMurtry, Diana Ossana
Capote (2005) – Dan Futterman
The Constant Gardener (2005) – Jeffrey Caine
A History of Violence (2005) – Josh Olson
Munich (2005) – Tony Kushner, Eric Roth
Won: Brokeback Mountain
Should’ve Won: The Constant Gardener
Barely edging out “Munich”, I’d give it to “The Constant Gardener” because those John LeCarre novels are a BITCH to adapt, and Jeffrey Caine did a great job. Never confusing, but telling a very complex story, I was impressed. I wonder if they ever gave any thought to the script for “Sin City”. I mean, the thing was storyboarded right in the comics and they transferred it to screen exactly.

Best Achievement in Cinematography:
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) – Dion Beebe
Batman Begins (2005) – Wally Pfister
Brokeback Mountain (2005) – Rodrigo Prieto
Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) – Robert Elswit
The New World (2005) – Emmanuel Lubezki
Won: Memoirs of a Geisha
Should’ve Won: Good Night, and Good Luck
I was a big fan of the black & white photography of “Good Night & Good Luck”. It transported us back in time, really, REALLY captured the smoke all over every scene and matched the TV archives used in the story. I guess there’s a good reason to give it to “Geisha” – it had to look pretty ‘cause there wasn’t much else going on in the film that kept my interest. How cool would it have been to see “Batman Begins” win? There were lots of action films with good photography this year – “Kingdom of Heaven”, “War of the Worlds”, “King Kong”, and I would’ve given serious thought to “A History of Violence”. Cronenberg and his team framed alot of shots just so to tell the story just right (If you saw the film, think about the opening shot of the killers checking out of the hotel – great shot selection).

Best Achievement in Editing:
Crash (2004) – Hughes Winborne
Cinderella Man (2005) – Daniel P. Hanley, Mike Hill
The Constant Gardener (2005) – Claire Simpson
Munich (2005) – Michael Kahn
Walk the Line (2005) – Michael McCusker
Won: Crash
Should’ve Won: Crash
I agree again. It’s not surprising to see another boxing movie nominated here. Filmmakers always give us exciting cuts when they film scenes in the ring. “The Constant Gardener” was just a little too jump-cutty for my liking. I enjoyed the style the filmmakers chose, but every once in a while it was noticeable. It shouldn’t be so noticeable. I always like Michael Kahn’s cutting, as he’s still doing it on film, but I’ll go with “Crash” once again because smooth editing was crucial in telling the numerous stories in the film.

Best Achievement in Art Direction:
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) – John Myhre, Gretchen Rau
Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) – James D. Bissell, Jan Pascale
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005) – Stuart Craig, Stephanie McMillan
King Kong (2005) – Grant Major, Dan Hennah, Simon Bright
Pride & Prejudice (2005) – Sarah Greenwood, Katie Spencer
Won: Memoirs of a Geisha
Should’ve Won: King Kong
I was psyched to see “Kong” take 3 of 4 awards it was nominated for. Maybe that’s a sign that it should’ve been nominated in more categories. “Geisha” certainly looked beautiful, same with “Pride & Prejudice”, and that’s a better film. But “Geisha” gave us sets we’ve seen in the best Hong Kong films of the past and even parts of “The White Countess”, and “Pride & Prejudice” delivered the same stuff we saw in “Sense & Sensibility” and other Merchant/Ivory films. “Kong” showed me shit I’ve never seen before in my life. I’m a believer – give ‘em the award. I would also nominate “Cinderella Man” in this category for the great depression-era sets that put us in the middle of Braddock’s world. “Harry Potter” won the action-movie nomination in this category, and for good reason. There were also great sets in “War of the Worlds”, one of which you can currently tour at Universal Studios Hollywood, the world’s largest movie studio and theme park, where you can ride the movies! While visiting, don’t miss The Blues Brothers R&B Revue and Special Effects Stages, where you go behind-the-scenes of the latest blockbusters from… Universal! That reminds me, I’ve gotta go to work…

Best Achievement in Costume Design:
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) – Colleen Atwood
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005) – Gabriella Pescucci
Mrs. Henderson Presents (2005) – Sandy Powell
Pride & Prejudice (2005) – Jacqueline Durran
Walk the Line (2005) – Arianne Phillips
Won: Memoirs of a Geisha
Should’ve Won: Memoirs of a Geisha
Alright, I’ll give this one to “Geisha” because the costumes really were amazing. I would’ve also given a nod to “Good Night, and Good Luck”. I’m always a fan of the great costumes that get taken for granted, like in “Wall Street” or even “Back to the Future”, but the suits, collars, ties and cuff links of “Good Night, and Good Luck” looked great. It’s a shame this category rarely gets the token action movie nominated, ‘cause “Batman Begins” is certainly worthy.

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score:
Brokeback Mountain (2005) – Gustavo Santaolalla
The Constant Gardener (2005) – Alberto Iglesias
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) – John Williams
Munich (2005) – John Williams
Pride & Prejudice (2005) – Dario Marianelli
Won: Brokeback Mountain
Should’ve Won: Munich
Oh, dear God! Anything but “Brokeback Mountain”! That droning, Duh nuh nuh nuuuuuuuh, nuuuuuh, na-nuh. Duh nuh nuh nuuuuuuuh, nuuuuuh, na-nuh. UGH. I can’t believe it was even nominated. That score sucked. Nobody does it better then John Williams, and his “Munich” score was at times both haunting and exciting. This year, he passed the “Harry Potter” torch to Patrick Doyle, but it’s still a shame that that score never wins. The theme and the bouncy energy of that music is always worth a listen. And the James Newton Howard music from “King Kong” is super-epic brilliance! Memorable and award-worthy, if you ask me. Oh, and don’t forget “Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit”! That music was excellent! They just didn’t nominate any “fun” music this year…

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song:
Hustle & Flow (2005) – Jordan Houston, Cedric Coleman, Paul Beauregard (“It’s Hard Out Here For a Pimp”)
Crash (2004) – Michael Becker, Kathleen York (“In the Deep”)
Transamerica (2005) – Dolly Parton (“Travelin’ Thru”)
Won: Hustle & Flow
Should’ve Won: Hustle & Flow
This is absolutely the best song in the category. Forever, I’ve been a fan of the the song that has had the most resonance in the story. These end-credits songs mean nothing to me, but often win. Something like “That Thing You Do!” is CRUCIAL to the story, a good song reminiscent of the time period and catchy, and it DOESN’T win? BS. “Pimp” is the crux of DJay’s journey and his life-story, too. Songs like it change him from a nobody loser to an artist, that’s why it’s the Best Song. And, hell, it’s catchy. I did like the Dolly Parton song, too, but it’s just slapped on the end of the film. It’s a shame the “Corpse Bride” songs weren’t as good as “The Nightmare Before Christmas” this year. “The Producers” tried to put an extra song in their movie, but it was as uninspired as the film adaptation of the Broadway show. So, pickens were slim, but “Pimp” stood out.

Best Achievement in Makeup:
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) – Howard Berger, Tami Lane
Cinderella Man (2005) – David LeRoy Anderson, Lance Anderson
Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005) – Dave Elsey, Annette Miles
Won: The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Should’ve Won: The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
I just don’t want “Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith” to be an Oscar-winner, is that so wrong? Both of this year’s fantasy movies had minimal impact, makeup-wise. Is it too much of a stretch to nominate Sin City for the crazy way they made up Mickey Rourke? Or the beautiful gore of “Land of the Dead”? Or the way-better-then-CGI suit Michael Chiklis wore in “Fantastic Four”? Then again, we don’t want that to be an “Oscar-winner”, do we? Or is it just nuts to only nominate three films in this category every year?

Best Achievement in Sound:
King Kong (2005) – Christopher Boyes, Michael Semanick, Michael Hedges, Hammond Peek
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) – Terry Porter, Dean A. Zupancic, Tony Johnson
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) – Kevin O’Connell, Greg P. Russell, Rick Kline, John Pritchett
Walk the Line (2005) – Paul Massey, Doug Hemphill, Peter F. Kurland
War of the Worlds (2005) – Andy Nelson, Anna Behlmer, Ron Judkins
Won: King Kong
Should’ve Won: King Kong
Peter Jackson surrounded himself with the best in the business, and in creating the multitude of locations in “King Kong”, his crew also created the best sound environments for each. I first saw this film in the Universal Amphitheatre and it was HUGE screen and HUGE sound. The sound was overwhelming, and so was the movie. These are all good nominations. Usually they nominate a music-related film like “Ray”, and “Walk the Line” certainly delivered the concert feel. I’m surprised “Munich” wasn’t mentioned here. Most of the same crew from “War of the Worlds” worked on “Munich”, too, and that film delivered and audible punch, too.

Best Achievement in Sound Editing:
King Kong (2005) – Mike Hopkins, Ethan Van der Ryn
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) – Wylie Stateman
War of the Worlds (2005) – Richard King
Won: King Kong
Should’ve Won: King Kong
You’ve GOTTA give this one to “Kong”. There are hundreds of thousands of sound effects in this film added in post-production to characters and locations that AREN’T THERE. The Sound Editing makes these places and things come to life. And no film did it as effectively as “King Kong”. From bugs to trees to planes to New York City to Kong himself, the Sound Editing brought much of what we saw to glorious reality.

Best Achievement in Visual Effects:
King Kong (2005) – Joe Letteri, Brian Van’t Hul, Christian Rivers, Richard Taylor
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) – Dean Wright, Bill Westenhofer, Jim Berney, Scott Farrar
War of the Worlds (2005) – Pablo Helman, Dennis Muren, Randy Dutra, Daniel Sudick
Won: King Kong
Should’ve Won: King Kong
“King Kong” has the best visual effects I’ve ever seen, and Kong is the best CGI ACTOR I’ve seen in the movies, too. I thought “War of the Worlds” had this wrapped up for the sheer expanse of the on-screen destruction. But Kong undercut all of that with not only huge, outlandish imagery, but Kong acted, he ACTED! And the Peter Jackson/Andy Serkis team outdid themselves and what they accomplished with Gollum. Great work.

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year:
Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005) – Steve Box, Nick Park
Corpse Bride (2005) – Tim Burton, Mike Johnson
Hauru no ugoku shiro (2004) – Hayao Miyazaki
Won: Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
Should’ve Won: Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
This movie is so much fun it’s ridiculous. Combine that with what you know it takes to pain-stakingly create stop-action claymation, and “Wallace & Gromit” wins hands-down. There was a noticeable lack of CGI movies nominated this year – ZERO. That’s ‘cause no one can do it quite like Pixar, but they keep trying. “Robots” looked amazing, but I bet you can’t remember what it’s about. “Madagascar” was hip & fun, but looked angular and cheap. If you haven’t seen “Wallace & Gromit”, rent it today, they’ve expanded not only the running time of their old “W&G” shorts, but also expanded the laughs, action scenes and overall dry comedy and sweetness that they’ve come known for.

Best Foreign Language Film of the Year:
Tsotsi (2005) – Gavin Hood (South Africa)
Bestia nel cuore, La (2005) – Cristina Comencini (Italy)
Joyeux Noël (2005) – Christian Carion (France)
Paradise Now (2005) – Hany Abu-Assad (Palestine)
Sophie Scholl – Die letzten Tage (2005) – Marc Rothemund (Germany)
Won: Tsotsi
Should’ve won: Oh, god, can you believe I haven’t seen any of these? In a year when they’re supposedly all good (and certainly all hot-topic – war, terrorism, gangs, Nazis), I’ve failed to make it out. I bury my head in shame.

Best Documentary, Features:
Marche de l’empereur, La (2005) – Luc Jacquet, Yves Darondeau
Darwin’s Nightmare (2004) – Hubert Sauper
Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room (2005) – Alex Gibney, Jason Kliot
Murderball (2005) – Henry Alex Rubin, Dana Adam Shapiro
Street Fight (2005) – Marshall Curry
Won: March of the Penguins
Should’ve Won: Oh, god, the embarrassment continues. The only film I saw in this category was “March of the Penguins”, and it was rather good. I saw it with a Q&A from director Luc Jacquet, and he told stories about the difficulty of telling this story. Between the challenge of shooting in Antarctica and making the penguin’s story accessible and entertaining for all audiences was quite a feat. That being said, I’ve heard that “Murderball” and “Enron” and “Street Fight” are all great. “Street Fight” was made almost entirely by ONE GUY! I think they all deserve viewing and I’ll get to it at some point. I must admit, though, that every year the Documentary category is full of errors that the Academy gets lambasted for. This year, they failed to nominate the year’s most critically lauded doc “Grizzly Man” – a fascinating look at Timothy Treadwell, who lived amongst bears in Alaska for years. I saw that! Does that count?! I also saw “Inside Deep Throat”, a fascinating account of the makers of one of America’s most notorious porno movies, where they are today and how they changed the face of America’s decency laws. Brilliant.

Best Documentary, Short Subjects:
A Note of Triumph: The Golden Age of Norman Corwin (2005) – Corinne Marrinan, Eric Simonson
God Sleeps in Rwanda (2005) – Kimberlee Acquaro, Stacy Sherman
The Life of Kevin Carter (2004) – Dan Krauss
The Mushroom Club (2005) – Steven Okazaki
Won: A Note of Triumph: The Golden Age of Norman Corwin
Should’ve Won: Superheroes: We Work for Tips
Um, that’s a short documentary I made. I probably should get out to see some of the films in this category, but till I do (or have easy access to), I should win just ‘cause. Who’s with me?!!

Best Short Film, Animated:
The Moon and the Son (2005) – John Canemaker, Peggy Stern
Badgered (2005) – Sharon Colman
The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello (2005) – Anthony Lucas
9 (2005) – Shane Acker
One Man Band (2005) – Mark Andrews, Andrew Jimenez
Won: The Moon and the Son
Should’ve Won: Superheroes: We Work for Tips
See Above

Best Short Film, Live Action:
Six Shooter
Ausreiber
Cashback
Si Lasti Barinn
Our Time is Up
Won: Six Shooter
Should’ve Won: Superheroes: We Work for Tips, available for viewing at the iPod Film Festival – http://www.theflux.tv/ipodfest/entries/?category=INDIE+FILM
Vote for it to win the Festival! You’re votes determine the winner!

Overall, this year’s Oscars were pretty predictable. I thought the nominations were more surprising than the winners. I was glad to see the topics of the Best Picture noms be so pot-stirring. Hollywood should shake it up a bit. But when they want to salute the all-time great hot-topic movies in a montage during the awards show, do you think they needed to include “Something’s Gotta Give”? I know, as a fan, they’ve done better, you’d think the Academy knew better.

Other quick notes -

- How AWESOME was Paul McCartney at the Grammys, showing the young-uns how it’s done?! U2 winning 5 grammys means all’s right with the world, too. Every year, the nominees are crap, except for a few decent nominees, then the decent one’s always win, thank god. How pained did Bono look having to sing with Mary J. Blige, who was WAY OVER-singing “One”. I’m sure he wanted to turn to her and say, “Um, Mary, the song’s about love, not about you”.
-PP

PRIDE & PREJUDICE (**1/2)

I almost feel obligated to give this movie three stars because it’s just so incredibly well made. Gorgeously shot, well acted, the most astonishing British locales, and snappy wordplay that must make it fun to be an actor in the film. So, why, then, 2 1/2 stars? It’s just not surprising. I wouldn’t go through the library of the world’s greatest stories and say that this one that needs to be told AGAIN. Not to mention that it’s very similar to “Sense & Sensibility”. Am I the only one seeing that? A strong-willed female lead who can’t seem to find the right mate (Kiera Knightley/Emma Thompson), British girls giggling WAY too much and all the other handsome attributes about cinematography, acting and locales mentioned above. In fact, I’m going to go one step further and do my best to get copies of both films, grab my editing equipment, and make “Pride & Sensibility”. I’ll just edit the two films together and CHALLENGE SOMEONE TO NOTICE. All this banter must make me seem like and un-savvy filmgoer. Not true. I was always entranced by the dialogue, Jane Austen’s finest characteristic as a writer. I GOT it – dowries, fathers giving away daughters, people marrying too young. Got it, but it didn’t grab me. Again, it was familiar. Here’s some Hollywood history for you: The BBC produced a five hour version of “Pride & Prejudice” not too long ago starring Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy. Helen Fielding, author of “Bridget Jones Diary” was so hot for Firth in that film that she wrote the part of Mark Darcy in her novel to echo Mr. Darcy in “Pride & Prejudice”. It then seemed only too right that Colin Firth would then play Mark Darcy in the movie “Bridget Jones Diary”, and I’m sure Helen Fielding had an orgasm. That being said, there is some character development lost in the trimming down from five hours to what we have in the current “Pride & Prejudice” that doesn’t help distinguish any of Kiera Knightley’s sisters from one another. I did enjoy Knightley, but she’s getting chirpier and chirpier by the film. And Matthew MacFayden does a nobly moody job as Mr. Darcy, but after seven hours of him on film, I still don’t see the attraction to such a dour dude.
-PP

PRIME (*)

Pretty much completely unmemorable. Meryl Streep is the highpoint of this romantic comedy, but I’m at a loss to tell you as to why she would sign on to do this movie. She hit the right note in “The Manchurian Candidate” and seems right for the role in the upcoming “The Devil Wears Prada”, but why “Prime”? The story is that of a pretty person (Uma Thurman) who dates another pretty person (Bryan Greenburg) who happens to be the son of her therapist. There are some funny moments when Thurman relates her sexual history with Streep son, not knowing she’s talking to her boyfriend’s mother, but the rest of the story seems uninspired. I often find Thurman boring when out from under the direction of Quentin Tarantino. Unfortunately, “Prime” is directed by “Boiler Room” director Ben Younger (with less bite than Younger infused into that Affleck/Diesel drama), so she’s boring again. Greenburg is also boring, not seeming worth the effort for Thurman’s character when things go south. I guess there are some comments on older female/young male relationships, but they fall flat, and there just really AREN’T ANY MORE LAUGHS. That leaves “Prime” working neither as a romantic comedy or a romantic drama.
-PP

THE PRODUCERS (**1/2)

Two and a half stars for the laughs, and no stars for the filmmaking. If you’ve seen “The Producers” on stage, or if you’ve seen the original film, you can expect to laugh a bunch when you walk into this Nathan Lane/Matthew Broderick musical. What you don’t get is much more. Director Susan Strohman falls into the trap “Rent” fell into, but worse – this movie isn’t very cinematic. Rob Marshall’s envisioning of “Chicago” (and Bill Condon’s brilliant script) set the bar pretty high for all subsequent musicals in the way that he jumped back and forth between reality and dream cabarets, and built a big, gorgeous MOVIE. “The Producers” looks like they filmed the musical Lane and Broderick made popular, without expanding the concept for the new medium in which we all now get to see it. Strohman also shows her lack of experience as a director as some scenes are rather clunky, stodgy in pace and just don’t hit the laughs that I saw on stage. That being said, Nathan Lane is GREAT, reminding everyone in each scene he’s in why a fuss was made over him in this part on Broadway. His number, “Betrayed”, is the film’s best. Broderick doesn’t fare as well, looking like he’s a bit pained to go through the dancing required to really sell a song with as inane lyrics as “I Want to be a Producer” has. It reminds you how special it was to see Gene Kelly’s permanent smile during every graceful dance step he took. Will Ferrell is also pretty damn funny, but I don’t know why the production (as did the stage musical) did away with the character of LSD, so f-n funny from the original movie as Hitler. That also being said, nothing can be taken away from Tony Award winner Gary Beach and not-recognizable-as-George-the-creepy-pharmacist-from-Desperate-Housewives Roger Bart. “Keep it Gay” is the movie’s second best number, and Beach and Bart save most every scene they’re in. A Broadway phenomenon such as “The Producers” deserved a bit better film, but you can’t deny that there are Mel Brooks jokes to be had, Just not enough of them.
-PP

RED EYE

Always choose the aisle seat.

Hello my fellow readers. I am once again back in the swing of things…I hope. I had originally started a piece on “Imaginary Heroes”, but as a novice with the new posting policies, the column vanished into the internet blackhole. So let’s scrap that film this week and talk about Wes Craven, Cillian Murphy and the halfway decent movie “Red Eye”.

Let’s first discuss my white knuckle fear of flying. I personally find it unnatural and unrealistic that a giant, heavy piece of steel, aluminum, metal what-have-you can defy the laws of gravity and time, making it easier on us humans to move throughout the globe. Perhaps it is the close quarters once inside the plane. Claustrophobia is a definite issue here. Perhaps it’s the events prior to boarding the plane: thousands of other humans like sheep moving robotically throughout the airport. This alone makes me want to find a dark space, assume the fetal position and stick my thumb in my mouth. It is all of these things but most importantly it is the absolute lack of control over the situation. You have to succumb to the knowledge that once that huge door shuts and you sit uncomfortably with your seatbelt tightly fastened that the next few hours don’t belong to you anymore. And that is terrifying.

In “Red Eye”, all of these elements are covered using camera angles, sounds and quick editing. From the beginning of the film it’s blatantly obvious that Wes Craven hates humans and most assuredly hates to fly. The absolute chaos of an airport is captured so eloquently in this film. That alone made me love it. Stupid humans being difficult, selfish, demanding. Stuffing their mouths with airport food and drink. The feeling of isolation and disconnectedness is deafening. We are all so unaware of each other in this day and age that, in a word, it’s disgusting. Craven is my hero because he really shoves this behavior down your throat during the film. For example, there is a scene pre-flight where a woman dumps her Starbucks iced latte nonsense onto Rachel McAdams and barely apologizes, then proceeds to yell to her husband to go get her another one! GROSS! Okay, let’s move forward. So I’m anxious already during the film and to add insult to injury a very creepy Cillian Murphy appears and I reach for a valium.

Cillian Murphy is definitely headed for stardom. He is the strangest looking man I’ve ever seen and this lends to his onscreen presence. I can’t decide if he is attractive or not. There are moments when all his features seem to align perfectly but then shoot him at another angle and those features take on an unnatural, menancing quality. Looks aside, he is a phenomenal actor and his ability to push the envelope with his acting chops is impressive. There will come a time when his presence in a film will atomatically guarantee box office success or at least audience adoration. Much like Gary Oldman. A chameleon actor who everyone loves.

The plot for the film is decent. Cillian Murphy plays hitman Jackson Rippner (“Jack the Ripper”!), who uses the very talented Rachel McAdams (who plays Lisa Reisert) as his pawn in the pending assassination of the Director of Homeland Security. McAdams position at a popular Miami hotel where the politician frequently stays lines her up to make the dirty deed a sure thing. Holding her father (a very slender Brian Cox) as a playing chip in this political game forces McAdams to help further Murphy’s cause.

Rachel McAdams is possibly headed for stardom herself, that is if she continues to make wise acting decisions. She’s solid in this film. Her ability to cry silently and without facial emotion is awe-inspiring! The relationship between her and Cillian Murphy is believable and unnerving. Imagine, if you will, putting your life in the hands of two seperate people. The pilot and a cold, sociopathic killer. I think I would die of a rather large panic attack! This made me nervous as well. The majority of the very short (1 hr 15 mins.) film is on the plane and the exchanges between the two characters are chilling to say the least. Wes Craven doesn’t spare us anything starting with a shocking headbutt to McAdams when she starts to become emotional. After the violent deed, Cillian Murphy sits up, wipes the blood off his forehead and smiles graciously at the stewardess assuring her everything is fine. Craven really amps up the coldness of Murphy’s character more than a few times. There is a moment in the film when Lisa (McAdams) begs to use the bathroom. When Jackson (Murphy) allows this, there is a very disturbing image of him in the aisle watching her that heralds back to Craven’s horror film genius.

Subsequent to this scene, she tries to get help by writing on the mirror in soap only to have him burst into the bathroom and threaten her. The hand on hand violence in this film is hugely gratifying! There is alot of physical abuse and there are no guns involved until the end.

The film delivers on many levels. It is intense from the beginning until the end. It’s not typical of Craven’s usual horror fodder, but it’s good. I felt uncomfortable for the entire 1 hour and 15 minutes. It may not be a film triumph but it was a decent thriller with two excellent actors. It further heightenend my fear of flying and, on a basic level, addressed some of the security and political issues we have faced after September 11th.

It’s refreshing to see that Wes Craven still has it in him to scare us. Now what would make me so happy is if he and John Carpenter revisted their very first films and gave us something along those lines! Now that would be horrifying!
-MG

RENT (*1/2)

This film version of the popular Broadway play is my first introduction to “Rent” outside of hearing “Seasons of Love” a few times. That signature song opens this Chris Columbus-helmed musical, and the audience I saw it with applauded madly when it concluded. The rest of the film, however, played to relative silence. I, certainly, was not moved again, as a bunch of noisy, unlikable “young” adults struggle to be artsy in New York City. Let me say that I am not a gangster, and don’t have to relate to a gangster to enjoy “Goodfellas”. But being an actor and artist, I thought I might relate to the main characters in this film, but I just DIDN’T, and it really affected my enjoyment of the overall experience. There’s an issue that the cast is too old now to play these 20-somethings they played onstage 10 years ago. That didn’t really bug me much, nor did the fact that these struggling artists seem to dress rather snappy in GAP outfits. Not the best choices, mind you, but it didn’t bug me. This being my first time seeing “Rent”, I was just bugged by the show! Maybe it’s gotten the “Everyone Has AIDS” treatment (“Team America”) one too many times, but I couldn’t buy these guys singing rock tunes, they usually came across cornball. “How we gonna pay the Rent?!!” they sing. Get a damn job! Is there really such a creative sacrifice in working for “Buzzline”? Make the money while you pursue your dream or you’ll starve and both your dream and housing go up in smoke, dude! Then, and I hope I don’t give anything away here, by the time we see Marc’s film at the end, it blows! It’s one of those “artsy” movies that does and says nothing. Just a bunch of damn images with dip-to-color dissolves all over the place. I expected more. It was like meeting Darth Vader finally and having him be Frankenstein. Disappointing. The strongest element of the film is how the friendships in the film work. I bought the relationships and actually got a little jealous of how tight-knit this group of friends are. I wish I had a six or seven-person core that shared the same ideals and environment. That rang true in the film. I was entranced by Idina Menzel, superhot in that skin-tight catsuit, but was turned off by her performance art piece. That performance art stuff is always so pretentious, it needed a good deflating, or spoofing, or go the other way and really hit home with powerful resonance. However, it just played to me as obnoxious. Her character isn’t worthy of her lesbian lover’s affection, and when she sings “Take Me as I Am”, I thought to myself that no one should be told that they should be OK with mistreatment. Crappy song. Director Columbus doesn’t expand the play much beyond the stage. A dream dance sequence in the middle of “The Maureen Tango” left me wanting more of that kind of expansive invention. I know I’m pissing all over a highly popular theatrical event, but is it possible that “Rent” is dated after only ten years?
-PP

SHOPGIRL (**1/2)

This movie has been called Steve Martin’s “Lost in Translation”. If only it had that film’s charm. Dark, moody and sometimes downright mean-spirited, “Shopgirl” follows the dating misadventures of Mirabelle, a Vermont native working at Saks Fifth Avenue in Beverly Hills. She ends up in a love triangle between doofy roadie wannabe Jeremy (Jason Schwartzmann) and L.A. elitist Ray (Martin). Jeremy seems earnest but lacks the social skills to provide Mirabelle any real relationship. Ray provides not only MONEY, but a promise of an adult connection. Ray’s dating methods, though not particularly dishonest, are certainly cruel, and that doesn’t help the film’s entertainment value. But as an examination of Mirabelle’s maturation in L.A., town without pity, “Shopgirl” has some value, especially because Claire Danes gives a great performance in the lead role. Schwartzmann is funny, a twist in a Martin movie where normally Steve has all the gags. I’ve always liked SteveMartinland. There’s something about the tone of all his scripts that is consistent, and the dialogue, look and feel is warm and inviting. Even though “Shopgirl” is creepy a lot of the time, I still like SteveMartinland. I’m just hoping for a trip back to the part of SteveMartinland that looks more like “Bowfinger”.
-PP

SYRIANA (*1/2)

Here’s another one critics lauded and I guess I missed the boat. “Syriana” is a confusing mess of a picture that claims to be a great expose on the corruption and control in the world of oil companies. One noteworthy critic said this is a plot you don’t so much understand as get enveloped in. Uh…that’s not good enough for me. Silly me for demanding a coherent script. Perhaps the most depressing part of the film is that there are scenes of real power and great writing in the middle of what I found to be a unfocused jumble. Tim Blake Nelson give a searing monologue about the importance of corruption in Big Business and George Clooney threatens Christopher Plummer in a diner scene of real power. However, overall, what the hell happened? Not sure, and, I’m sorry, I just can’t give a positive review to a movie I can’t explain. And I consider myself a pretty savvy viewer. I can hold my own in a Tom Clancy film, keeping it all straight, names, places and all. But “Syriana” sets up some engaging plots (the merger of two mega-oil companies, the double-crossing of a CIA agent), and lets them slip into a disjointed montage of a narrative. It seems like writer/director Stephen Gaghan has a lot to say, but he said it better in “Traffic”.
-PP

THE TALENT GIVEN US (***)

The Wagner family is a pretty talented family. Andrew is a Hollywood writer and his sisters are accomplished actresses, his sister Emily having been a semi-regular on “ER”. Andrew has made a film starring his family, and oddly enough, the stars of his film are his parents, who have never acted before. All the characters play themselves as Allen and Judy Wagner travel across the country to see their son Andrew. They are accompanied part of the way by daughters Emily and Maggie, and they also come across Andrew’s ex-girlfriend and his friend Billy, another actor. The thing I first heard about this movie I should mention here. It was shot for around $30,000, if I’m not mistaken, used natural lighting, donated locations, four wireless lav mics and a Panasonic DVX100 MiniDV Digital Camera. The film was directed by Andrew, and he certainly knows how to draw realistic performances out of everyone in the movie, a challenge given the experience levels of some involved. He succeeds, as does the whole film on the charm of the parents, Allen and Judy. In the film, their characters are determined to divorce, and their banter is genuine and funny. Like most low-budget films, it has to rely on the strength of the writing to be entertaining, and the Wagners have fashioned a thoroughly likeable, unique family story. Warning – Allen Wagner has had a stroke, and his speech is impaired by this, Be sure you’re paying attention to the movie so as to pick up everything he says. It’s rough at times, and if this movie is just “on in the background while you’re working on the computer”, you’ll miss out!
-PP

TOP TEN OF 2005

10. THE MATADOR – A stylish comedy with good acting and a great ending. This year’s coolest movie.
9. CINDERELLA MAN – Expert re-creation of place & time with Crowe and Giamatti at the top of their game. One of Ron Howard’s best films that completely engaged me and had me cheering throughout.
8. HUSTLE & FLOW – The most fun I had at the movies this year. It sounds pretentious, but this movie is a fascinating, modern-day look at the transformative power of finding one’s art.
7. THE CONSTANT GARDENER – A winding, tricky plot that was always gripping and coherent, never “Syriana”. I just got angry watching this. Between this, “Hotel Rwanda” and “Black Hawk Down”, the African Board of Tourism has gotta put in some OT to get me to THINK about going there.
6. A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE – Four or five scenes in this movie held more tension in them than any other film I saw this year. David Cronenberg, in fine form once again, tells this unique tale with searing power and kept me on the edge of my seat. And how great was William Hurt?
5. MUNICH – What a great year for Spielberg! My favorite director comes through with a masterpiece that’s half espionage thriller and half political comment. It achieves greatness because it’s not ALL political blah, blah. It’s suspenseful, dramatic, exciting and, overall relevant.
4. CRASH – I call it “Do the Right Thing” in LA. This movie changes the way you think, no small accomplishment. A web of stories delicately woven that’s surprising, shocking and enlightening. Keep your eyes on Paul Haggis, I mean, he’s produced and written the last two Best Picture winners. The guy’s good.
3. GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK – A nearly flawless movie. In the great tradition of “All the President’s Men”, a riveting examination of a crucial time of modern American history that introduced me to the genius of Edward R. Murrow, and exposed how extraordinarily pathetic the press is today.
2. JUNEBUG – A surprising, funny, involving story of a southern family that’s just STUCK. All my upstate NY friends need to see this movie, you’ll recognize all the characters. Amy Adams gives the year’s best performance. Like other small family stories like “In America”, this film just HIT for me and I can’t wait to see it again.
1. KING KONG – Peter Jackson had the biggest vision of any other filmmaker this year, and the balls to pull it off. Action, drama, romance, spectacle, this movie had it all and I could’ve watched ANOTHER hour’s worth.

RUNNERS-UP:
WAR OF THE WORLDS – Bad ending, but nobody, NOBODY does big-time action scenes better than Spielberg. (That’s a gauntlet throw-down Cameron, make another movie for Christ’s sake).
WALLACE & GROMIT in THE CURSE OF THE WERE-RABBIT – Aardman Studios take their classic characters and make them feature-length without losing an ounce of the original charm.
BROKEN FLOWERS – Inspired me to write my own film.
BATMAN BEGINS – Superhero movies are on an upswing (“Electra” notwithstanding).
FRANK MILLER’S SIN CITY – One of the year’s most original films and the glorious return of Mickey Rourke.
INSIDE DEEP THROAT – A documentary about the seventies that reminds you how little our government has evolved since then.
THE 40-YEAR OLD VIRGIN – The year’s funniest movie.

The WORST of 2005:
ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13 – Ugly, loud and not worthy of the great actors in it.
BE COOL – Still waiting for that great The Rock movie…
THE BROTHERS GRIMM – We waited SEVEN years for a new Terry Gilliam movie and got this? Who is he these days, Kubrick?
CRY WOLF – Is it any surprise this is crap?
DOMINO – Another Tony Scott film that’s just OVERDONE.
PRIME – Completely forgettable. Meryl Streep, call your agent.
ELIZABETHTOWN – We all deserve better from Cameron Crowe.
THE CHUMSCRUBBER – Interesting title, bogus movie.
SYRIANA – I saw it, but what the hell happened again? Pardon me, other critics of America, but coherence is pretty important to me.
-PP

TRANSAMERICA (***1/2)

I went into this movie hearing raves about Felicity Huffman’s performance. What surprised me was not only how much I enjoyed her portrayal of a transgender, um, individual who learns he/she has a son, but that I really enjoyed the entire movie very much. Here’s a film that, scene after scene, evokes refreshing originality in its situations. The relationships are complex and the dialogue is crisp and sharp. Huffman’s character, Sabrina, is awaiting the surgery that will make her the woman she wants to be, and put her life as Stanley well behind her. Before that life-changing event, she must deal with the son she never knew about. The film is quite funny, embracing the fact that you can’t really put a character like Sabrina in a cross-country trip, meeting loads of people from the HEARTLAND, and expect it to be boring. At the same time, Sabrina, and her son, Toby, well played by Kevin Zegers, are handled with dignity and compassion as they struggle to connect and form one of the movies’ more interesting families.
-PP

WALK THE LINE (***)

Due to timing, this movie is going to have obvious comparisons to 2004’s “Ray”, so let me say right out of the gate that it’s better. What propels this film to a higher ranking for me is the love story. The strange and pain-filled road Johnny and June Carter Cash took to come together is an engaging trip, and helps an otherwise well-trod rock biopic path. Whether it’s “VH-1 Behind the Music”, “Ray” or countless Elvis biographies, we’ve seen the obstacles Johnny Cash faced when forging his career before: a domineering father (WELL played by Robert Patrick), the death of a family member, drugs, infidelity. So it’s all the more important that this infidelity lead to Cash’s intriguing relationship with June. The movie also benefits from great performances by Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon in the title roles. I’ve been dying for the always-good Phoenix to have a lead role, and he’s the perfect choice for the dark moody, soft-spoken Man in Black, right down to his singing. I’ve never been a Reese Witherspoon fan outside of “Election”, but she showed wonderful poise and infectious energy and likeability as June. All this talk just couldn’t be said of “Ray”. All I got out of that film was that Ray Charles was a drug-abusing, womanizing DICK. At least we got to see that Johnny Cash was a bit more, too. And how great was it to see the classic rock stars Johnny toured with? “Walk the Line” gives us Jerry Lee Lewis, Elvis, Roy Orbison and more, and their tour stops and stories are fun to watch, plus Cash’s first recording session at Sun Records with Sam Phillips is classic. I would like to have seen a bit more of Cash’s attraction to the dark side and criminals. I got that he was inspired by them, but I wanted more there. Overall, though, I’m sure Johnny and June are playing duets in the afterlife, and they’ve gotta be proud of how director James Mangold weaved some good writing and excellent performances into a memorable movie we’re bound to hear from at Oscar-time.
-PP

A Second Opinion…

WALK THE LINE

“Hope you boys brought yourselves a pine box cause nobody follows The Killer.”

I realize that Oscar week is over (thank god!) and that I personally am sick of any talk of “Brokeback Mountain”, “Capote”, “Crash” (nope!) or any other over-bloated celebrity ego! However, I did watch “Walk the Line” the other night and, very simply, I was moved to tears and blown away at what a beautiful and simple film it is. I’m really glad Phillip “Capote” Hoffman won best actor, but in my own reality it went to Joaquin Phoenix, whose performance as Johnny Cash was nothing short of stunning. Everyone was caught up in the buzz over Reese Witherspoon’s performance (and let me just say I adore her and think she is one of the smartest and gifted actresses in Hollywood), but Joaquin brought Johnny Cash to life for me.

We all know Johnny Cash. We all know his songs, his swagger, that he’s the man in black. What I didn’t know was a lot! People say this film didn’t deliver on the level they expected and spent too much time chronicling his struggles with addiction and self-degradation. However, I disagree. See, these are the things I didn’t know about him. I knew nothing about his abrasive childhood or that he had a brother who died. I didn’t realize he was in the service or that he had married someone else before June Carter. I also did not know that he was horribly addicted to pills and that Elvis was the impetus for the habit! So all of these things I did not know. My question is to all the naysayers: What more do you want?

The film envelops you in a world that seems archaic and probably is. It is a world of hard living, hard working, poor families in the south who are trying to be good Christians while toiling away to feed their children. This is a time when everyone helped out, including the women and children. A time where the only distraction was the little old box radio that hopefully tuned in to another world. A simpler time. Perhaps this simplicity is what allowed Johnny Cash his outlet. His love of music was innate within him even as a child and that is what eventually saved his soul.

Watching this film, I found myself nostalgic for a time that I myself never knew. Where rock music was a new invention and offered a fresh, individual perspective on small town living. I loved the strangeness of the organized tours that these musicians went on. Most definitely the birth of the rock concert. Can you imagine attending a show where Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash were all playing on the same stage?? It’s mind boggling. Young talent who carved their sounds in stone on stages all over the U.S.of A. The good old days!

Johnny Cash’s story is not atypical of many southern families of that time. A hard working father who’s stern, demanding ways often damaged his children’s psyche, fracturing their self-esteem with every ferocious word. That was just the way it was. In Cash’s case, he was indirectly blamed for the accidental death of his brother Jack, the golden child in his father’s eye. In the film, John’s father, Ray Cash (played effortlessly by the often underused Robert Patrick) tells him it should’ve been him that died. Those were the damning words for the already sensitive John. Those words, and the sentiment behind them, were responsible for his blossoming career and the downward spiral that was to come.

The pain that I felt throughout the film was that I understood. I understood why there was always a hint of sadness behind his beautiful eyes and why he was quiet yet charming at the same time. He never believed he was worth a goddamn thing, and that is the tragedy. Here was a man whose simple songs moved millions of people. They all related to those words and the driving rhythm behind them. He was singing about all of them. And yet, every night he would lay his head down in shame or frustration. He battled the gift within him daily. The other part of his pain was his eternal love for June Carter and just how long it took him to finally win her over. Ultimately, she was the reason he dove headfirst into his addictions because the rejection and his lack of self worth were just too much to bear. His demons were dark shadows that followed him everywhere. His uniform of black at first practical became a place to hide.

Lastly, what hurt the most was the lifetime of damage that a single human being can inflict on another. John’s father shattered any trust he may have had in himself. He snuffed out the light that was so special and caused his son to always question was he really worth it. To the bitter end, John’s sole demon was his father, and I honestly don’t think Ray Cash was ever really proud of his immensely successful and brave son. And that is the real tragedy. It’s a mistake parents will continue to make for the remainder of our time here on earth.

“Mister big shot, Mister pill poppin’ rock star. Who are you to judge, you ain’t got nothin’, big empty house, nothin’, children you don’t see , nothin’, big ol’ expensive tractor stuck in the mud, nothin’.”

Amongst all this pain, Johnny Cash triumphed in the end. He may not have believed in himself, but he believed in his music and that prevailed over every other obstacle. That, and his abiding love for his own angel, June Carter. And that gives me hope.
-MG

THE WEATHER MAN (***)

It’s been a while since he’s made one, but “The Weather Man” is a “Nicolas Cage Movie”. The kind you just love. Cage gives us all the things we want in a Cage movie!: the slow burn, the explosive anger and frustration, uncanny comedy and the droning voice-over I’ve loved since “Raising Arizona”. Cage plays David Spritz, a Chicago weatherman who is pummeled with challenges in his personal life from all sides: A perfectionist father who never seems satisfied by his son, an ex-wife who has moved on (which is more than David has done), estranged kids he can’t relate to, and the disdain of the Chicago public who show their contempt when his weather report goes awry. All this while his professional life is on the edge of a potential boon. This is a great role for Cage, who does one of the best downward spirals since Giamatti in “Sideways”. His handling of these situations is a series of unfortunate events combined with bad judgment. In the hands of director Gore Verbinski (“Pirates of the Caribbean”) and good actors like Cage, Hope Davis and Michael Caine, “The Weather Man” becomes a constantly hilarious and poignant story, often surprising me with the complexity of relationships. In the middle of it all is Cage doing more great work. Be sure to catch this actor while he’s on a real upswing. Outside of “National Treasure”, Nic Cage has been in more challenging projects as of late – “Lord of War”, “Matchstick Men” and “Adaptation”. That certainly beats what he was putting out about five years ago with the AWFUL “Captain Corelli’s Mandolin” and “Gone in Sixty Seconds”. It’s an age old critic cliché, but if you like Nicolas Cage, you’ll love “The Weather Man”.
-PP

THE WHITE COUNTESS (***)

James Ivory and Ismail Merchant go out the way they came in. The producer/director team has become known over the years for lush adaptations of literate period dramas. “The White Countess” is no different. It takes place in 1940s Shanghai, where an American entrepreneur seeks to open a nightclub just as turmoil strikes the city. Natasha Richardson plays a former Russian countess, now reduced to menial jobs such as dance escort while her family, once spread out in a palace, is crammed in one apartment. Ralph Fiennes plays the American with the usual solid performance you expect, tinged with an odd, almost goofy optimism. The film introduces Shanghai as I have not seen it before – a cultural and social hotspot. Ivory does a masterful job (as expected) of re-creating place and time, and the plotting moves a little slow, but stick with it, ‘cause surprises abound in the characters and things pick up when the nightclub opens. Not as captivating as “Howard’s End” or “The Remains of the Day”, but a substantial cap to a great career for the Ivory/Merchant team.
-PP

THE WORLD’S FASTEST INDIAN (***)

This is a hard-to-dislike feel-good travel story about a legendary motorcycle rider (the cycle known as an ‘Indian’) who leaves his home of New Zealand to break a land speed record at Utah’s Bonneville Salt Flats. Anthony Hopkins is easy going as Burt Munro, who has a Forrest Gump-style adventure of good luck and good disposition getting across the ocean, and across three states to compete on his antique motorcycle. He meets a cross-section of southwestern U.S. characters from a lonely widow to a medicine-doling Indian and the simplicity with which he interacts with all these characters is reminiscent of “The Straight Story”. But the trouble Burt has to overcome to achieve his dream builds more suspense than that film, and the motorcycle scenes have a high-speed energy that is thrilling. The end of this movie contains all the tension and excitement of any good crowd-pleaser like “Cinderella Man”. Director Roger Donaldson and Hopkins make the whole story easy to digest and follow, and I hope it finds an audience.
-PP