Last year I tried a little exercise where I went back every ten years and tried to reevaluate the Oscars that were handed out. The big question being, did the test of time prove that year's winner worthy of the award and if we re-voted right now would the results be the same. I had so much fun I thought I would try it again. So here's a run down of some Oscar winners from the past and my thoughts on those awards...
2007 (5 years ago)
Best Picture: No Country For Old Men
Other Nominations: Atonement, Juno, Michael Clayton, There Will Be Blood
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis-There Will Be Blood
Other Nominations: George Clooney-Michael Clayton, Johnny Depp-Sweeney Todd, Tommy Lee Jones-In The Valley of Elah, Viggo Mortensen-Eastern Promises
Best Actress: Marion Cotillard-La Vie en Rose
Other Nominations: Cate Blanchett-Elizabeth: The Golden Age, Julie Christie-Away From Her, Laura Linney-The Savages, Ellen Page-Juno
Looking back, it amazes me how many of these movies I don't even remember. I feel like I haven't heard of half of the movies that the actors and actress were nominated for. Daniel Day-Lewis, of course, still deserves Best Actor. As I said in my preview of this year's awards, there should just be a rule that if he's been in a movie that year the award just goes to him. I have no idea what La Vie en Rose is and I never saw any of the other actress performances other then Ellen Page, so I can only assume that's an OK choice. As far as Best Picture goes, I wasn't a fan of No Country For Old Men and felt that There Will Be Blood was the more deserving movie. Nothing has changed my mind either way over the last 5 years, so I would give the Oscar to There Will Be Blood.
2002 (10 years ago)
Best Picture: Chicago
Other Nominations: Gangs of New York, The Hours, The Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers, The Pianist
Best Actor: Adrian Brody-The Pianist
Other Nominations: Nicholas Cage-Adaption, Michael Cane-The Quiet American, Daniel Day-Lewis-Gangs of New York, Jack Nicholson-About Schmidt
Best Actress: Nicole Kidman-The Hours
Other Nominations: Salma Hayek-Frita, Diane Lane-Unfaithful, Samantha Morton-In America, Naomi Watts-21 Grams
This years nominees is a weird combination of art house and mainstream. Chicago, I guess, is a movie made to impress the Academy, so I shouldn't be surprised that it won, but The Pianist feels like the better movie by a long shot. Gangs of New York was pretty good as well, but I know it wasn't everyone's cup of tea. Looking back I think the award would still be given to Chicago but I'd give it to The Pianist. The actor category is filled with two guys who haven't done another worth while film since, two life time achievement nods and Daniel Day-Lewis. Brody had a wonderful performance but it's hard to look back without thinking of all the crap he's made since. Add in my rule about Day-Lewis and you have to give him the Oscar instead. The Best Actress feels wrong as well. Diane Lane's performance in Unfaithful is one of those performances that always sticks with you after you see it. I think she's much more deserving then Kidman.
1992 (20 years ago)
Best Picture: Unforgiven
Other Nominations: The Crying Game, A Few Good Men, Howards End, Scent of a Woman
Best Actor: Al Pacino-Scent of a Women
Other Nominations: Robert Downey Jr.-Chaplin, Clint Eastwood-Unforgiven, Stephen Rea-The Crying Game, Denzel Washington-Malcom X
Best Actress: Emma Thompson-Howards End
Other Nominations: Catherine Deneuve-Indochine, Mary McDonnell-Passion Fish, Michelle Pfeiffer-Love Field, Susan Sarandon-Lorenzo's Oil
This is a pretty powerful list of nominees, but I'm not sure how the test of time has treated any of them. Does anyone talk about The Crying Game anymore? It was a big deal when it came out, but I feel like it was more a product of the times and has never become one of those movies people still watch. Howards End is a well done version of a classic novel, but the book is still more popular then the movie. Unforgiven is still considered one of the best westerns made, but I haven't heard anyone talk about having watched it in the last 10 years. Scent of a Woman was the least deserving of these films. The one movie from this list that has stayed in the conscience of America is A Few Good Men. It isn't dated, people still talk about watching it, the cast in jam packed. I would think if we handed out the Oscar again it would go to A Few Good Men. I can't help but think that the Best Actor award was a life time achievement to Pacino because this was far from his best role and certainly wasn't better then others nominated. I always find it hard to believe when a performance that is a mimic of a famous person loses, but we have to remember that the color barrier hadn't been broken in the major acting categories yet. I would think, if given out today, this one would go to either Eastwood or Washington. Looking at the actress nominees, I find it interesting how many of the actresses and movies they were in from year to year I don't know or recognize. Howards End and Lorenzo's Oil are the only two movies I've heard of. I can only assume that Emma Thompson deserves the award because I haven't seen any of these performances.
1982 (30 years ago)
Best Picture: Gandhi
Other Nominations: E.T.the Extra-Terrestrial, Missing, Tootsie, The Verdict
Best Actor: Ben Kingsley
Other Nominations: Dustin Hoffman-Tootsie, Jack Lemmon-Missing, Paul Newman-The Verdict, Peter O'Toole-My Favorite Year
Best Actress: Meryl Streep-Sophie's Choice
Other Nominations: Julia Andrews-Victor Victoria, Jessica Lang-Frances, Sissy Spacek-Missing, Debra Winger-An Officer and a Gentleman
This was a loaded year! Although I can't really fault Gandhi getting the award, it hasn't really lasted the test of time. If voted right now, I find it hard to believe that E.T. wouldn't win. I love to see that Tootsie and Dustin Hoffman were nominated for highly comedic material. This may be one of the last true comedies to get a Best Picture nod. I also have to wonder with this year's crop of movies, if the nominees were picked again that they wouldn't be different as well. How My Favorite Year and Sophie's Choice didn't get nominated seems weird. No surprise that Ben Kingsley got the win, it fits right into my famous/handicapped role rule. From everything I hear from people who talk film, Peter O'Toole in My Favorite Year is one of the most beloved roles from the last 30 years, so I tend to think he would win now. Meryl Streep in Sophie's Choice is one of the most classic roles ever, so that seems like a no brainer.
1972 (40 years ago)
Best Picture: The Godfather
Other Nominations: Cabaret, Deliverance, The Emigrants, Sounder
Best Actor: Marlon Brando-The Godfather
Other Nominations: Michael Cain-Sleuth, Laurence Olivier-Sleuth, Peter O'Toole-The Ruling Class, Paul Winfield-Sounder
Best Actress: Liza Minnelli-Cabaret
Other Nominations: Diana Ross-Lady Sings The Blues, Maggie Smith-Travels with My Aunts, Cicely Tyson-Sounder, Liv Ullmann-The Emigrants
Not a lot of reason to spend time with this one. The Godfather is considered one of the all time greats, if not THE greatest American film ever, so no surprise here that it gets the Oscar. Marlon Brando as the godfather is also one of the most iconic roles ever as well. Can't really say anything about Liza Minnelli because once again I haven't seen any of the actress nominated performances or even heard of some of the actresses.
1962 (50 years ago)
Best Picture: Lawrence of Arabia
Other Nominations: The Longest Day, The Music Man, Mutiny on the Bounty, To Kill a Mockingbird
Best Actor: Gregory Peck-To Kill a Mockingbird
Other Nominations: Burt Lancaster-Birdman of Alcatraz, Jack Lemmon-Days of Wines and Roses, Marcello Mastroianni-Divorce, Italian Style, Peter O'Toole-Lawrence of Arabia
Best Actress: Anne Bancroft-The Miracle Worker
Other Nominations: Bette Davis-What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?, Katharine Hepburn-Long Day's Journey into Night, Geraldine Page-Sweet Bird of Youth, Lee Remick-Days of Wine and Roses
This may be one of the most loaded years ever. If I told you To Kill a Mockingbird didn't win the Oscar, you'd probably think an amazing injustice was done. I mean, To Kill a Mockingbird is one of the top ten greatest movies ever made, but how can you argue with Lawrence of Arabia winning? Add The Music Man and Mutiny on the Bounty and there is only one or two other years that can compare with this crop of movies. Gregory Peck gets the Best Actor and it feels like a consolation because Peter O'Toole could have easily won as well. What I'm saying is this year is kind of a toss up and you can't really argue with any result.
1952 (60 years ago)
Best Picture: Greatest Show On Earth
Other Nominations: High Noon, Ivanhoe, Moulin Rouge, The Quiet Man
Best Actor: Gary Cooper-High Noon
Other Nominations: Marlon Brando-Viva Zapata!, Kirk Douglas-The Bad and the Beautiful, Jose Ferrer-Moulin Rouge, Alec Guinness-The Lavender Hill Mob
Best Actress: Shirley Booth-Come Back, Little Shiba
Other Nominations: Joan Crawford-Sudden Fear, Bette Davis-The Star, Julie Harris-The Member of the Wedding, Susan Hayward-With a Song in My Heart
I've now reached territory where I have very little knowledge of the movies and performances. I have never heard of the Greatest Show On Earth, so I would tend to think that High Noon or Ivanhoe would win in a re-vote. It was interesting to read that Greatest Show On Earth, when adjusted for inflation, is one of the highest grossing movies of all time. The Best Actor category is loaded with all time greats but I'm not familiar with any of movies so Gary Cooper it is. Same goes for the ladies.
1942 (70 years ago)
Best Picture: Mrs. Miniver
Other Nominations: 49th Parallel, Kings Row, The Magnificent Ambersons, The Pied Piper, The Pride of the Yankees, Random Harvest, The Talk of the Town, Wake Island, Yankee Doodle Dandy
Best Actor: James Cagney-Yankee Doodle Dandy
Other Nominations: Ronald Colman-Random Harvest, Gary Cooper-Pride of the Yankees, Walter Pidgeon-Madame Curie, Monty Woolley-The Pied Pipper
Best Actress: Greer Garson-Mrs. Miniver
Other Nominations: Bette Davis-The Little Foxes, Katharine Hepburn-Woman of the Year, Rosalind Russell-My Sister Eileen, Teresa Wright-Pride of the Yankees
I can only gauge this by popularity and that really says nothing about how good a movie is or was. Pride of the Yankees and Yankee Doodle Dandy are American classics, yet I've never heard of Mrs. Miniver, so I would say one of those would get the award today, but again that's just on name recognition.
1932 (80 years ago)
Best Picture: Grand Hotel
Other Nominations: Arrowsmith, Bad Girl, The Champ, Five Star Final, One Hour with You, Shanghai Express, The Smiling Lieutenant
Best Actor: Wallace Beery-The Champ/Fedric March-Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Other Nominations: Alfred Lunt
Best Actress: Helen Hayes-The Sin of Madelon Claudet
Other Nominations: Marie Dressler-Emma, Lynn Fontanne-The Guardsman
Again, I haven't seen any of these, but The Champ and Shanghai Express are classics and I don't know anything about Grand Hotel, so I could say that either of those two would win a re-vote, but I really have very little grounds to be saying that. How interesting is the Best Actor results. There was only three nominees and there was a tie! How bad does Alfred Lunt feel?
Monday, February 25, 2013
Friday, February 22, 2013
85th Annual Academy Awards
This is an odd year for me writing this post. In some ways I am more prepared then ever having seen almost every movie up for any award, yet I really feel like it has done me little good because this years crop is so solid there is no real standout. The only domestic movies up for Oscars that I failed to see before writing this are Anna Karenina, The Hobbit, and The Gatekeepers. Even with that being the case, I have struggled to pick my favorites or who I think the Academy is going to pick in most categories. I never have a problem forming a strong opinion for or against, but most of the movies feel so worthy it's been a small chore. Not so much that I was going to pass up my favorite post of the year though, so here's my thoughts on the 85th Academy Awards... (I've updated this post with the actual winners, I was way off this year!)
Best Cinematography
Nominations: Anna Karenina, Django Unchained, Life Of Pi, Lincoln, Skyfall
Who I Want To Win: Skyfall
Who I Think Will Win: Skyfall
I don't usually write about the more technical categories because I don't always feel fit to judge them and also if I spent time writing up every award this post would be as long as the actual award show, thank you speeches and all, and I just don't have that kind of time. But I really felt I needed to write about this one because the cinematography in Skyfall blew me away. It was easily the most beautiful Bond movie ever shot and in my opinion the most beautifully shot movie of the year. If Deakins doesn't win this I'm going to riot in the streets, and yes, I realize that is a strong reaction for an award almost nobody but me and the five nominees care about. Deakins is beyond due for this award, having been nominated 10 times without winning once. I can still see the certain scenes from Skyfall in my head because they were so indelible. This has to be the year he gets his due!
ACTUAL WINNER: LIFE OF PI
Best Animated Short
Nominations: Adam and Dog, Fresh Guacamole, Head over Heels, Maggie Simpson in "The Longest Daycare", Paperman
Who I Want To Win: Paperman
Who I Think Will Win: Maggie Simpson in "The Longest Daycare"
This is a tough category because I feel like it should be for up and coming artists and animated film makers, people are more DIY about film making, yet by far the two best shorts are a Disney short and a Simpsons short. I really liked Adam and Dog, the animation was simple yet beautiful, but it still felt like it was in a different class then the other big house shorts. I enjoyed both Paperman and The Longest Daycare, so I won't be upset if either wins, but I found Paperman slightly more entertaining and I really liked the animation style. I have a strong feeling, though, that the Academy is going to reward an Emmy favorite that is up for its first Oscar by giving the award to the Simpson crew.
ACTUAL WINNER: PAPERMAN
Best Animated Feature
Nominations: Brave, Frankenweenie, ParaNorman, The Pirates! Band of Misfits, Wreck-It Ralph
Who I Want To Win: Wreck-It Ralph
Who I Think Will Win: Frankenweenie
As is going to be the case in most categories this year, I don't really have a stand out favorite animated film and will be happy to see any of three on the nominations get the Oscar. Wreck-It Ralph was my favorite of this group, I loved all the old school video game references and it had a really cute, well told story to go along with it. I also really enjoyed The Pirates! Band of Misfits. It's from the makers of Wallace and Gromit and Chicken Run, so you know they know how to make a smart, funny animated flick. But, I have a strong feeling that the Oscar is going to go to Frankenweenie. It's a little more artistic then the others, it comes from the mind of Tim Burton and its really well made. The style of humor is obviously different then the others and its a bit more dramatic, I think it is more up the voters alley then anything else. But again, I have no problem with that.
ACTUAL WINNER: BRAVE
Best Documentary Feature
Nominations: 5 Broken Cameras, The Gatekeepers, How To Survive a Plague, The Invisible War, Searching For Sugar Man
Who I Want To Win: The Invisible War
Who I Think Will Win: The Gatekeepers
The Invisible War was by far my favorite of these films. It was crazy to hear the unbelievable atrocities that women in the military have to deal with and that nobody is doing anything about it. The film did a great job of building the case, showing the lack of response, trying to give both sides (not that there is any other side to allowing women to be raped). None of the other films really stuck a cord with me. 5 Broken Cameras was a little dull, How To Survive a Plague was interesting but not mind blowing, Searching For Sugar Man was a cute story about an interesting person. I didn't get to see The Gatekeepers because it hasn't really gotten wide release yet, but something tells me, with the talk it's getting and the subject matter it deals with that it's going to get the win. I feel that subject matter goes a long way with who wins this award and both The Gatekeepers and How To Survive a Plague deal with stuff near and dear to Hollywood's heart, so I think one of those two will get the award.
ACTUAL WINNER: SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN
Best Foreign Language Film
Nominations: Amour, Kon-Tiki, No, A Royal Affair, War Witch
Who I Want To Win: Anything but Amour
Who I Think Will Win: Amour
It feels so silly when a movie up for Best Picture is up for another sub-category. How could a movie considered a contender for best picture not beat a group of films not considered contenders? I've only seen Amour out of these films and that movie bored me to tears. So, I would like to see something else win just on principle, but we all know who is going to win this Oscar.
ACTUAL WINNER: AMOUR
Best Original Screenplay
Nominations: Amour, Django Unchained, Flight, Moonrise Kingdom, Zero Dark Thirty
Who I Want To Win: Moonrise Kingdom
Who I Think Will Win: Flight
This is a category that usually treated like a consolation prize to good movies that the Academy doesn't want to give the big awards to. Maybe, I just gravitate to good writing more then good film making, but I always seem to like the original screenplay winner more then the best picture. I feel that Flight should have been nominated for Best Picture. It was a much better movie then Life of Pi. It was strong in almost every element, yet for some reason got ignored. That being the case, I think the Academy is going to throw it a bone with this award. I would love to see Moonrise Kingdom win, though. I'm a Wes Anderson fan and feel that most of his movies have been award worthy, yet he has nothing to show for his efforts. It would be nice to see him win for what I thought was another quirky, fun story and script.
ACTUAL WINNER: DJANGO UNCHAINED
Best Adapted Screenplay
Nominations: Argo, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Life of Pi, Lincoln, Silver Linings Playbook
Who I Want To Win: Silver Linings Playbook
Who I Think Will Win: Argo
There is a good possibility, even with so many good films in contention, that this is Argo's night. That being the case, it seems to me that they are the front runner to take home this award. As much as I have problems with the ending of Silver Linings Playbook, I really liked it for the most part and would like to see it walk away with something. This seems to me to be the most realistic award it can take home. But, as I've said about other categories, I really have no problem with any of these films, except for Life of Pi, winning the Oscar.
ACTUAL WINNER: ARGO
Best Supporting Actress
Nominations: Amy Adams, Sally Field, Anne Hathaway, Helen Hunt, Jacki Weaver
Who I Want To Win: Jacki Weaver
Who I Think Will Win: Anne Hathaway
I fell in love with Jacki Weaver as an actress a couple years ago when I saw the Australian film Animal Kingdom. The amount of story she is able to convey with just a look is awe inspiring. I don't think she gets enough credit in the acting world for just how amazing an actress she is. This isn't her best role, but those looks still come through and I really wasn't blown away by any of these other performances. From what I hear, it sounds like Anne Hathaway is the front runner, even though I think she's the least deserving of all the nominees. If she had been nominated for her role in The Dark Knight Rises I would have been all about her winning, but her brief appearance in Les Miserables was totally underwhelming in my book. I'm not sure why Helen Hunt got this nomination. Getting naked on camera isn't grounds for an award. She couldn't even pull off a New England accent; she would pronounce Mark Mack but said everything else normal. Sally Field has a strong chance to win as well, but I have my fingers crossed for Jacki.
ACTUAL WINNER: ANNE HATHAWAY
Best Supporting Actor
Nominations: Alan Arkin, Robert De Niro, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Tommy Lee Jones, Christoph Waltz
Who I Want To Win: Philip Seymour Hoffman
Who I Think Will Win: Philip Seymour Hoffman
This is a tough category for me to pick. I think Christoph Waltz is a great performer and Django Unchained was probably my favorite nominated movie, a movie in which I thought he was amazing in, but I can't deny that Philip Seymour Hoffman put in the best performance of this bunch. I am surprised that The Master didn't get more nominations. It probably deserved to be up for almost every major award, but only got a few acting nods. Hoffman was great in this role and seems a shoe in, although you can never count out someone like Robert De Niro even though the role really wasn't anything note worthy. It would be a small travesty if Hoffman doesn't walk away with this prize.
ACTUAL WINNER: CHRISTOPH WALTZ
Best Actress
Nominations: Jessica Chastain, Jennifer Lawrence, Emmanuelle Riva, Quvenzhane Wallis, Naomi Watts
Who I Want To Win: Jessica Chastain
Who I Think Will Win: Emmanuelle Riva
This is by far the worst category in this year's awards. I don't know why 90% of these performances are considered Oscar worthy. Are women's roles really that bad off? Quvenzhane Wallis was 5 when Beasts of the Southern Wild was shot. You can't tell me that a five year-old knows what she is doing when it comes to acting. A five year-old doesn't makes choices on how to play a character; she has no perspective to know what the choices might be. Emmanuelle Riva and Naomi Watts have gotten nominated for sitting in a bed more most of their movies. I'm not sure what's so award worth about sitting in a bed, but obviously the Academy feels there's something. Both Riva and Watts were out performed by the male actors in their respective films which makes it even harder for me to see them as award worthy. That leaves us with Jessica Chastain and Jennifer Lawrence, both of who were excellent. I think this should be Chastain's year though since she carried all of Zero Dark Thirty and made it the impressive movie that it was. Unfortunately, I think the Academy is going to give the award to either Riva, for being the oldest person nominated, or Wallis, for being the youngest.
ACTUAL WINNER: JENNIFER LAWRENCE
Best Actor
Nominations: Bradley Cooper, Daniel Day-Lewis, Hugh Jackman, Joaquin Phoenix, Denzel Washington
Who I Want To Win: Daniel Day-Lewis
Who I Think Will Win: Daniel Day-Lewis
This was such a loaded year for male acting performances, yet at the end of the day there is no question who should and will win this Oscar. I really felt that Jean-Louis Trintignant from Amour and Tom Holland from The Impossible should have been nominated, but who should be taken out? Probably Hugh Jackman, who really wasn't anything special but the Academy likes to reward people who sing. Other then that everyone nominated was highly deserving. And yet I feel there should be a rule that any year Daniel Day-Lewis makes a movie he should just be given the Oscar. He has not put in a performance that was less than amazing. Add to it that he is doing the Academy's favorite thing to award, mimicking a famous person, and there really is no doubt that he will walk away with yet another award.
ACTUAL WINNER: DANIEL DAY-LEWIS
Best Director
Nominations: Michael Haneke, Benh Zeitlin, Ang Lee, Steven Spielberg, David O. Russell
Who I Want To Win: David O. Russell
Who I Think Will Win: Steven Spielberg
Who I really want to win for this category is Kathryn Bigelow, but for some reason that nobody ever will be able to explain she wasn't nominated, so I'm going with David O. Russell. I've loved pretty much all his films, expect The Fighter which I thought was a little over rated, and think he deserves a nod. Silver Linings Playbook was a really good movie with a big cast that all came together so perfectly you can't help but think it's because of the director. As much as I would love Russell to get it, I think this is Spielberg's year. Lincoln might not get Best Picture, so this would be a consolation prize for one of the Academy's favorite directors who they tend to reward when he makes a movie with historical and thematic weight.
ACTUAL WINNER: ANG LEE
Best Picture
Nominations: Amour, Argo, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Django Unchained, Les Miserables, Life of Pi, Lincoln, Silver Linings Playbook, Zero Dark Thirty
Who I Want To Win: Django Unchained
Who I Think Will Win: Argo
This is a tough year to pick Best Picture because I think that both Argo and Lincoln could easily walk away with the prize. And unlike most years, I wouldn't be offended if almost any of these nominees won. The exceptions are Life of Pi, Amour and Les Miserables. I truly have no idea why Life of Pi is up for so many awards. It is a painfully boring story with a horrible pay off. There was nothing special about any of it and there are a dozen movies that should have been nominated over it (The Master, The Dark Knight Rises, The Impossible, Moonrise Kingdom, Flight, Skyfall, The Sessions, etc.). Amour just bored me to tears. I liked Trintignant performance and the end is a little shocking and unsettling, but it took to long to get there and I just didn't find it interesting enough. I get why Le Miserables is nominated, it fits the Oscar movie criteria, but it just did nothing for me and really didn't work that well as a movie. Yes, there were big production numbers. Yes, there were big name actors. Yes, there were powerful songs. But the story didn't do much for me and I wasn't impressed with the acting at all.
My favorite movie from this list is Django Unchained. I've always been a huge Tarantino big and this is one of his best efforts. There is everything you could want from a Tarantino movie, over the top violence, smart rapid dialogue, provoking story lines, plus some great performances from great actors. Jamie Foxx and Leonardo DiCaprio could easily been nominated along with Waltz and the best performance of all in the movie was arguably Sam Jackson, who was amazing as an evil Uncle Tom trying to bring down Django. I have very little hope that it is going to pull of an upset, but nothing would make me happier then seeing this movie get the big prize.
Of the movies left on the list, I wouldn't not be upset to see any of them win. Beasts of the Southern Wild did not blow me away, but it was an interesting film that took a lot of artistic chances, something I've always said the Academy needs to reward more. Silver Linings Playbook was close to being my favorite. I loved the way the movie tried to explore mental illness and the characters that inhabited Russell's world were deeply interesting, but the ending just lost me. It went from an interesting character movie to a ridiculous rom-com. If the whole betting stroyline was absent from this movie I'd probably be pushing for it to win the Oscar. Zero Dark Thirty was an amazing tale of obsession and the last 45 minutes are breath taking, but I just think some of the plotlines are to controversial for the Academy to give it the big prize.
Argo and Lincoln are the two with the best chances to win. Both are flawed movies, but they still are able to tell compelling tales in a way that Hollywood loves. Lincoln has fantastic moments and the fact Spielberg is behind it makes it an automatic contender, but I think when all is said and done Argo will come out on top. Hollywood loves movies that make fun of Hollywood and Argo is able to do that while still telling a highly dramatic and uplifting tale.
ACTUAL WINNER: ARGO
Best Cinematography
Nominations: Anna Karenina, Django Unchained, Life Of Pi, Lincoln, Skyfall
Who I Want To Win: Skyfall
Who I Think Will Win: Skyfall
I don't usually write about the more technical categories because I don't always feel fit to judge them and also if I spent time writing up every award this post would be as long as the actual award show, thank you speeches and all, and I just don't have that kind of time. But I really felt I needed to write about this one because the cinematography in Skyfall blew me away. It was easily the most beautiful Bond movie ever shot and in my opinion the most beautifully shot movie of the year. If Deakins doesn't win this I'm going to riot in the streets, and yes, I realize that is a strong reaction for an award almost nobody but me and the five nominees care about. Deakins is beyond due for this award, having been nominated 10 times without winning once. I can still see the certain scenes from Skyfall in my head because they were so indelible. This has to be the year he gets his due!
ACTUAL WINNER: LIFE OF PI
Best Animated Short
Nominations: Adam and Dog, Fresh Guacamole, Head over Heels, Maggie Simpson in "The Longest Daycare", Paperman
Who I Want To Win: Paperman
Who I Think Will Win: Maggie Simpson in "The Longest Daycare"
This is a tough category because I feel like it should be for up and coming artists and animated film makers, people are more DIY about film making, yet by far the two best shorts are a Disney short and a Simpsons short. I really liked Adam and Dog, the animation was simple yet beautiful, but it still felt like it was in a different class then the other big house shorts. I enjoyed both Paperman and The Longest Daycare, so I won't be upset if either wins, but I found Paperman slightly more entertaining and I really liked the animation style. I have a strong feeling, though, that the Academy is going to reward an Emmy favorite that is up for its first Oscar by giving the award to the Simpson crew.
ACTUAL WINNER: PAPERMAN
Best Animated Feature
Nominations: Brave, Frankenweenie, ParaNorman, The Pirates! Band of Misfits, Wreck-It Ralph
Who I Want To Win: Wreck-It Ralph
Who I Think Will Win: Frankenweenie
As is going to be the case in most categories this year, I don't really have a stand out favorite animated film and will be happy to see any of three on the nominations get the Oscar. Wreck-It Ralph was my favorite of this group, I loved all the old school video game references and it had a really cute, well told story to go along with it. I also really enjoyed The Pirates! Band of Misfits. It's from the makers of Wallace and Gromit and Chicken Run, so you know they know how to make a smart, funny animated flick. But, I have a strong feeling that the Oscar is going to go to Frankenweenie. It's a little more artistic then the others, it comes from the mind of Tim Burton and its really well made. The style of humor is obviously different then the others and its a bit more dramatic, I think it is more up the voters alley then anything else. But again, I have no problem with that.
ACTUAL WINNER: BRAVE
Best Documentary Feature
Nominations: 5 Broken Cameras, The Gatekeepers, How To Survive a Plague, The Invisible War, Searching For Sugar Man
Who I Want To Win: The Invisible War
Who I Think Will Win: The Gatekeepers
The Invisible War was by far my favorite of these films. It was crazy to hear the unbelievable atrocities that women in the military have to deal with and that nobody is doing anything about it. The film did a great job of building the case, showing the lack of response, trying to give both sides (not that there is any other side to allowing women to be raped). None of the other films really stuck a cord with me. 5 Broken Cameras was a little dull, How To Survive a Plague was interesting but not mind blowing, Searching For Sugar Man was a cute story about an interesting person. I didn't get to see The Gatekeepers because it hasn't really gotten wide release yet, but something tells me, with the talk it's getting and the subject matter it deals with that it's going to get the win. I feel that subject matter goes a long way with who wins this award and both The Gatekeepers and How To Survive a Plague deal with stuff near and dear to Hollywood's heart, so I think one of those two will get the award.
ACTUAL WINNER: SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN
Best Foreign Language Film
Nominations: Amour, Kon-Tiki, No, A Royal Affair, War Witch
Who I Want To Win: Anything but Amour
Who I Think Will Win: Amour
It feels so silly when a movie up for Best Picture is up for another sub-category. How could a movie considered a contender for best picture not beat a group of films not considered contenders? I've only seen Amour out of these films and that movie bored me to tears. So, I would like to see something else win just on principle, but we all know who is going to win this Oscar.
ACTUAL WINNER: AMOUR
Best Original Screenplay
Nominations: Amour, Django Unchained, Flight, Moonrise Kingdom, Zero Dark Thirty
Who I Want To Win: Moonrise Kingdom
Who I Think Will Win: Flight
This is a category that usually treated like a consolation prize to good movies that the Academy doesn't want to give the big awards to. Maybe, I just gravitate to good writing more then good film making, but I always seem to like the original screenplay winner more then the best picture. I feel that Flight should have been nominated for Best Picture. It was a much better movie then Life of Pi. It was strong in almost every element, yet for some reason got ignored. That being the case, I think the Academy is going to throw it a bone with this award. I would love to see Moonrise Kingdom win, though. I'm a Wes Anderson fan and feel that most of his movies have been award worthy, yet he has nothing to show for his efforts. It would be nice to see him win for what I thought was another quirky, fun story and script.
ACTUAL WINNER: DJANGO UNCHAINED
Best Adapted Screenplay
Nominations: Argo, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Life of Pi, Lincoln, Silver Linings Playbook
Who I Want To Win: Silver Linings Playbook
Who I Think Will Win: Argo
There is a good possibility, even with so many good films in contention, that this is Argo's night. That being the case, it seems to me that they are the front runner to take home this award. As much as I have problems with the ending of Silver Linings Playbook, I really liked it for the most part and would like to see it walk away with something. This seems to me to be the most realistic award it can take home. But, as I've said about other categories, I really have no problem with any of these films, except for Life of Pi, winning the Oscar.
ACTUAL WINNER: ARGO
Best Supporting Actress
Nominations: Amy Adams, Sally Field, Anne Hathaway, Helen Hunt, Jacki Weaver
Who I Want To Win: Jacki Weaver
Who I Think Will Win: Anne Hathaway
I fell in love with Jacki Weaver as an actress a couple years ago when I saw the Australian film Animal Kingdom. The amount of story she is able to convey with just a look is awe inspiring. I don't think she gets enough credit in the acting world for just how amazing an actress she is. This isn't her best role, but those looks still come through and I really wasn't blown away by any of these other performances. From what I hear, it sounds like Anne Hathaway is the front runner, even though I think she's the least deserving of all the nominees. If she had been nominated for her role in The Dark Knight Rises I would have been all about her winning, but her brief appearance in Les Miserables was totally underwhelming in my book. I'm not sure why Helen Hunt got this nomination. Getting naked on camera isn't grounds for an award. She couldn't even pull off a New England accent; she would pronounce Mark Mack but said everything else normal. Sally Field has a strong chance to win as well, but I have my fingers crossed for Jacki.
ACTUAL WINNER: ANNE HATHAWAY
Best Supporting Actor
Nominations: Alan Arkin, Robert De Niro, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Tommy Lee Jones, Christoph Waltz
Who I Want To Win: Philip Seymour Hoffman
Who I Think Will Win: Philip Seymour Hoffman
This is a tough category for me to pick. I think Christoph Waltz is a great performer and Django Unchained was probably my favorite nominated movie, a movie in which I thought he was amazing in, but I can't deny that Philip Seymour Hoffman put in the best performance of this bunch. I am surprised that The Master didn't get more nominations. It probably deserved to be up for almost every major award, but only got a few acting nods. Hoffman was great in this role and seems a shoe in, although you can never count out someone like Robert De Niro even though the role really wasn't anything note worthy. It would be a small travesty if Hoffman doesn't walk away with this prize.
ACTUAL WINNER: CHRISTOPH WALTZ
Best Actress
Nominations: Jessica Chastain, Jennifer Lawrence, Emmanuelle Riva, Quvenzhane Wallis, Naomi Watts
Who I Want To Win: Jessica Chastain
Who I Think Will Win: Emmanuelle Riva
This is by far the worst category in this year's awards. I don't know why 90% of these performances are considered Oscar worthy. Are women's roles really that bad off? Quvenzhane Wallis was 5 when Beasts of the Southern Wild was shot. You can't tell me that a five year-old knows what she is doing when it comes to acting. A five year-old doesn't makes choices on how to play a character; she has no perspective to know what the choices might be. Emmanuelle Riva and Naomi Watts have gotten nominated for sitting in a bed more most of their movies. I'm not sure what's so award worth about sitting in a bed, but obviously the Academy feels there's something. Both Riva and Watts were out performed by the male actors in their respective films which makes it even harder for me to see them as award worthy. That leaves us with Jessica Chastain and Jennifer Lawrence, both of who were excellent. I think this should be Chastain's year though since she carried all of Zero Dark Thirty and made it the impressive movie that it was. Unfortunately, I think the Academy is going to give the award to either Riva, for being the oldest person nominated, or Wallis, for being the youngest.
ACTUAL WINNER: JENNIFER LAWRENCE
Best Actor
Nominations: Bradley Cooper, Daniel Day-Lewis, Hugh Jackman, Joaquin Phoenix, Denzel Washington
Who I Want To Win: Daniel Day-Lewis
Who I Think Will Win: Daniel Day-Lewis
This was such a loaded year for male acting performances, yet at the end of the day there is no question who should and will win this Oscar. I really felt that Jean-Louis Trintignant from Amour and Tom Holland from The Impossible should have been nominated, but who should be taken out? Probably Hugh Jackman, who really wasn't anything special but the Academy likes to reward people who sing. Other then that everyone nominated was highly deserving. And yet I feel there should be a rule that any year Daniel Day-Lewis makes a movie he should just be given the Oscar. He has not put in a performance that was less than amazing. Add to it that he is doing the Academy's favorite thing to award, mimicking a famous person, and there really is no doubt that he will walk away with yet another award.
ACTUAL WINNER: DANIEL DAY-LEWIS
Best Director
Nominations: Michael Haneke, Benh Zeitlin, Ang Lee, Steven Spielberg, David O. Russell
Who I Want To Win: David O. Russell
Who I Think Will Win: Steven Spielberg
Who I really want to win for this category is Kathryn Bigelow, but for some reason that nobody ever will be able to explain she wasn't nominated, so I'm going with David O. Russell. I've loved pretty much all his films, expect The Fighter which I thought was a little over rated, and think he deserves a nod. Silver Linings Playbook was a really good movie with a big cast that all came together so perfectly you can't help but think it's because of the director. As much as I would love Russell to get it, I think this is Spielberg's year. Lincoln might not get Best Picture, so this would be a consolation prize for one of the Academy's favorite directors who they tend to reward when he makes a movie with historical and thematic weight.
ACTUAL WINNER: ANG LEE
Best Picture
Nominations: Amour, Argo, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Django Unchained, Les Miserables, Life of Pi, Lincoln, Silver Linings Playbook, Zero Dark Thirty
Who I Want To Win: Django Unchained
Who I Think Will Win: Argo
This is a tough year to pick Best Picture because I think that both Argo and Lincoln could easily walk away with the prize. And unlike most years, I wouldn't be offended if almost any of these nominees won. The exceptions are Life of Pi, Amour and Les Miserables. I truly have no idea why Life of Pi is up for so many awards. It is a painfully boring story with a horrible pay off. There was nothing special about any of it and there are a dozen movies that should have been nominated over it (The Master, The Dark Knight Rises, The Impossible, Moonrise Kingdom, Flight, Skyfall, The Sessions, etc.). Amour just bored me to tears. I liked Trintignant performance and the end is a little shocking and unsettling, but it took to long to get there and I just didn't find it interesting enough. I get why Le Miserables is nominated, it fits the Oscar movie criteria, but it just did nothing for me and really didn't work that well as a movie. Yes, there were big production numbers. Yes, there were big name actors. Yes, there were powerful songs. But the story didn't do much for me and I wasn't impressed with the acting at all.
My favorite movie from this list is Django Unchained. I've always been a huge Tarantino big and this is one of his best efforts. There is everything you could want from a Tarantino movie, over the top violence, smart rapid dialogue, provoking story lines, plus some great performances from great actors. Jamie Foxx and Leonardo DiCaprio could easily been nominated along with Waltz and the best performance of all in the movie was arguably Sam Jackson, who was amazing as an evil Uncle Tom trying to bring down Django. I have very little hope that it is going to pull of an upset, but nothing would make me happier then seeing this movie get the big prize.
Of the movies left on the list, I wouldn't not be upset to see any of them win. Beasts of the Southern Wild did not blow me away, but it was an interesting film that took a lot of artistic chances, something I've always said the Academy needs to reward more. Silver Linings Playbook was close to being my favorite. I loved the way the movie tried to explore mental illness and the characters that inhabited Russell's world were deeply interesting, but the ending just lost me. It went from an interesting character movie to a ridiculous rom-com. If the whole betting stroyline was absent from this movie I'd probably be pushing for it to win the Oscar. Zero Dark Thirty was an amazing tale of obsession and the last 45 minutes are breath taking, but I just think some of the plotlines are to controversial for the Academy to give it the big prize.
Argo and Lincoln are the two with the best chances to win. Both are flawed movies, but they still are able to tell compelling tales in a way that Hollywood loves. Lincoln has fantastic moments and the fact Spielberg is behind it makes it an automatic contender, but I think when all is said and done Argo will come out on top. Hollywood loves movies that make fun of Hollywood and Argo is able to do that while still telling a highly dramatic and uplifting tale.
ACTUAL WINNER: ARGO
Thursday, February 21, 2013
Top 5: 2013 Oscar Snubs
Most years this is an extremely easy post to write. If there is any difficulty at all it's picking out only 5 mistakes the Academy made. But this year there were so many good movies and performances it's hard to pick out a solid list of mistakes with the nominations. Almost everyone who got a nod is worthy. They might not be my pick but it's hard to say they didn't deserve the recognition. My rule has always been, if I think someone else should have got the nomination I have to pick a someone in that category who shouldn't have gotten nominated and that's been where my problem lies this year; taking an undeserved nomination away. That being the case, a lot of this list is slightly absurd this year. There were performances that I know would never get recognized in a million years that I put on this list. That's not to say that they aren't deserving, I mention them because I know nobody saw them and feel they should get recognized, but normally I stick to performances that would usually get a nod but for some odd reason didn't. So, some of these may sound ridiculous, but I stand by them. Here's my Top 5 Nomination Snubs For The 85th Academy Awards...
5) Michelle Williams (Take This Waltz) - Best Actress
This was a small surprise because even though she is very young, Williams has quickly made herself an Academy favorite. She's gotten a best actress nod each of the last two years and a best supporting actress nomination in 2005 for Broke Back Mountain. Her turn is Take This Waltz was brilliant as a house wife who was getting bored in her relationship and fell for the bright shinny new guy on the block. It's not an easy role to play, one has to take a easily unlikeable character and make the audience want to keep watching. Williams accomplished that with ease. Her performance was clearly stronger then both Emmanuelle Riva, who just sat there for two hours not doing much at all (I'm sorry but Jean-Louis Trintigant carried the movie and should have been the one to get a nomination) and Quvenzhane Wallis, who is 5 and has no idea what she is doing on screen.
4) Anne Hathaway (The Dark Knight Rises) - Best Supporting Actress
OK, I know, this is a major cheat, but I don't care. Hathaway may be nominated in this category already, but it's for absolutely the wrong movie. I have no idea what is nomination worthy about her Les Miserables role. Is it just because she sings? She's in the movie for something like 10 minutes, sings a couple songs, and acts sick. I wasn't impressed at all. Now, her version of Selina Kyle, on the other hand, was a work of genius. It just happened to be in a big budget comic book movie so there was no chance that the Academy would recognize it. It's a travesty that she not get credit for how amazing she was The Dark Knight Rises. I'm far from an Anne Hathaway fan, she just doesn't do it for me like she seems to for so many others, but even I can't deny how fantastic she was as Catwoman.
3) Liev Schreiber (Goon) - Best Supporting Actor
This is my biggest reach, but I stand by it strong enough to make it number 3. Almost nobody saw Goon and those who did know it's about as goof ball a comedy as you can get, a movie that the Academy wouldn't even give a second of thought about, but those who know hockey know how fantastic Schrebier was in this movie. Schrebier nailed the aging hockey goon to a tee, bringing in all the humanity that most people miss when they think hockey goon. It's a job or a role that needs to be filled and it isn't glamorous or fun. Schrebier showed all of that with beautiful subtlety. The dinner scene where he essentially passes the torch to Sean William-Scott's character is about as great an acting scene as you will find in any 2012 movie. I would put in Schreiber over Alan Arkin's role in Argo, which was just Arkin being Arkin. It was entertaining but there was nothing special about it.
2) Flight - Best Picture
This is a hard year to say that a movie was snubbed for Best Picture because there were so many deserving movies. More then any other year I'm finding it difficult to pick Best Picture because I liked or see worthiness in so many of the movies. That being said, Flight was clearly snubbed from this category. I was totally surprised by this movie. The previews do no justice for what it is actually about. This isn't a movie about an airplane crash, it's a movie about addiction. I'm glad to see Denzel Washington get recognized for his role and the movie get a nod for Best Original Screenplay, but it really should have gotten Best Picture as well. It was a wonderfully made movie from top to bottom. There is no reason it shouldn't have been nominated over Life Of Pi, which may have had great special effects, but was a horrible movie otherwise.
1) Kathryn Bigelow (Zero Dark Thirty) - Best Director
This is the most obvious snub. It really is a travesty and I'm not sure why it happened. It was like the Academy said, we already gave a woman the directing Oscar, we don't need to do it again. This was a movie that hinged on direction and Bigelow did an amazing job pulling out wonderful performances and setting the perfect tone. Bigelow proved with her last winning picture, The Hurt Locker, that she can tackle these difficult subject movies with ease, but that doesn't make her any less deserving with this one. Again, I was not impressed at all with Life Of Pi and don't understand why this one was nominated for anything other than special effect, so Bigelow certainly should have been nominated over Ang Lee.
Honorable Mention: Jean-Louis Trintignant (Amour) - Best Actor
5) Michelle Williams (Take This Waltz) - Best Actress
This was a small surprise because even though she is very young, Williams has quickly made herself an Academy favorite. She's gotten a best actress nod each of the last two years and a best supporting actress nomination in 2005 for Broke Back Mountain. Her turn is Take This Waltz was brilliant as a house wife who was getting bored in her relationship and fell for the bright shinny new guy on the block. It's not an easy role to play, one has to take a easily unlikeable character and make the audience want to keep watching. Williams accomplished that with ease. Her performance was clearly stronger then both Emmanuelle Riva, who just sat there for two hours not doing much at all (I'm sorry but Jean-Louis Trintigant carried the movie and should have been the one to get a nomination) and Quvenzhane Wallis, who is 5 and has no idea what she is doing on screen.
4) Anne Hathaway (The Dark Knight Rises) - Best Supporting Actress
OK, I know, this is a major cheat, but I don't care. Hathaway may be nominated in this category already, but it's for absolutely the wrong movie. I have no idea what is nomination worthy about her Les Miserables role. Is it just because she sings? She's in the movie for something like 10 minutes, sings a couple songs, and acts sick. I wasn't impressed at all. Now, her version of Selina Kyle, on the other hand, was a work of genius. It just happened to be in a big budget comic book movie so there was no chance that the Academy would recognize it. It's a travesty that she not get credit for how amazing she was The Dark Knight Rises. I'm far from an Anne Hathaway fan, she just doesn't do it for me like she seems to for so many others, but even I can't deny how fantastic she was as Catwoman.
3) Liev Schreiber (Goon) - Best Supporting Actor
This is my biggest reach, but I stand by it strong enough to make it number 3. Almost nobody saw Goon and those who did know it's about as goof ball a comedy as you can get, a movie that the Academy wouldn't even give a second of thought about, but those who know hockey know how fantastic Schrebier was in this movie. Schrebier nailed the aging hockey goon to a tee, bringing in all the humanity that most people miss when they think hockey goon. It's a job or a role that needs to be filled and it isn't glamorous or fun. Schrebier showed all of that with beautiful subtlety. The dinner scene where he essentially passes the torch to Sean William-Scott's character is about as great an acting scene as you will find in any 2012 movie. I would put in Schreiber over Alan Arkin's role in Argo, which was just Arkin being Arkin. It was entertaining but there was nothing special about it.
2) Flight - Best Picture
This is a hard year to say that a movie was snubbed for Best Picture because there were so many deserving movies. More then any other year I'm finding it difficult to pick Best Picture because I liked or see worthiness in so many of the movies. That being said, Flight was clearly snubbed from this category. I was totally surprised by this movie. The previews do no justice for what it is actually about. This isn't a movie about an airplane crash, it's a movie about addiction. I'm glad to see Denzel Washington get recognized for his role and the movie get a nod for Best Original Screenplay, but it really should have gotten Best Picture as well. It was a wonderfully made movie from top to bottom. There is no reason it shouldn't have been nominated over Life Of Pi, which may have had great special effects, but was a horrible movie otherwise.
1) Kathryn Bigelow (Zero Dark Thirty) - Best Director
This is the most obvious snub. It really is a travesty and I'm not sure why it happened. It was like the Academy said, we already gave a woman the directing Oscar, we don't need to do it again. This was a movie that hinged on direction and Bigelow did an amazing job pulling out wonderful performances and setting the perfect tone. Bigelow proved with her last winning picture, The Hurt Locker, that she can tackle these difficult subject movies with ease, but that doesn't make her any less deserving with this one. Again, I was not impressed at all with Life Of Pi and don't understand why this one was nominated for anything other than special effect, so Bigelow certainly should have been nominated over Ang Lee.
Honorable Mention: Jean-Louis Trintignant (Amour) - Best Actor
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Top 5: Comedies of 2012
Today's Top 5 is another under appreciated genre of film when it comes award time. Why drama is considered so much more award worth is beyond me. Comedy is just as much of an art and drama and just because there isn't some bigger message or point being made doesn't mean it's not worth of recognition. So, I will do my best to recognize the movies that made me laugh the most during 2012. Here's my Top 5 Favorite Comedies of 2012...
5) Pitch Perfect
I know I shouldn't like this movie, but that's how good it was. I refuse to believe there is a person that could walk out of a theater showing this movie not entertained. Yes, it's a sappy feel good movie, but it does it really well. The laughs are consistent and earned, the music is fun and entertaining, the characters are well drawn and well acted. I love Anna Kendrick. I love Brittney Snow. I love Anna Camp. And, of course, I love Rebel Wilson. Which all adds up to loving this movie.
4) Ted
I didn't like this movie as much as most people I know, but that doesn't mean it wasn't hilarious. Seth MacFarlane deserves all the success he had heaped upon him because the man is just damn funny. Some of the plot points hit a little close to home for me, which is probably why I didn't laugh as much as others, but there were still parts that had me in stitches. Mark Wahlberg was perfectly cast, as he has a knack for playing the dimwit that we all root for. What really makes Ted funny though, and is usually the case with of MacFarlane's work, are the random pop culture references. I thought I was the only one who had a strong affection for the movie Flash Gordon and it's chessy soundtrack, but then MacFarlane goes and gets Sam Jones to be in the film and makes his presence a major plot point. If you don't like Seth MacFarlane there is very little in this movie for you, but I thought it was great.
3) Jeff, Who Lives At Home
Here is yet another movie that made my best of 2012 lists involving Mark Duplass. In this case he is the writer/director with his brother Jay. This movie is a little more then a comedy and in some circles might even be considered a drama, but it had me laughing quite a bit, so I'm calling it a comedy. Jason Segel and Ed Helms are great as brothers just trying to get through life in extremely quirky ways. Segel's character in particular is a joy to watch on the screen as he bungles through the day following signs he believes the universe is giving him. It has as many poignant dramatic moments as it does funny comedic ones, which always says more to me about the writing. To be able to fill a script with both high comedy and high drama is a quite a feat and this movie is able to accomplish that.
2) Bernie
This quirky little flick from Richard Linklater is equal parts documentary and comedy. Linklater mixes actually interviews with real people with big time actors reenacting the crazy events that occurred in a small Texas town. It is about a murder, so I'm sure there are plenty of people that would argue with me that it's a comedy, but I thought is was a genius dark comedy. Jack Black plays the title roll and steps out of his over the top persona to put in a subtle performance that sets the tone for the whole movie. Not a lot of people heard of this one, but it is certainly worth getting on Netflix and checking out.
1) Sleepwalk With Me
Here is another comedy that has as many dramatic moments as it does comedic. Based on the hilarious stand-up and real life experiences of comedian Mike Birbiglia, this movie gives a real look at the the life of a stand-up comedian. It also takes a close look as relationships and what makes them work or not. I love Birbiglia's brand of comedy, so there was little chance that I wasn't going to enjoy this movie, but it was even better then I could have expected. Birbiglia does a great job stepping out of his stand-up world and giving a great acting performance. This was hands down my favorite comedy of the year because it was able to make me laugh while still pulling at the heart strings and like I said before, that is the sign of a well written, well made movie.
Honorable Mentions: The Dictator, Goon
5) Pitch Perfect
I know I shouldn't like this movie, but that's how good it was. I refuse to believe there is a person that could walk out of a theater showing this movie not entertained. Yes, it's a sappy feel good movie, but it does it really well. The laughs are consistent and earned, the music is fun and entertaining, the characters are well drawn and well acted. I love Anna Kendrick. I love Brittney Snow. I love Anna Camp. And, of course, I love Rebel Wilson. Which all adds up to loving this movie.
4) Ted
I didn't like this movie as much as most people I know, but that doesn't mean it wasn't hilarious. Seth MacFarlane deserves all the success he had heaped upon him because the man is just damn funny. Some of the plot points hit a little close to home for me, which is probably why I didn't laugh as much as others, but there were still parts that had me in stitches. Mark Wahlberg was perfectly cast, as he has a knack for playing the dimwit that we all root for. What really makes Ted funny though, and is usually the case with of MacFarlane's work, are the random pop culture references. I thought I was the only one who had a strong affection for the movie Flash Gordon and it's chessy soundtrack, but then MacFarlane goes and gets Sam Jones to be in the film and makes his presence a major plot point. If you don't like Seth MacFarlane there is very little in this movie for you, but I thought it was great.
3) Jeff, Who Lives At Home
Here is yet another movie that made my best of 2012 lists involving Mark Duplass. In this case he is the writer/director with his brother Jay. This movie is a little more then a comedy and in some circles might even be considered a drama, but it had me laughing quite a bit, so I'm calling it a comedy. Jason Segel and Ed Helms are great as brothers just trying to get through life in extremely quirky ways. Segel's character in particular is a joy to watch on the screen as he bungles through the day following signs he believes the universe is giving him. It has as many poignant dramatic moments as it does funny comedic ones, which always says more to me about the writing. To be able to fill a script with both high comedy and high drama is a quite a feat and this movie is able to accomplish that.
2) Bernie
This quirky little flick from Richard Linklater is equal parts documentary and comedy. Linklater mixes actually interviews with real people with big time actors reenacting the crazy events that occurred in a small Texas town. It is about a murder, so I'm sure there are plenty of people that would argue with me that it's a comedy, but I thought is was a genius dark comedy. Jack Black plays the title roll and steps out of his over the top persona to put in a subtle performance that sets the tone for the whole movie. Not a lot of people heard of this one, but it is certainly worth getting on Netflix and checking out.
1) Sleepwalk With Me
Here is another comedy that has as many dramatic moments as it does comedic. Based on the hilarious stand-up and real life experiences of comedian Mike Birbiglia, this movie gives a real look at the the life of a stand-up comedian. It also takes a close look as relationships and what makes them work or not. I love Birbiglia's brand of comedy, so there was little chance that I wasn't going to enjoy this movie, but it was even better then I could have expected. Birbiglia does a great job stepping out of his stand-up world and giving a great acting performance. This was hands down my favorite comedy of the year because it was able to make me laugh while still pulling at the heart strings and like I said before, that is the sign of a well written, well made movie.
Honorable Mentions: The Dictator, Goon
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Top 5: Independent Dramas of 2012
I have to curtail these lists to the movies that I actually watch and the ones I actually liked. There have been years that I saw a bunch of animated films, others where I saw a ton of documentaries. Some of this just has to do with more or less of those types of films being released in a given year, but other times it's just what I happened to see or was attracted to. For some reason I watched a lot of really good independent dramas this year, thus this list. Again, I'm trying to highlight the movies that didn't get recognized for the big awards. Here's my Top 5 Favorite Independent Dramas of 2012...
5) Take This Waltz
This isn't an easy movie to watch but it certainly does a good job documenting how desire affects relationships. The movie presents a protagonist that is extremely unlikable, one that you actively rot against the whole film, which makes the film a difficult watch but the film makers did such a good job with the story that you need to keep watching to see how things end. The acting is amazing. Michelle Williams should have been nominated for an award over either the 5 year old, who couldn't possible know what she was doing, or the 80 year old, who really didn't do much in Amour. Seth Rogan also puts in a surprisingly good dramatic performance as the super nice but nondescript husband. If you're looking for something light and uplifting, this isn't the movie for you, but if you want to see a well written, well acted documentation of the down fall of relationships, check this one out.
4) Your Sister's Sister
This is another movie that isn't really uplifting, but then again, there really aren't that many independent dramas that are. What makes this movie so interesting is the odd situation that develops and the wonderful performances by the actors as they sort through the tangled emotions it creates. I'm not the biggest Emily Blunt fan, she seems to be everyone's sweet heart along with Anne Hathaway, I just don't get it, but she is great in this movie as someone who has her gay sister mess up her potential relationship. Rosemarie Dewitt and Mark Duplass are just as good as the sister and love interest respectively. This is a movie that uses it's limited setting to pull you into the story and characters. It can get uncomfortable at times but that is just more of a complement to the writing and acting.
3) Liberal Arts
This is the writing and directing debut for Josh Radnor, Ted from How I Met Your Mother. I won't lie, my affection for this movie might have a little to do with the fact that it feels a lot like Garden State, one of my all time favorite movies which was also the writing and directing debut of a sitcom star. It doesn't really share story or plot, in that regard it is very much it's own movie, but there is something about the feel of the movie that brought Garden State to mind. I never saw Martha Marcy May Marlene, so Elizabeth Olsen was a total revelation for me in the movie. She tackled a roll with all the emotions need well beyond her years. She hit every note perfect and really made the relationship between her and Radnor pop on screen in all the inappropriate ways.
2) Safety Not Guaranteed
I was thinking of doing a Top 5 Movies Mark Duplass Was Involved In, but I only came up with 5 and I feel that I need at least six options to make a top 5 list valid. This was a awesome quirky little movie about a guy who is supposedly building a time machine to go back and save his love from dying. Duplass is perfect as the oddball recluse who may or may not have a time machine in his garage that the government is trying to get a hold of. This movie isn't so much about time travel, in fact there isn't any actual time travel in the movie or special effects or complex butterfly effect plotlines, it's a movie about relationships. You're never really sure how crazy Duplass is, which is a credit to his performance as much as the writing, and that is really the heart of the movie. It doesn't hurt that Aubrey Plaza is also in the movie playing a reporter who is trying to figure out if there really is a time machine and ends up falling for Duplass. Nick from New Girl also plays a fun character. This is a fun cute movie that should have gotten a lot more attention for how entertaining it is.
1) Compliance
As I mentioned in yesterday's Top 5, I didn't really see enough horror movies to make that a Top 5 list of its own so I lumped them in to other categories, mostly Action movies. This is a horror movie that really didn't fit into the action genre because it doesn't have a crazy killer running around or a violent ghost haunting everyone. This is a movie, supposedly based on real events, set in a very real world. It begins with a phone call supposedly from the police to a fast food restaurant accusing the cashier of stealing and asking the restaurant manager to do the police work for them. It sounds a little preposterous but as you watch the events happen it totally makes sense. And it's amazingly horrifying! To think that this could happen to any of us is crazy and disturbing. The movie took some knocks for being over the top, but it never really felt that way to me. Everything that happened worked with the story and didn't feel out of place. This isn't an easy movie to watch and is disturbing not in a graphic but psychological way, but is well worth watching
Honorable Mention: Friends With Kids
5) Take This Waltz
This isn't an easy movie to watch but it certainly does a good job documenting how desire affects relationships. The movie presents a protagonist that is extremely unlikable, one that you actively rot against the whole film, which makes the film a difficult watch but the film makers did such a good job with the story that you need to keep watching to see how things end. The acting is amazing. Michelle Williams should have been nominated for an award over either the 5 year old, who couldn't possible know what she was doing, or the 80 year old, who really didn't do much in Amour. Seth Rogan also puts in a surprisingly good dramatic performance as the super nice but nondescript husband. If you're looking for something light and uplifting, this isn't the movie for you, but if you want to see a well written, well acted documentation of the down fall of relationships, check this one out.
4) Your Sister's Sister
This is another movie that isn't really uplifting, but then again, there really aren't that many independent dramas that are. What makes this movie so interesting is the odd situation that develops and the wonderful performances by the actors as they sort through the tangled emotions it creates. I'm not the biggest Emily Blunt fan, she seems to be everyone's sweet heart along with Anne Hathaway, I just don't get it, but she is great in this movie as someone who has her gay sister mess up her potential relationship. Rosemarie Dewitt and Mark Duplass are just as good as the sister and love interest respectively. This is a movie that uses it's limited setting to pull you into the story and characters. It can get uncomfortable at times but that is just more of a complement to the writing and acting.
3) Liberal Arts
This is the writing and directing debut for Josh Radnor, Ted from How I Met Your Mother. I won't lie, my affection for this movie might have a little to do with the fact that it feels a lot like Garden State, one of my all time favorite movies which was also the writing and directing debut of a sitcom star. It doesn't really share story or plot, in that regard it is very much it's own movie, but there is something about the feel of the movie that brought Garden State to mind. I never saw Martha Marcy May Marlene, so Elizabeth Olsen was a total revelation for me in the movie. She tackled a roll with all the emotions need well beyond her years. She hit every note perfect and really made the relationship between her and Radnor pop on screen in all the inappropriate ways.
2) Safety Not Guaranteed
I was thinking of doing a Top 5 Movies Mark Duplass Was Involved In, but I only came up with 5 and I feel that I need at least six options to make a top 5 list valid. This was a awesome quirky little movie about a guy who is supposedly building a time machine to go back and save his love from dying. Duplass is perfect as the oddball recluse who may or may not have a time machine in his garage that the government is trying to get a hold of. This movie isn't so much about time travel, in fact there isn't any actual time travel in the movie or special effects or complex butterfly effect plotlines, it's a movie about relationships. You're never really sure how crazy Duplass is, which is a credit to his performance as much as the writing, and that is really the heart of the movie. It doesn't hurt that Aubrey Plaza is also in the movie playing a reporter who is trying to figure out if there really is a time machine and ends up falling for Duplass. Nick from New Girl also plays a fun character. This is a fun cute movie that should have gotten a lot more attention for how entertaining it is.
1) Compliance
As I mentioned in yesterday's Top 5, I didn't really see enough horror movies to make that a Top 5 list of its own so I lumped them in to other categories, mostly Action movies. This is a horror movie that really didn't fit into the action genre because it doesn't have a crazy killer running around or a violent ghost haunting everyone. This is a movie, supposedly based on real events, set in a very real world. It begins with a phone call supposedly from the police to a fast food restaurant accusing the cashier of stealing and asking the restaurant manager to do the police work for them. It sounds a little preposterous but as you watch the events happen it totally makes sense. And it's amazingly horrifying! To think that this could happen to any of us is crazy and disturbing. The movie took some knocks for being over the top, but it never really felt that way to me. Everything that happened worked with the story and didn't feel out of place. This isn't an easy movie to watch and is disturbing not in a graphic but psychological way, but is well worth watching
Honorable Mention: Friends With Kids
Monday, February 18, 2013
Top 5: Best Action Movies of 2012
It's that time of the year to gear up for Sunday's big Oscar show. Luckily I was able to get back to writing just in time to do my week of movie themed Top 5's leading up to the big show. It's my favorite week of writing this blog. I'll start things off with Top 5 Action Films. This year I stretched the definition of action to include horror films because I didn't see enough horror films this year for them to have their own list. And really, horror is kind of a sub-genre of action anyway. The whole point of the Top 5's leading up to Friday's big Oscar post is to recognize movies that aren't acknowledged by the Academy, so I didn't include anything that may have fit into the genre but was given a nomination. And as always, the lists obviously only include movies I saw, I'm not going to write about something I haven't seen. Here's my Top 5 Favorite Action Movies of 2012...
5) The Grey
This one is popping up on a lot of movie lists this year and rightfully so. It was released in the early part of the year, so it was easy for the awards people to forget it, not to mention the fact that action movies aren't considered award worthy, but this was an intense survival thriller that was intellectual as well and deserved recognition. A lot of people refer to it as the wolf movie, but it was so much more then that. It was an exciting exploration into the human condition of survival. How long and to what extent will we fight to stay alive? At one point does one give in to the inevitability of death? And the action was intense and well shot as well. It was a movie that worked on two levels and that seems to be rarer and rared these days.
4) Cabin In The Woods
There are two very strong views of this movie, either you loved it or you hated it, and I absolutely loved it. Everything that happened after the "Purge" button was pushed was pure bliss. I struggled a bit on how to classify it, is it a horror movie, is it a comedy, is it a drama. I went with horror (so for this list's purposes, action) since that's the genre it is most trying to comment on. I know that the whole "story inside a story" aspect of the movie bothered many, I thought it was genius and feel any true horror fan should love this film. They found a way to mock the genre's tropes without turning the whole movie into a farce. It felt like a true horror film even though it was more about making a horror film or at least the people who make all things horror.
3) Skyfall
As I've written before, I think, when all is said and done, that this will rank as one of the top 5 Bond movies of all time, if not the best. It certainly had some flaws and I totally acknowledge the Home Alone ending, but there was so much that was great about this film that it was easy to ignore the small problems. I seriously didn't mind that the ending felt a little like Home Alone, because it worked with the story being told and the themes that the makers were trying to deal with. This movie had great performances, great villains, great themes, solid story and tons of James Bond style fun. The writers were able to pay homage to the film series and make those homages a huge part of the central themes of the movie, a totally original and clever task in my eyes. The best part of the movie, though, and the thing that makes it one of my favorite Bond films is the breathtaking cinematography. If this movie doesn't get the Oscar for best cinematography I'm going to riot! I was in awe of the beauty of this films pictures and the amazing clear action scenes. This wasn't the Bourne films where you have no idea who's punching who or what the hell is actually happening, this was action filming at it's absolute best.
2) Looper
This movie surprised me. And that's saying a lot because it was talked about a ton. Somehow elements of the story were never mentioned in the discussions I heard that made it so much more interesting a movie then what I was expecting. I won't ruin it for those who haven't seen it, but this movie goes beyond the time travel genre it centers itself around. That's not to say it isn't mostly a time travel movie with all the tropes and themes one has come to expect from them because that's exactly what it is, but there's story elements that move it beyond your typical time travel movie. The acting was fantastic. Joseph Gordan-Levitt does a great Bruce Willis and Bruce himself does a great aging Bruce Willis. This isn't a deep movie and as time travel movies go, isn't overly complex, but it was a ton of fun and certainly should be included in the best time travel movie discussion.
1) The Dark Knight Rises
I know a lot of people didn't think this was the greatest of movies, but I loved it. I still feel it could have been in the Best Picture running, I mean, it's ten times the movie Life Of Pi is and way more interesting then Amour. The consensus is that The Dark Knight is the best of the Nolan films, but I feel the last half-hour of that movie was unnecessary and dragged things on longer then needed. That wasn't the case with The Dark Knight Rises, it had me captivated right up to the very end. Was it a perfect movie? No, but at the same time I felt people were overly critical about it. Many of the problems others had, I felt were not actually problems or worked in the world that Nolan had created. This was a great movie filled with interesting commentary, wonderful performances and fantastic action. I think that Anne Hathaway should have got the Supporting Actress nod for this movie rather then Les Miserables, it was a much more nuanced and dynamic performance, but she didn't have to sing so I guess that means it's inferior. I saw this one twice in the theater, something I haven't done in a long time, so that should say something about how much I enjoyed this film.
Honorable Mentions: The Hunger Games; The Avengers; Prometheus
5) The Grey
This one is popping up on a lot of movie lists this year and rightfully so. It was released in the early part of the year, so it was easy for the awards people to forget it, not to mention the fact that action movies aren't considered award worthy, but this was an intense survival thriller that was intellectual as well and deserved recognition. A lot of people refer to it as the wolf movie, but it was so much more then that. It was an exciting exploration into the human condition of survival. How long and to what extent will we fight to stay alive? At one point does one give in to the inevitability of death? And the action was intense and well shot as well. It was a movie that worked on two levels and that seems to be rarer and rared these days.
4) Cabin In The Woods
There are two very strong views of this movie, either you loved it or you hated it, and I absolutely loved it. Everything that happened after the "Purge" button was pushed was pure bliss. I struggled a bit on how to classify it, is it a horror movie, is it a comedy, is it a drama. I went with horror (so for this list's purposes, action) since that's the genre it is most trying to comment on. I know that the whole "story inside a story" aspect of the movie bothered many, I thought it was genius and feel any true horror fan should love this film. They found a way to mock the genre's tropes without turning the whole movie into a farce. It felt like a true horror film even though it was more about making a horror film or at least the people who make all things horror.
3) Skyfall
As I've written before, I think, when all is said and done, that this will rank as one of the top 5 Bond movies of all time, if not the best. It certainly had some flaws and I totally acknowledge the Home Alone ending, but there was so much that was great about this film that it was easy to ignore the small problems. I seriously didn't mind that the ending felt a little like Home Alone, because it worked with the story being told and the themes that the makers were trying to deal with. This movie had great performances, great villains, great themes, solid story and tons of James Bond style fun. The writers were able to pay homage to the film series and make those homages a huge part of the central themes of the movie, a totally original and clever task in my eyes. The best part of the movie, though, and the thing that makes it one of my favorite Bond films is the breathtaking cinematography. If this movie doesn't get the Oscar for best cinematography I'm going to riot! I was in awe of the beauty of this films pictures and the amazing clear action scenes. This wasn't the Bourne films where you have no idea who's punching who or what the hell is actually happening, this was action filming at it's absolute best.
2) Looper
This movie surprised me. And that's saying a lot because it was talked about a ton. Somehow elements of the story were never mentioned in the discussions I heard that made it so much more interesting a movie then what I was expecting. I won't ruin it for those who haven't seen it, but this movie goes beyond the time travel genre it centers itself around. That's not to say it isn't mostly a time travel movie with all the tropes and themes one has come to expect from them because that's exactly what it is, but there's story elements that move it beyond your typical time travel movie. The acting was fantastic. Joseph Gordan-Levitt does a great Bruce Willis and Bruce himself does a great aging Bruce Willis. This isn't a deep movie and as time travel movies go, isn't overly complex, but it was a ton of fun and certainly should be included in the best time travel movie discussion.
1) The Dark Knight Rises
I know a lot of people didn't think this was the greatest of movies, but I loved it. I still feel it could have been in the Best Picture running, I mean, it's ten times the movie Life Of Pi is and way more interesting then Amour. The consensus is that The Dark Knight is the best of the Nolan films, but I feel the last half-hour of that movie was unnecessary and dragged things on longer then needed. That wasn't the case with The Dark Knight Rises, it had me captivated right up to the very end. Was it a perfect movie? No, but at the same time I felt people were overly critical about it. Many of the problems others had, I felt were not actually problems or worked in the world that Nolan had created. This was a great movie filled with interesting commentary, wonderful performances and fantastic action. I think that Anne Hathaway should have got the Supporting Actress nod for this movie rather then Les Miserables, it was a much more nuanced and dynamic performance, but she didn't have to sing so I guess that means it's inferior. I saw this one twice in the theater, something I haven't done in a long time, so that should say something about how much I enjoyed this film.
Honorable Mentions: The Hunger Games; The Avengers; Prometheus
Friday, February 15, 2013
Top 5: Best New TV Shows of 2012
The next in my belated best of 2012 Top 5 lists is Top 5 New
Television Shows. This was a tough year
for new shows. There really wasn’t much
quality in any of the year’s new shows. I feel like I really had to reach to get five
quality shows worth writing about and a couple honorable mentions. I included any show that debuted in the 2012 calendar
year, not just shows that started this fall season. Doing it that way feels more in step with how
shows come out in this day and age and gave me more shows to pick from, because
in all honesty, this fall season was pretty horrid as far as new shows
goes. Here’s my Top 5 New Television
Shows Of 2012…
5) Go On
I love
Matthew Perry and this show delivers Perry at his snarky best. A more mainstream version of Community, Go On
is far from a great show but it’s consistent in its mediocrity and that’s a
compliment with this year’s crop. The
characters are well written and acted, there are plenty of funny and touching
moments; it’s not a show I am going to stop everything to watch, but it’s an
entertaining half hour every week. And
did I mention Matthew Perry is in it?
4) Arrow
I’m a comic
book nerd and, right after Batman, my all time favorite comic book character is
Green Arrow. I have a thing for the
self-made super hero, someone who doesn’t have a super power crutch to lean
on. Needless to say, that being the case,
even if this was a horrible show, I would still be watching. Lucky for me it’s actually pretty well
done. It is on the CW, so it’s not
ground breaking or life changing, but it is a quality super hero drama. They do a good job handling the Oliver Queen
mythos (although making his kid sister’s nickname Speedy is a little bothersome)
and have thrown some nice bones to us comic geeks while still keeping the
stories their own. Again, I’m not
blocking an hour of my week to watch it, but when I do get around to watching
it I’ve been highly entertained.
3) The Mindy Project
Mindy is a funny girl and this
quirky off-beat comedy seems to capture her energy perfectly. It’s a great paring with New Girl and is
easily the best new comedy of the year.
Its jokes might not be as rapid fire as 30 Rock, but its silliness
reminds me of the Tina Fey classic. There
seems to be some discussion that the show isn’t doing great with ratings and
may not stay around. That would be a
travesty because the show seems to still be building momentum. The Christmas episode was hilarious and a
great sign of what the show can be when it fires on all cylinders. Here’s to hoping we get a few more seasons of
funny from Mindy and friends.
2) Aquabats Supershow!
I’ve waited
almost twenty years for this show and it did disappoint in the least. From the moment I saw my first live Aquabats
show I wondered how they didn’t have a television show and thanks in part to
the success of Yo Gabba Gabba, that thought has become a reality. Their off the wall zaniness and tongue in cheek
humor make this show one of the funniest on TV.
Like a modern day Monkees crossed with The Avengers, the Aquabats go
around playing music and fighting bad guys all for the kids. Yes, it helps that I love their music, but
really what makes the show so good is the sense of humor.
1) Bunheads
In all honesty, I wasn’t going to
write this list, it just didn’t seem worth it with such bad shows this year,
but then I remembered that Aquabats and Bunheads started in 2012 and I had to
write about them. Yes, I’m a guy and,
yes, I loved Gilmore Girls. It was an
amazingly written show and it introduced me to Lauren Graham. I’m not ashamed about the fact I loved it in
the least. Bunheads is from the same
writer and producer and everything that was great about Gilmore Girls seeps
through every pore of Bunheads. Rapid
fire dialogue, quirky pop culture references, side splitting funny moments,
great small town characters, poignant dramatic moments, it’s all here in this wonderful
family drama. Some may say it’s too much
like Gilmore Girls, but there are enough differences in story and character to
make it feel like a different show with the same style. I don’t know that it’s going to last, so
please tune in now, you’re missing a great show.
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Top 5: Books Of 2012
If you read this blog you already know that I have been cataloging
the books I read in 2012. I don’t
necessarily keep up with books released in any given year, so it’s hard for me
to do a best of 2012. I don’t even know
if I read 5 books that came out in 2012.
So this list is more of a summary of the stuff I have already
written. Here’s the Top 5 Books I Read
in 2012…
5) The Last Hero: A Life of Henry Aaron by Howard Bryant
It’s not a
hidden fact that I am a huge baseball fan, so that probably has something to do
with my love of this book, but it is about so much more then baseball. In a society that has come to expect our
heroes to tweet and comment on everything, here is a story about a man that was
asked to make strides for his race and did it without great fanfare or
publicity. His reluctance to speak out
certainly has hurt his legacy. As the
book shows, Willie Mays will always be considered the better ball player even
though in most areas Aaron has the better stats. Bryant does a great job showcasing Aaron as
arguably the greatest baseball player ever, a reluctant hero, and a great
American.
4) Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
It’s been
pretty documented how reluctant I was to read the Hunger Game books. I still contend that the frame work was
stolen from other stories. But I quickly
fell in love with the characters Collins created and the subtlety and intensity
of the relationships they have with each other.
Mockingjay was probably my favorite of the three. Collins wasn’t afraid to pull any punches and
refuses to leave us with a “walk off into the sunset” happy ending. She created a world where there are
consequences for one’s actions and sticks to that theme to the very end. None of the characters will be the same after
the choices they made or the horrors that were forced upon them and, in my
mind, that makes this a great novel.
3) The Strain by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan
This book
is probably closer to a guilty pleasure then a great piece of literature, but I
loved it none the less. It was a great
spin on the vampire story, staying away from the tortured soul cliché and just
being a wonderful horror story. It has
great characters and solid story telling, all that you can ask for in a
book. If you read vampire books for the
romance, you should probably stay away, but if you enjoy a well told horror
story this is a must read.
2) The Visible Man by Chuck Klosterman
Chuck
Klosterman is one of my favorite authors, so it should be no surprise this book
made my best of the year list. Normally
an essayist, Klosterman didn’t seem out of place at all writing this poignant
novel. Much like his essays, The Visible
Man comments on our society and culture, but does so in a more subtle way. It’s also an exciting thriller about a guy
with an invisibility suit. The book is a
bit darker then one would expect from Klosterman but that only gives the themes
he’s exploring more weight. This is a
novel that should probably be read multiple times and is so well written and
easy to get through that it won’t be much of a chore.
1)Last Night In Twisted River – John Irving
I haven’t
read a ton of Irving and I haven’t
gotten around to any of his “classics” yet, but this book blew my mind. I was enthralled from page one and couldn’t
put the book down for a second. It’s by
far the most personal of Irving’s
novels and that is saying a lot since he always seems to pull from his personal
experiences and trials. As would be
expected, the characters are beautifully drawn, the narrative is engrossing,
and the prose is perfectly constructed.
Even if most of the themes and images are repetitive from other Irving
works, this is an amazing and unheralded piece of fiction.
Honorable Mentions: Orphan Master’s Son by Adam Johnson; The
Devil’s Star by Jo Nesbo; The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach; Everyone Loves
Our Town: An Oral History of Grunge by mark Yarm
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
New Girl: Table 34
Was I a little scared tuning in to New Girl this week? Yes.
Were my fears resolved? Not
necessarily. All great sitcoms have one
thing in common, fantastic will they/won’t they tension between two
characters. And in almost every case,
when that tension is taken away the show goes down the tubes. The one exception is Cheers where the writers
were somehow able to make the Sam/Diane relationship so contentious that even
when they were together you felt the tension.
When Nick kissed Jess last week I groaned, I audibly groaned because I
saw the best comedy on TV make a huge mistake.
They didn’t have to go there yet.
This wasn’t a Jim/Pam situation where the writers had put themselves in
a corner they could only get out of with a kiss. There was plenty of story to develop before
these two had a moment, so it really worried me that they jumped right in. It felt like a classic jump the shark moment
even it is only season two. And Table 34
didn’t do much to make me feel better about the decision. The two may have spent most of the episode
claiming that the kiss meant nothing, but I’m sure none of us believed that and
ending the Jess/Sam relationship just feels like another step in the wrong
direction. I love this show, but a
Jess/Nick relationship will be nothing short of disaster, especially this early
in the game.
In other
news, Winston may be becoming my new favorite character. They’ve figured the character out and every
week he just seems to get funnier. Even
though I was wrong about last week’s girl becoming a semi-regular, I was very
happy with the mojo man. I also loved
Nick’s panic moonwalk. I hope that’s a
joke that comes back without mention.
It’s silly yet perfectly describes Nick’s awkwardness in certain
situations.
The
Nick quote of the week: “Is there another doctor in the house?”
New Girl: Cooler
There isn't a new New Girl this week and I'm more then a couple of weeks behind reviewing it, so I'm going to take the chance to go back a couple of weeks and attempt to catch up. Here's the first of two New Girl posts today, you probably don't even remember the episodes at this point, but oh well...
After a couple weeks of mediocre episodes the New Girl crew
came back full force with “Cooler.” If
I’ve had one consistent problem with the show it has been their handling of
Winston. This episode seemed to address
those concerns by finally giving him a storyline. It’s been a slow build this season from non-existent
after thought to funny background player to what now looks like a fully
developed character. It says great
things about the show writers that they can address the show’s weaknesses and
course correct while still pumping out quality episodes. I love how Winston wilted when approaching
women, even if it didn’t totally jive with what we have seen in the past. And even though it was obvious the girl was
single (why else would she go back to the flat and play American), it was a
nice payoff having the two hook up. I
now have high hopes that she will stay around a while and Winston will get some
time in the spotlight.
My favorite
moment of the episode was easily the American call back. I loved that they brought everyone’s favorite
drinking game back. It’s a great joke
that works wonderfully as a way to push plot points along. It feels like something that would have been
used on How I Met Your Mother when those guys still knew how to write a funny
episode. I also love the use of “Party
At Ground Zero,” anytime a ska song shows up in a TV show or movie, I’m all in.
And yes…
I’m totally ignoring that they may have jumped the shark at the end of the
show. I deal with that at some other
time.
Nick
quote of the week: “He’s got a 401k and a sick pack.”Monday, February 11, 2013
Top 5: Albums of 2012
It looks like I have fallen behind
in my blog updates. It really doesn’t
matter why, but I’ve found myself unable to find time to sit down and write the
last few months. Which means… It’s time
for me to try catching up!! I originally
planned on having a week of Top 5 Lists dealing with the best of 2012. That never happened, but I still feel the
need to write about my favorite TV shows, books and music from last year, so
you’re going to get it now. Better late
then never, I guess.
I’m
going to kick off my belated Top 5 of 2012 lists with Top 5 Favorite Albums of
2012, or CDs if you have no idea what an album is. I know we live in a world where singles are
more important then putting together a full album, but to me, it’s all about
being entertained for 30-45 minutes. A
song is a novelty; an album is a creative statement. Her are my favorite albums of 2012…
5) Go Fly A Kite – Ben Kweller
Ben Kweller
is not pop enough to be mainstream nor avant-garde enough o be considered
trendy, so he’s perfect for my tastes. He’s
been cranking out quality album after quality album under the radar since
2002. This years release was a perfect
addition to his catalogue. Somewhere
between the pop rock of On My Way and the alt-country of Changing Horses, Go
Fly A Kite is a fun, light, musical romp.
Kweller has a style that’s poignant without being edgy, which makes for
great music.
Favorite
Tracks: "Mean To Me", "Jealous Girl"
4) Candy Coated Fury – Reel Big Fish
If I based
this list just on album title, this would be the hands down number one. And there probably wasn’t much doubt this
would make the list, because if you’ve read any of this blog you know how
extremely biased I am when it comes to RBF.
But the truth is this album actually had to grow on me. My first reaction was slight disdain; the
lyrics were cheesy (or cheesier then normal for you RBF detractors), the songs
were to repetitive, Scott Klopfenstein isn’t on the album. Slowly, though, I found the songs sticking in
my head and caught myself humming horn lines over and over. It’s not the best RBF album, not even the
third best, but it has some great songs and certainly holds up in the RBF
cannon. I might not have loved it right
off the bat, but it certainly became one of my favorites of 2012.
Favorite
Tracks: "I Dare You To Break My Heart", "I Know You To Well To Like You Anymore",
"Your Girlfriend Sucks"
3) Day Job – Suburban Legends
This was a
good year for ska. RBF came back to form
and the Suburban Legends cam out with probably their best album ever. Suburban Legends, made up of equal parts ska,
pop, boy band, and disco, are one of those bands who I’ve continued to listen
to over the years because I know they can write a good hook, but none of their recent
albums have done much for me. Their
first album, Rump Shaker, was arguably a third wave ska classic, but everything
since has been a little tepid. They’ve
written a few good songs but haven’t put together a full album. Day Job puts together everything that is fun
about the band, their infectious hooks, silly sense of humor and high energy,
and maintains it for a full 35 minutes.
It is certainly a throw back to the Rump Shaker days. They even threw in two of their popular
Disney covers.
Favorite
Tracks: "Open Your Eyes", "Love Fair", "Can’t Stop It"
2) Uno – Green Day
Talk about
returning to form. Green Day, after the
totally forgettable 21st Century Breakdown, released three fantastic
albums that brought back the late 90’s with gusto. Even though all three were solid albums, Uno
was the best of the bunch. There is a
small part of me that thinks they would have been better off just taking the
best 12 to 14 tracks and made amazing album that would have probably been there
all time best, but I’m not going to complain.
Of the three, Uno had the most of my favorite tracks, one of those,
“Stay The Night”, is probably my favorite song of the year. The album is classic hard driving pop punk
with a few off beat chances, like “Kill The DJ,” that break from typical Green
Day fare without losing the spirit and energy of the album.
Favorite
Tracks: "Stay The Night", "Fell For You", "Oh Love"
1) Some Nights – fun
This album
surprised the heck out of me (it is the only band on this list that I hadn’t
heard before this year). I heard “We Are
Young” and didn’t think much of it, but suddenly it was everywhere and was
getting stuck in my head. I decided to
give the album a listen and was blown away.
What I like so much about Some Nights is how different it is then anything
out there. It isn’t bubble gum pop or
whinny guitar rock or any other style you hear over and over on the radio. fun is a band that is doing their own thing
and doing it really well. The songs are
carried by the amazing vocals and harmonies, something that only brings to mind
Queen. Yet that is where the Queen comparisons
stop. There’s no arena level guitar
solos on this album, just well constructed songs that jump all over the musical
map.
Favorite
Tracks: "We Are Young", "Why Am I The One", "Some Nights"
Honorable Mentions: Championship Rock-Japandroids, Blak And
Blu-Gary Clark Jr., 2nd Law-Muse, Anarchy My Dear-Say Anything
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