Just in time for OSCAR Weekend, here are my FAVORITE FILMS of 2011!!!!!!!!!
1. EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE
2. THE HEDGEHOGE
3. CRAZY STUPID LOVE
4. THE DESCENDANTS
5. THE HELP
6. UNDERTOW
7. BRIDESMAIDS
8. MONEYBALL
9. MIDNIGHT IN PARIS
10. WAR HORSE
11. MELANCHOLIA
12. MY WEEK WITH MARILYN
13. THE SEPARATION
14. JANE EYRE
15. ANONYMOUS
16. SLEEPING BEAUTY
17. THE WHISTLE BLOWER
18. RISE OF PLANET OF THE APES
19. GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO
20. WARRIOR
PLUS--HIPSTERS, WEEKEND, MARTHA MARY MAY MARLENE, ADVENTURES OF TIN TIN, and TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY.
ANY OF THE FOLLOWING TOP DOCUMENTARIES COULD BE FIT INTO THE TOP 20 ABOVE--THEY ALL RATED B+ or better--
HOT COFFEE, HOW TO DIE IN OREGON, TOPP TWINS; UNTOUCHABLE GIRLS, LAST MOUNTAIN, PROJECT NIM, BUCK, PAGE ONE; INSIDE THE NEW YORK TIMES, TABLOID.
VERY PLEASANT SURPRISES----
THE BIG YEAR, MISSION IMPOSSIBLE 4, ADVENTURES OF TIN TIN, HAPPY HAPPY, CAPTAIN AMERICA, A BETTER LIFE, PAUL
LOVABLE GUILTY PLEASURES----
HUGO, CEDAR RAPIDS, GREEN HORNET, HORRIBLE BOSSES, DETECTIVE DEE AND THE PHANTOM FLAME, RIO, FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS, NO STRINGS ATTACHED
WEIRD, KINKY AND THOUGHT PROVOKING----
THE SKIN I LIVE IN, SLEEPING BEAUTY, THE DEVIL'S DOUBLE, RANGO, THE FUTURE
BEST EMOTIONAL PUNCHES AND/OR SURPRISES (A PERSONAL FAVORITE CATEGORY)----
EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE, THE HELP, UNDERTOW, THE HEDGEHOG, WEEKEND, HOW TO DIE IN OREGON, THE SKIN I LIVE IN, BUCK, and, for it's incredibly emotional final scene, WARRIOR.
It's not bad, but the MOST OVERRATED FILM THIS YEAR for me is THE ARTIST. There is a reason why silent films died out in the early 1930's--slow moving, belabored plotting, actors who mug their way through a scene, tiresome, predictable musical scores, etc. And this is the front-runner for many OSCARs this year!?! I've seen dozens of silents over the years, but this one isn't that unique.
WORST of the YEAR---BEASTLY, HOW DO YOU KNOW, RUM DAIRY, ELECTRA LUXX and my most despicable film---COWBOYS AND ALIENS.
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Ready or not, here comes OSCAR--SUNDAY 26 February, 5pm PST.
Here are the main Best Picture nominees, in my order of preference.
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
The Descendants
The Help
Moneyball
Midnight in Paris
War Horse
Hugo
The Artist
The Tree of Life
THE ARTIST seems to be the favorite (see my above comments) but I would love for anything else to win this one--even THE TREE OF LIFE was certainly more challenging and ambitious.
Best Actor seems to come down to a close race between Jean Dujardin (The Artist) and George Clooney (Decendants). I loved Clooney, but Dujardin may ride the Artist crest. I don't feel too bad, because I've loved him in many French films that not many in the US have seen--two films in the OSS-117 series--funny spoofs of 007 films, and recently in A CLINK OF ICE--he's a disturbed writer with mental block, and a cancerous tumor (in human form) who follows him everywhere. He's been great in the past. I'd also love to see the understated Demian Bichir win for the little-seen A BETTER LIFE about a struggling illegal trying to raise his son gang-free, and Gary Oldman and Brad Pit are worthy too, for TINKER TAILOR and MONEYBALL respectively.
Viola Davis seemed to have a lock on Best Actress for THE HELP this summer, but then THE IRON LADY opened, and we now know that Meryl Streep has given just about the BEST performance of her entire and spectacular career!!!!!!!!! Unfortunately, IRON LADY is not a very satisfying film, and Davis may have her edge back. Either one is fine with me.
Rooney Mara and Michelle Williams (Dragon Tattoo and Week w/Marilyn, respectively) are both fine, and young and will have other shots. Glenn Close (ALBERT NOBBS) has never won despite 6 nominations. Unfortunately, her film is rather subtle, and she is out preformed by Janet McTeer in a similar supporting role in the same film.
The two Supporting acting categories seems like locks. For the Actors, Kenneth Branagh (MY WEEK W/MARILYN), Jonah Hill (MONEYBALL), Nick Nolte (WARRIOR) and Max Von Sydow (EXTREMELY LOUD...) are all worthy nominees, but you have likable Christopher Plummer from THE SOUND OF MUSIC--oops, I mean BEGINNERS, as the big likely (and over due) winner here. The women have Berenice Bejo (THE ARTIST), Jessica Chastain (who's been in a remarkable 5 films this year alone) for THE HELP, Melissa McCarthy (BRIDESMAIDS) and Janet McTeer (ALBERT NOBBS--see above comments) and they are all quite good. But from it's opening in August, Octavia Spencer has been winning all the awards for her great comic performance in THE HELP.
Since THE ARTIST seems the front runner, Michel Hazanavicius seems sure of the director's nod, but the other nominees also did a very creative job this year: Woody Alen (MIDNIGHT IN PARIS), Terrance Malik (THE TREE OF LIFE), Alexander Payne (THE DESCENDANTS) and Martin Scorsese (HUGO).
I'd love to see Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo win Best original screenplay for BRIDESMAIDS, and also Asghar Farhadi for A SEPARATION, or even Woody Allen for MIDNIGHT IN PARIS, but odds have THE ARTIST winning, for the 2 dozen subtitles put up on the screen for us to read. REALLY?
Best adapted screenplay is a mystery to me. I'd pick Alexander Payne et al for THE DESCENDANTS, but HUGO, MONEYBALL and TINKER TAILOR etc seem also strong. Even IDES OF MARCH (George Clooney) has a shot here.
I loved the Original score for WARHORSE (and TINTIN) (John Williams) and HUGO (Howard Shore)--but both have won several times. THE ARTIST score has been a source of controversy, since a great section of it (towards the ending) is actually lifted from Alfred Hitchcock's film VERTIGO by Bernard Hermann, and I think the rest is dribble. It will probably win nonetheless.
The technical awards will likely be scooped up by the popular HUGO. Only a couple nominated documentaries have screened in Seattle--same for the short subjects, none of which I've seen.
I've only seen 2 of the nominated best foreign language films. A SEPARATION is excellent (see recent blog for review) and would be my guess for the winner, but the Academy seems to love films about the Holocaust, and IN DARKNESS (from Poland) may win that vote, even though 80% of it is filmed in near total darkness. I could not see who was speaking to who, or what was being done in almost all the underground scenes. Add to that an aggressive hand held camera, and I really DISLIKED this film a lot, even though it's heart may have been in the right place. Based on a true story, it tells of hundreds of Jews who survive the war by being hidden and fed by Poles in a small town in the underground sewer system.
If nothing else, you get to ogle the fabulous and/or tacky gowns that are worn down the red carpet. The best part of the Oscar show for me this year may be on Monday, when Joan Rivers and her crew praise or rip to shreds some of the best/worst fashions of the Oscars on FASHION POLICE. Check your local TV listings.
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Friday, February 17, 2012
THE SEPERATION, THE VOW, DECLARATION OF WAR, GOING POSTAL plus Michael Powell--RED SHOES, PHANTOM LIGHT, Red Ensign
Surprising in many ways, the Iranian film which has 2 Oscar nominations for best Foreign Film and best screenplay is a searing inditement of life in a repressive country. THE SEPARATION starts out with an intense scene between husband and wife in front of a judge, trying to explain why they want a divorce, although the reason given (he won't move out of the country with her and their 11 year old daughter) seems quite lame at best. It becomes clear that his reason for not moving--his elderly father suffers from severe dementia and cannot travel, and he feels compelled to keep providing for his care--is a valid one, and makes the wife seem rather selfish from the start. But as the film progresses, we see a complicated relationship that comes under even more stress when they have a trial separation, as a dramatic yet innocent fight (with a newly hired caretaker) takes on tragic proportions, emphasising the husband's stubbornness and selfishness. Through it all, the daughter plays a delicate balancing game to placate both parents, not wanting to loose either one. The film captures the frustrations of middle class daily life very well--streets crowded with masses of humanity and cars, no parking, noise pollution rampant, long lines for basic necessities, desperation with homelessness and unemployment, and a judicial system that seems possibly rife with corruption and/or persuasion with no justice or satisfaction for anyone. It is an eye-opening film. GRADE-----A-
A new film from Belgium called DECLARATION OF WAR has just opened for what will likely be a brief run in Seattle, but is is worth the effort to catch it. A young couple meet, mate, marry and procreate in the first 15 minutes, then start their life together with baby and assorted friends and family members in a newly renovated apartment. Not quite two years later they discover that baby has a serious brain tumor, and the film turns on the heat as all concerned fight for the life and health of the baby. It's a snappy, energetic film, which even though it is cut quickly and contains many restless scenes (of hospital visits, travel, visiting friends, trips to the disco, medical professionals opinions, etc) it resists the use the busy hand held camera (HALLELUJAH!), and becomes a positive testament on the love (and energy) that can triumph in the end. GRADE-------B+
The situation in THE VOW has a newly married, deeply in love young couple involved in a serious car accident. The husband (Tatum Channing) survives unscathed, but the wife (Rachel McAdams) who has inconveniently just unfastened her seat belt to kiss her love as they are rear-ended, suffers amnesia. She can't remember anything about her new life, but she remembers being in love with her sleazy boyfriend a few years before. Based on a true story, one wants to go with the film as a romantic will she or won't she theme. Unfortunately, the actors are incredibly dull. Channing is a hunk and takes his shirt off to prove it half a dozen times, but he talks like he has too many muscles in his mouth to make much sense. McAdams fares slightly better, but as we discover the life she left to be with her new husband, you want to scream at the screen--"do you really want to go back to your sleazebag ex-boyfriend and your intensely unhappy rich parents???!!!???" The direction is still-born, and the result is possibly the most boring film I've seen in years. GRADE-------D+
Following are DVD CHOICES for the week------------------------
Based on a book by Terry Pratchett, who has, I gather, a large cultish following for his fantastic other worldly stories that seem buried in modern themes but set in fantastical countries with fantastical creatures, the British film GOING POSTAL (2010) may be a good introduction to his twisted world. Based on a two part TV movie (185 minutes) the film, I was told, is pretty faithful to the novel, and I enjoyed the extravagant sets and amusing story, as a struggling post office is forced to compete with a company that uses computer like machinery to transfer mail around the country. The cast includes an amusing Richard Coyle as a con man forced to take over the dying post office by city leader Charles Dance (played as.....god?!?) and the devious David Suchet is the evil owner of the mechanical system out to stop him. The film is greatly benefited by being filmed on location in Hungary, with it's run down opulent buildings and other worldly streets. GRADE-----B
Ended up seeing 3 Michael Powell directed films this past week. First up, because I received a new Blu Ray edition, is the classic THE RED SHOES (1948) which holds up even better than ever. Based on the fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen, this film, beautifully photographed in color by legend Jack Cardiff tells the story of a young dancer who is willing to give up everything to become a star, even if it means giving up the man of her life. I'm always impressed by the cast, as real-life dancer Moira Shearer gives a great performance as dancer Victoria Page, which established her as a fine actress as well. I also find Anton Walbrook fascinating--he plays the cruel ballet director Boris Lermontov. Walbrook only made a few movies that made it to the US--I recently saw him in the memorable THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP (1943), and 49th PARALLEL (1941)--both fine Powell films. I want to catch some of his early films from Europe (which include LA RONDE, an earlier version of GASLIGHT, and the original version of VICTOR/VICTORIA.)
Made earlier were RED ENSIGN (1934), a mildly interesting film about the struggle of a man eager to rebuild England's reputation as a major-ship building nation after WWI, but he struggles with money problems and sabotage, and THE PHANTOM LIGHT (1935) a slightly more interesting film about shady and mysterious goings on at a light house where several light house masters have disappeared, and where several ships have crashed. An interesting premise, but alas, the ending is rather predictable and flat. GRADE-----RED SHOES- A, PHANTOM LIGHT- C+, and RED ENSIGN- C
On the same disc as RED ENSIGN and PHANTOM LIGHT (called Classic British Thrillers) is a little known film noir called THE UPTURNED GLASS (1947). James Mason stars as a doctor and lecturer who becomes a sleuth to discover the meaning of his lover's mysterious death, but when he uncovers some information, he decides to seek revenge instead of going to the police. Mason is suburb, and the film has stuck in my mind for nearly two weeks since seen, a good sign of a strong movie. GRADE-----B
A new film from Belgium called DECLARATION OF WAR has just opened for what will likely be a brief run in Seattle, but is is worth the effort to catch it. A young couple meet, mate, marry and procreate in the first 15 minutes, then start their life together with baby and assorted friends and family members in a newly renovated apartment. Not quite two years later they discover that baby has a serious brain tumor, and the film turns on the heat as all concerned fight for the life and health of the baby. It's a snappy, energetic film, which even though it is cut quickly and contains many restless scenes (of hospital visits, travel, visiting friends, trips to the disco, medical professionals opinions, etc) it resists the use the busy hand held camera (HALLELUJAH!), and becomes a positive testament on the love (and energy) that can triumph in the end. GRADE-------B+
The situation in THE VOW has a newly married, deeply in love young couple involved in a serious car accident. The husband (Tatum Channing) survives unscathed, but the wife (Rachel McAdams) who has inconveniently just unfastened her seat belt to kiss her love as they are rear-ended, suffers amnesia. She can't remember anything about her new life, but she remembers being in love with her sleazy boyfriend a few years before. Based on a true story, one wants to go with the film as a romantic will she or won't she theme. Unfortunately, the actors are incredibly dull. Channing is a hunk and takes his shirt off to prove it half a dozen times, but he talks like he has too many muscles in his mouth to make much sense. McAdams fares slightly better, but as we discover the life she left to be with her new husband, you want to scream at the screen--"do you really want to go back to your sleazebag ex-boyfriend and your intensely unhappy rich parents???!!!???" The direction is still-born, and the result is possibly the most boring film I've seen in years. GRADE-------D+
Following are DVD CHOICES for the week------------------------
Based on a book by Terry Pratchett, who has, I gather, a large cultish following for his fantastic other worldly stories that seem buried in modern themes but set in fantastical countries with fantastical creatures, the British film GOING POSTAL (2010) may be a good introduction to his twisted world. Based on a two part TV movie (185 minutes) the film, I was told, is pretty faithful to the novel, and I enjoyed the extravagant sets and amusing story, as a struggling post office is forced to compete with a company that uses computer like machinery to transfer mail around the country. The cast includes an amusing Richard Coyle as a con man forced to take over the dying post office by city leader Charles Dance (played as.....god?!?) and the devious David Suchet is the evil owner of the mechanical system out to stop him. The film is greatly benefited by being filmed on location in Hungary, with it's run down opulent buildings and other worldly streets. GRADE-----B
Ended up seeing 3 Michael Powell directed films this past week. First up, because I received a new Blu Ray edition, is the classic THE RED SHOES (1948) which holds up even better than ever. Based on the fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen, this film, beautifully photographed in color by legend Jack Cardiff tells the story of a young dancer who is willing to give up everything to become a star, even if it means giving up the man of her life. I'm always impressed by the cast, as real-life dancer Moira Shearer gives a great performance as dancer Victoria Page, which established her as a fine actress as well. I also find Anton Walbrook fascinating--he plays the cruel ballet director Boris Lermontov. Walbrook only made a few movies that made it to the US--I recently saw him in the memorable THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP (1943), and 49th PARALLEL (1941)--both fine Powell films. I want to catch some of his early films from Europe (which include LA RONDE, an earlier version of GASLIGHT, and the original version of VICTOR/VICTORIA.)
Made earlier were RED ENSIGN (1934), a mildly interesting film about the struggle of a man eager to rebuild England's reputation as a major-ship building nation after WWI, but he struggles with money problems and sabotage, and THE PHANTOM LIGHT (1935) a slightly more interesting film about shady and mysterious goings on at a light house where several light house masters have disappeared, and where several ships have crashed. An interesting premise, but alas, the ending is rather predictable and flat. GRADE-----RED SHOES- A, PHANTOM LIGHT- C+, and RED ENSIGN- C
On the same disc as RED ENSIGN and PHANTOM LIGHT (called Classic British Thrillers) is a little known film noir called THE UPTURNED GLASS (1947). James Mason stars as a doctor and lecturer who becomes a sleuth to discover the meaning of his lover's mysterious death, but when he uncovers some information, he decides to seek revenge instead of going to the police. Mason is suburb, and the film has stuck in my mind for nearly two weeks since seen, a good sign of a strong movie. GRADE-----B
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